It’s been 35 years since British singer Kate Bush planned a concert series. Now, the 55-year-old is ready to get back in the spotlight. The singer announced on her website yesterday that she would be playing 15 dates at the Hammersmith Apollo theater in London this August and September. She wrote, “I hope you will be able to join us and I look forward to seeing you there. Very best wishes, Kate.” The concert series coincides with the release of her new album 50 Words For Snow.
It isn’t like Bush disappeared from the music scene entirely. Since her debut smash single Wuthering Heights at the age of 19, the singer has recorded ten albums which rendered 25 U.K. Top 40 hit singles. Wuthering Heights was the first Number 1 song in the U.K. by a female artist, and it made Bush an instant celebrity. In fact, she was the most photographed woman in Britain in 1978.
The hits continued for the electric singer following her debut album. She topped the charts with The Man with the Child in His Eye, Army Dreamers, and This Women’s Work which was on the soundtrack for the American movie She’s Having A Baby with Kevin Bacon. Additionally, Bush and Peter Gabriel sang the beautifully tender duet Don’t Give Up together in 1980.
There has never been a clear reason given for her reluctance to perform live, just speculation. Maybe she has a fear of flying or maybe she just prefers to work alone or perhaps a grueling tour schedule is too much for her to handle physically?
Back in 2010, The Guardian attempted to make sense of Bush’s lack of touring. They could never pinpoint any one thing, however, the article does acknowledge the singer’s creative sensibilities. “Bush is essentially a child of the studio, preferring to work over time at her creative impulses in silence and solitude. Like an author, the connections with her audience occur privately, conducted as a conversation rather than a mass declaration. The results have frequently been bewitching and yet, in a career with an abundance of creative peaks and critical praise, her reluctance to perform live remains a source of deep regret, particularly following the extraordinary promise shown on the Tour of Life.”
Tickets go on sale for the concert series on March 28th.
Image via YouTube Screenshot