Notes on Deb's video list

[IED0DXM%OAC.UCLA.EDU@mitvma.mit.edu]

 To: Love-Hounds
 From: Andrew Marvick (IED)
 Subject: Notes on Deb's video list

   First, IED is happy to hear that Julian, despite his increasingly
jaded view of Love-Hounds as a group, consents to remain among us
for a while longer. His opinions and insight are of value to IED.
   Thanks to Deb for her detailed description of her video. IED's
comments, in brackets <>, follow each item:

Kate Bush -- The Collection
---------------------------

1) "The Wedding List"  As far as I can tell, this was shot during the
Secret Policeman's Ball, circa 1980-81.  Among the other musicians on
stage are Pete Townsend on guitar, wearing a gray Nehru jacket and trousers,
looking much as I envision him from his "All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese
Eyes" days.  Phil Collins is on drums, dressed much as he used to be in
Genesis' Abacab days, wearing khakis and a Hawaiian shirt.  As for Kate,
she is wearing a ballerina-style gown, with a tight gold satin bodice with
thin spaghetti straps, and a tea-length tomato-colored netting skirt.  She
has knee-high black boots on her feet.  One humorous (if embarassing for
Kate) item is the fact that by the end of the number, BOTH of the gown's
straps have broken, and Kate finishes the song clutching the bodice of her
gown so she doesn't fall out!  :)

 <This is from the Prince's Trust Gala of 1982.>

2a)  "The Man with the Child in His Eyes"  This is the 1978 (?) SNL performance
Kate did while Eric Idle was the show's host.  In this video, Kate is wearing
her gold-lame' jumpsuit again, singing while perched on top of a piano.
As for the "shooting-up" gesture she makes, I didn't really think it all that
explicit (I didn't even catch it the first time I watched the video).  Anyway,
another point of interest is the fact that the piano is being played by Paul
Schaeffer of David Letterman fame.

 <It is certainly a subtle gesture, Deb. But it's nonetheless quite
explicit and unmistakable. (Note spelling: Paul Shaffer.>

2b)  "Them Heavy People"  Again, from SNL.  In this version of the song, Kate
is sporting a tan trenchcoat and a dark brown fedora, along with knee-high
tan boots.  Personally, I find this particular performance a bit hampered by
the fact that Kate has to hold a microphone, which really limits the amount
of hand gestures she can make while dancing.  Thank goodness for those headset
type mikes they have now... :)

 <Kate felt the same way, which is why she developed the headsets.>

3)  "Them Heavy People"  I have no idea where or when this video was taken.
The setting appears to be in some sort of dance club, because there are
people all over a dance floor, gyrating and drinking as Kate performs.  For
this particular version of the song, Kate is dressed "unusually" in a black
tux with tails, a white tux shirt, and black high heels.  Her face is heavily
made-up and her hair is brushed back from her face rather severely (and I
have to confess that I don't like that look on her at all).  At any rate, Kate
gets a good reception of the song at the end of the performance.  On a bad
note, the quality of this clip is particularly bad.

  <All copies IED has seen of this clip are bad, probably because it
is particularly early and rare. It's the live performance (with the
KT Bush Band) of _THP_ from a show called _Revolver_, February 1978.
The earliest live performance on video.>

4)  "Babooshka"  This lip-synch version of the song appears to have been
performed on some sort of talk-show (Christmas?) program.  In this clip,
Kate is performing in front of a large curtained backdrop which changes
with various wintry scenes (people skating, sleigh-riding, etc).  She is
wearing a black sparkly cape which she keeps drawn around her during the
song's verses, but which she flings open during the chorus to reveal a
knee-length, long-sleeved black sparkly dress and spike heels.  The left side
of the dress is slit almost up to her waist.  Towards the end of the song, Kate
raises her arms to hold the cape, bat-like, out to the sides, and she is
silhouetted against the backdrop.  The song ends, and, as the audience
applauds, a gentleman dressed as a sailor or naval officer runs in from the
left, sweeps Kate up into his arms, and runs offstage to general laughter.

 <The show is either French or Italian--IED believes it's Italian,
and was called _Collaro_, but it also may have been French, or at
least may have been broadcast in France, as well. The officer who
sweeps Kate off her feet at the end is Del Palmer.>

5)  "Suspended in Gaffa"  This lip-synched version features Kate performing
on a large, open stage area, wearing a light blue/grey jump suit and
dancing on three large white steps; her hair is engagingly mussed.  A series
of brightly colored buildings appear in the backdrop.  I can only guess that
this was a Top of the Pops type performance, but I have no idea of the date.
Again, this clip is of pretty poor quality.

   <This clip is almost always paired with the _Babooshka_ clip
you describe above. They are both from about the same time (fall 82),
and are both either from French or Italian TV. IED believes the _SIG_
clip is from the French TV show _Champs-Elysees_.>

6)  "December Will Be Magic Again"  Here's the one everyone's been clamoring
about!  This charming little number features Kate in a large fan-back
wicker chair with red cushions, wearing a long-sleeved red jumpsuit.  She
is barefoot.  A Christmas tree and a table covered with Christmas presents
appears to the left.  As Kate sings, she kind of lolls around in the
chair and sprinkles "snowflakes" around.  It's cute....and sexy at the same
time.

   <Featuring the "bongos" version of the song (now available on EMI's
import _It's_Xmas_ CD), this is from the _Abba_Winter_Snowtime_Special_
of 1979.>

7)  "Babooshka"  Here's another mystery show that Kate appeared on!
It's hosted by 7 country-style singers!  Anyway, in this particular
version of the song, Kate is standing, her right side turned to face
the audience.  Her face is heavily made-up and her hair is pulled back
severely from her face.  She is wearing a high-necked, long-sleeved
jumpsuit.  She remains standing with her right side facing outward
during each set of lyrics, but during the chorus she turns to face
the camera fully, and we see that Kate is painted half-and-half!  The
"wild side" of Kate has a great flying mane of glitzy hair, a face
covered with gold and black lightning bolts, and is wearing a gold
and silver metallic jumpsuit with a large gold choker at the throat.
It's quite weird to see Kate done up this way, but it's definitely
effective!  Talk about 'two sides' to every personality!  :)  Which,
of course, in this instance is exactly what Kate had in mind.
   After her Babooshka performance, Kate joins the 7 hosts and sits
chatting with them; the majority of the conversation dwells on Kate's
costume and her "dual" personality.  One of the hosts then introduces
the video for...

 <This _Babooshka_ is from the _Dr._Hook_Special_ on the BBC, 1980.
The morons she converses with (more properly is conversed at by)
are "Dr. Hook".>

8)  "Delius"  This is by far one of the lovliest things I've ever seen
Kate do.  The background of the video is very lush and green, and is
slightly "hazy", making it look like a very hot, humid summer's day.
Up above Kate and to the left, is "Old Man Summer", sitting up in a
wheelchair with a rug over his knees.  He's sporting a smoking jacket
and a bright yellow sun mask.  Meanwhile, below him, Kate seems to glide
and float around the stage in a confectioner's dream of a gown, all
spun in white gauze and feathers and lace.  Kate holds two slim 'wands'
which are concealed inside the sleeves/gloves of the gown, and she uses
these to flutter and flap her "wings".  The effect, overall and in a
word, is heavenly.  I like the video better each time I watch it.

 <The same video was also shown on an edition of _Russell_Harty_ (see
no. 13) in which the subject was the work of Frederick Delius. Among the
guests with Kate were Delius's assistant and music-transcriber
Eric Fenby and the cellist (who had just recorded Delius's
cello concerto) Julian Lloyd Webber.>

9)  "Babooshka"  -- last few seconds of the "official" video before
going into _Razzmatazz_.  In this children's talk show, Kate is
sitting with the show's hostess in a circle of several dozen lucky
schoolchildren.  Kate is wearing a red tank top and floral skirt, with
high-heeled sandals on her feet.  The children ask questions of Kate
as to how it is to make videos, etc., and short clips from "Army
Dreamers" and "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" are shown.  After
some more discussion, Kate eventually reaches into her bag of goodies
and produces some of the props used in the "Sat in Your Lap" video:
the dance cap, the jester's cap, the bull horns, and her own ballerina
gown.  Once she has all the various hats perched on some of the kids'
heads, the entire "official" video for "Sat in Your Lap" is shown.

10) Rock Awards 1979 -- Kate's first appearance is to come out on
stage to announce the winner of the Best Male Performer for 1979,
Gary Numan, who is interviewed briefly from Pittsburgh.  When Kate
comes out to announce the winner, she is wearing a light-blue, fringed
top over tight-fitting dark blue or black pants, and heels.  She chats
with the host a bit, and then announces Numan.
    Later in this segment, Kate is announced as the winner of the
Best Female Performer for 1979, and the "purple dress" version of
"Wow" is then shown.

 <This was an early incarnation of what have become the _British
_Record_Industry_Awards_ (formerly the BPI's, nowadays called the
Brits).>

11)  "Them Heavy People" -- this is what I like to refer to as the
"light bulb" version of this song, in which the bulb slowly swings back
and forth above Kate at the song's opening.  Kate is wearing a straw
fedora hat, with a figure-flattering black T-shirt, a magenta satin
skirt, and heels.  The only thing I don't like about this version is
that they cut out the little chair-smashing scene which ensues between
Kate and the two male dancers.

   <This was done as an official video to accompany the release
of the _On_Stage_ EP. The performance is a live one, though pre-
recorded, and there is a live studio audience. The performance is
very similar to the one seen on stage, as well as in the Xmas special.
It is also included in the official video release, _The_Single_File_.>

12)  Cooking show -- I mentioned this once before in Love-Hounds, but
for those of you who missed it, this clip features Kate discussing the
virtues of vegetarianism with the show's hostess.  Kate is wearing a
red blouse with a mandarin-style collar, with black and white leaf
patterns covering the blouse.  Among some of the dishes she's prepared:
brown rice; Waldorf Salad; a summer salad with watercress, lettuce,
bean sprouts and oranges; sauteed mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, and
carrots; fresh fruit salad with yogurt/honey dressing, and roasted
sunflower seeds.

 <As Ed already said, this is called _Delia_Smith's_Cookery_Course_.>

13)  Russell Harty TV talk show -- discussion with host and with
Eric Fenby regarding the Delius video.  Here Kate is wearing a
high-necked, long-sleeved grey spangled blouse, a below-the-knee
blue sequined skirt, and heels.

14)  Abbreviated version of "Army Dreamers" video

15)  First two minutes of "official" "Breathing" video

16)  Another unidentified talk show -- here Kate is simply discussing
her background/history with the show's host.  She is looking really
stunning here (so what else is new, I know...this is just my personal
opinion) in (again) a high-necked, long-sleeved black sequined dress,
with black mid-shin tie-up boots on.

 <This, one of the best of all Kate's video interviews (in IED's
op.), is from a programme called _The_Desmond_Morris_Show_. The
interviewer, D. M., is better known as a zoologist who has written
some very good books about dog and cat behaviour. He also has some
smart things to say about modern popular music.>

17)  Entire "The Dreaming" video

18)  Old Grey Whistle Test talk show -- Kate chatting with two hosts.
She is wearing an off-white peasant blouse with much colorful
embroidery, a blue satin mini-skirt, what appear to be hot pink tights,
and white boots.  Unfortunately, the camera is either too far away
from Kate or is too focused on her face for me to really tell what she's
wearing below the waist.  :)

 <This is the earlier of two _OGWT_ appearances Kate has made. It
dates from early 1983.>

19)  "There Goes A Tenner" -- this appears to be something performed
as a lip-synch for Top of the Pops or something.  Kate does this
one with 2 male dancers, and is wearing black leather pants, a white
T-shirt with red suspenders, black gloves (with the fingers cut out),
and black ankle boots.  There is a fairly good-sized crowd of people
standing around, as if on a dance floor.

   <Actually, if you look carefully at the background, you can
see part of the show's title sign on a back wall: _Razzmatazz_.
And contrary to what someone else had to say about this clip recently
in this group, this lip-synch routine for _TGAT_ is absolutely
_brilliant_, _genius_ work. Anyone who thinks otherwise is advised
to watch it several more times through.>

20)  Music Box -- since this is really only a trivia/ contest question
concerning Kate, Kate is never really shown.  The show's hosts do
make a plug for _Hounds of Love_, and then ask the trivia question
"Who wrote Wuthering Heights?"  :)

21)  Interview with Kate taken from Dutch talk show (both the host
and Kate are speaking English; Dutch subtitles appear below).  Kate
is wearing a dark jacket over a white blouse, with large spangly
earrings!  But beware!  Those of you who don't like how Kate looks
with jowls, don't watch this last bit!  ;)

   <From the Dutch TV show _Count_Down_. And in IED's copy of this
clip, at least, Kate looks smashingly pretty. She also lets us know
that she would like to record a record with Bryan Ferry: "His voice
is superb." Late 1985, or early 1986.>

   IED hopes this has been of some help to someone or other.

-- Andrew Marvick