the whole story

[eric.walker@channel1.com (Eric Walker)]

     I discovered Kate's music about four or five years ago, but I've
     been a little slow in catching up with all of her work.

     Last night, I rented the video "The Whole Story" for the first
     time, to see what her music videos were like.  It was an interesting
     collection.  The videos of Kate's earlier songs like "Wuthering
     Heights," "Wow," "Babooshka" etc. were obviously done on low
     budgets, but this can often enhance the effect of some music
     videos, especially the haunting "Breathing."

     However, I should say that I've always preferred Kate's later work,
     when her voice matured to the deep, almost unearthly beautiful
     sound we hear in such songs as Hello Earth" and "The Sensual World."
     I believe that Kate's work improved considerably at the time of
     "Never For Ever," when she became more musically daring and
     experimenting.  I've never been able to listen to her first hit,
     "Wuthering Heights," without wincing when I hear her screeching like
     an owl.

     (Hopefully I can survive that last remark without being flamed to
     death.  That's simply my opinion of Kate - she's gotten better as
     her career progressed, just as with many other singers.)

     Of the videos in "The Whole Story," there were two genuine
     masterpieces.  One was the frightening nightmare "Experiment IV."
     The plot of this video (and the song?) is strongly reminiscent of
     the horror movie "From Beyond" by Stuart Gordon, except that Kate
     succeeds in a mere five minutes, without any messy blood and
     splatter effects, in projecting a feeling of true terror and
     helplessness, of a sort that "From Beyond" only hints at underneath
     all the messy special effects.  This may be one of the most
     terrifying music videos ever made - it's unforgettable.

     As a counterpoint to the shock of "Experiment IV" is the
     exhilarating, jubilant "Cloudbusting."  This one is probably my
     favourite of Kate's songs.  I love music that uses heavy tuned
     percussion to create a rhythm that strikes a person's heart and soul -
     and the backing violins of that song send a chill down my spine.  The
     song is absolutely wonderful, and the storyline of the "Cloudbusting"
     video is terrific as well.  It follows Kate's recurring theme of
     distrust of the government (this theme appears often in British
     mainstream music, while here in America it usually shows up most often
     in "alternative" bands.  Kate is certainly no mere "mainstream"
     performer, however), and the government's zealous, jealous efforts
     to keep troublesome elements (such as "Daddy," the rain maker)
     under control.  In the end, the determined invidual triumphs, despite
     efforts to suppress him.  It's a wonderful video, and "The Whole
     Story" is worth buying just from these two pieces alone.

     I never bothered buying "The Whole Story" on CD, because I have
     all of Kate's songs without that one.  ("Experiment IV" and the
     newer version of "Wuthering Heights" are available as a 45 LP.)
     But I would like to know: is the different, slightly longer version
     of "Cloudbusting" seen in the music video the same one that appears
     on the "Whole Story" CD?  I like alternative "remixes" of favourite
     songs, such as this one.

     And this next question may be old news to you Lovehounds, but I
     don't know the answer:  why is it "Cloudbursting" on "Hounds Of
     Love," and "Cloudbusting" on "The Whole Story?"
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