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Kate Bush: Top 100 Rarities



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[The April '87 issue of Record Collector (the U.K.'s equivalent to the
U.S.'s Goldmine) included a cover article on Kate Bush collectable records. The
article was followed by a list of the "top 100 rarities". Both were
anonymously written. They will be of interest to all KT collectors, but don't
take them too seriously since they are also inaccurate and plagued by
ommissions. Edited and annotated (within brackets "[ ]") by
Andrew Marvick.] 







Kate Bush: Top 100 Rarities


A detailed list of Kate Bush's most valuable collector's items from all
over the world 



The list of rare records at the end of this feature are proof of Kate Bush's
current stature in the world of record collecting. She is undoubtedly one of
Britain's most popular singer-songwriters, and she has achieved consistent
success entirely on her own terms--refusing to be drawn into dubious publicity
campaigns or lengthy promotional tours. Her recent duet with Peter Gabriel on
Don't Give Up showed that her popularity extends beyond the general public into
the musical community and--as the early votes in this year's Readers Poll have
demonstrated--she pulls her support from right across the board, falling into no
convenient faction or musical category. 



 Interest from collectors in all areas of her work has increased
dramatically over the last eighteen months, and many discs which would not have
been regarded as collector's items two years ago are now changing hands for high
prices--notably the original picture sleeve copies of her early U.K. singles.
And like all the other most collectable artists, her overseas picture sleeves,
promos and limited editions are very sought-after. 



 We have attempted to put together a definitive list of the 100 most
collectable Kate Bush items. In practice, of course, such a list cannot be
definitive; there is always going to be a South Korean picture sleeve of Wow or
a Peruvian promo of The Kick Inside to alter the odds. But we believe that our
list represents all the collectable items that are in general circulation--which
is not to say that they are easy to find! 



 [This claim is just false. There are significant ommissions of KT
collectables which are as much in "general circulation"--both here and
in the U.K.--as many of the items on the bottom half of the list below; and many
of these overlooked items fetch considerably higher prices than some of those
which have been included.] 



 At the top of our list is one of two interview albums issued by EMI-America
for North American DJs, to promote Kate's early LPs. [Actually, one of these was
made to promote Hounds of Love, hardly an "early" LP.] An Interview
with Kate Bush is much scarcer (and more interesting) than the album at No. 5 in
our list, which exists in greater quantities--presumably because it comes from
the States, rather than Canada. 



 As you will see, white label test pressings, white label promos and
ordinary promos take up a large part of this chart. But there are also some much
more unusual items. At No. 3, for example, is a white label album called The
Early Years. This apparently consists of demo recordings that Kate made before
her first release for EMI. A couple of years ago, an East German company is
believed to have got hold of the tapes, and prepared them for release as an
album. White label copies were pressed up, and apparently went into local
circulation. The album was immediately withdrawn because of pressure from EMI's
East German licensees, however, and is obviously now a very sought-after item.
We know that collectors are willing to pay up to 60 Pounds for copies, but we
have not been able to trace anyone who has actually seen a copy! If you own one,
or can give us more details of the contents and the presentation of the album,
then please let us know. 



 [This record, if it were ever to become available anywhere, would
undoubtedly place not at No. 3 on the list of most collectable KT items (at a
paltry 60 Pounds!), but at No. 1. Since the only consistent criterion for the
relative placement of the items on the list seems to be what some collector has
said he would pay for them, this writer knows at least three fans who have said
they would gladly pay $500 or more for a copy of The Early Years; and no wonder,
since this legendary record is supposed to include demos of original Kate Bush
material that has never been heard in any form--a prize tantamount to the Kate
Bush collector's Holy Grail. The Canadian interview disc and the U.K. white
label test pressing of The Kick Inside are ordinary in the extreme, in
comparison. So how much credence can the Record Collector's price ratings have?]




Disappointed


The boxed set of Bush singles called The Single File, issued years ago, is
now a collector's item in itself, although at its time of release it
disappointed many fans, both with its production standards and its failure to
reproduce the original picture sleeves. That has done collectors a favour,
however, by making it much easier to tell original pic sleeves from the
reissues. 



 On the rarest of the early picture sleeves, Wuthering Heights, the EMI logo
on the back cover is round, while on the reissue it is square. The same applies
to originals and reissues of Wow. With The Man With the Child in His Eyes, the
differences are more difficult to describe; but the reissue has much less clear
printing than the original, and is obviously a copy of a sleeve, rather than the
original artwork. There are similar differences on the other reissues; for
example, the reissues of Hammer Horror have square-edged paper-folds on the
back, rather than the round edges of the originals. In some cases, these minor
differences can make a variation of several hundred percent in the values of
originals and reissue copies. 



 The four-track set Kate Bush On Stage, taken from her one and only concert
tour, is responsible for several entries in our list of rarities. The set
originally appeared in demo form as a double-pack in a gatefold sleeve, and the
first few copies of the standard release followed the same format. Most copies
exist as a single four-track EP in a gatefold sleeve, however, with original
copies having a card cover rather than the paper used for the reissue. 



 [This last distinction between original and reissue true for most of the
Single File singles, and is a much easier way to tell one from the other than
the tiny differences in corner-cuts, etc.] 



Rumours


There are rumours of a British 12" issue of this EP, but no copies
appear to be in circulation. Overseas, however, there are several very
collectable variations. The most sought-after is the Japanese 7" edition,
which comes with a pull-out insert. Close behind is the Canadian 7"
edition, contained in a gatefold sleeve which was itself placed within a 12"
outer sleeve. Both these versions sell for about 12 Pounds. Other collectable
variations include the Dutch and French 12" singles, plus a double-pack
version issued in Portugal. In some other countries, such as Germany, however,
the four-track EP was eventually issued in a single sleeve, rather than a
gatefold package. 



 Three flexidiscs are very popular with collectors. Eastern European
countries have produced many collectable flexis, and in Kate Bush's case the
rarest is a one-sided Russian disc of Babooshka in blue vinyl. A similar Belgian
flexi given away with a magazine sells for about 12 Pounds, while the Japanese
Fan Club issued a version of Let It Be unavailable elsewhere; this now sells for
about 25 Pounds. 



 [This is all inaccurate. The blue "Russian" flexi-disk may not be
Russian. It is quite a common item, and although there was a Russian original,
the record has become so common that it seems likely that bootleg imitations now
predominate. As for the "Belgian" flexi-disk of Let It Be that is "unavailable
elsewhere," the flexi-disk in question was originally made for the Japanese
members of the Kate Bush Club, who had formed their own semi-independent
organization (now fully independent). A Belgian version of this disk, if it
exists at all, is not the original but a copy. Furthermore, the same live
recording of Let It Be (from the Bill Duffield concert, May 1979) can be found
on at least four later bootleg records, including the two-record set Passing
Through Air, and the Duffield bootleg If You Could See Me Fly. And these later
sources actually contain a longer, less extensively abridged version of the
performance.] 



 All the prices listed here are for records in Mint condition, and reflect
recent selling prices of rare Kate Bush material in this country. 








Top 100 Kate Bush Rarities from Around the World


    

  1.  An Interview with Kate Bush (Canadian promo LP, EMI America SPRO 282): 125
Pounds 

     

    2. 

  2.  The Kick Inside (UK white label test pressing in folder cover with photos &
biography):80 Pounds 

     

    3. 

  3.  The Early Years (East German white label LP, withdrawn because of
copyright problems):  60 Pounds 

     

    4. 

  4.  The Kick Inside (Japanese test pressing with photos and insert): 50 Pounds

     

    5. 

  5.  Self Portrait (US promo LP, EMI-America SSA 3024): 40 Pounds [Note: This
interview LP includes cue-sheets.] 

     

    6. 

  6.  The Single File (EMI KBS 1; boxed set of singles, numbered limited
edition): 40 Pounds [Note: If it's important that the set be from the numbered
limited edition, then what is the relative value of the later unnumbered
edition? The more common unnumbered version of the set isn't even included among
the top 100 on the list, even though it is still a highly sought-after item.
This seems to indicate that the compiler may not have been aware of the
existence of a later unnumbered edition.] 

        
    7. 

  7.  Wow (Canadian promo single, yellow vinyl): 40 Pounds 

        
    8. 

  8.  Symphony in Blue (Canadian promo single, blue vinyl): 40 Pounds 

        
    9. 

  9.  The Kick Inside (German test pressing with photos and insert): 35 Pounds 

     

    10. 

  10.  The Kick Inside (UK picture disc LP): 30 Pounds  [Here again, the compiler
apparently is unaware of the differences in appearance and price between the
original issue of The Kick Inside picture disc LP and the later, more common
reissue, which doesn't even crack this "top 100", even though it is
certainly more highly sought after than some of the items near the bottom of
this list.] 

     

    11. 

  11.  Lionheart (UK white label test pressing): 30 Pounds 

     

    12. 

  12.  The Kick Inside (U.S. promo copy with original cover design, EMI SW
11761): 30 Pounds  [This cover shows Kate resting her head on one hand, used by
used by Harvest of Canada today for its edition of The Kick Inside. It features
a red border around the front cover photograph. This cover should not be
confused with the "country-western" cover, listed at number 48 on this
list.] 

     

    13. 

  13.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (U.K. white label test pressing): 30
Pounds 

     

    14. 

  14.  Let It Be (Japanese Fan Club flexidisc in picture sleeve): 25 Pounds 

     

    15. 

  15.  Babooshka ("Russian" one-sided blue flexidisc): 25 Pounds  [The
original Russian flexi-disk also featured other music by The Doobie Brothers.] 

     

    16. 

  16.  Hounds of Love (U.S. LP on grey marble vinyl): 22 Pounds  [This is
actually just a greyer marbling of the same pink and grey colours used for the
cassette. Both are distinct from the pink-and-white marble of the Canadian
pressing, although some U.S. cassettes approach the pink colour of the Canadian
LP. Although the quality of the Canadian vinyl is inferior, it is far rarer and
more valuable, and should be placed well above entry number 16, instead of at
number 27 (below).] 

     

    17. 

  17.  Hounds of Love (U.S. white label promo LP with photos and biography, tied
in ribbon): 20 Pounds 

     

    18. 

  18.  The Dreaming (Japanese promo LP): 20 Pounds 

     

    19. 

  19.  Wuthering Heights (U.S. gold vinyl single): 20 Pounds 

     

    20. 

  20.  Wuthering Heights (original U.K. picture sleeve single): 20 Pounds 

     

    21. 

  21.  Kate Bush On Stage (original U.K. double-pack single in gatefold sleeve,
not a promo):  20 Pounds 

     

    22. 

  22.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, clear vinyl): 20 Pounds 

     

    23. 

  23.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, brown vinyl).: 20 Pounds  [This
mini-LP, also listed in different colours at numbers 22 and 31 through 34, is
not called Sat In Your Lap at all, but simply Kate Bush.] 

     

    24. 

  24.  Suspended in Gaffa (U.S. 12" promo single): 18 Pounds 

       
    25. 

  25. Hounds of Love (U.S. marble cassette): 16 Pounds 

     

    26. 

  26.   Never For Ever (U.K. EMI promo single): 15 Pounds  [This is not a single,
but a seven-inch flexi-disk EP, containing four tracks from the album Never For
Ever.] 

     

    27. 

  27.   Hounds of Love (Canadian pink vinyl LP): 15 Pounds [This record is
actually far rarer than most of the above items. Only a very small number of the
true "pink-and-white" Canadian pressings were made before the quality
of the vinyl mix was discovered to be unacceptable. (Another rumour has it that
Kate rejected the Canadian colour-vinyl pressings herself.) In any event, the
true pink-and-white marble vinyl LP is quite distinct in appearance from the
U.S. "marbleized" pressings, and is worth far more.] 

     

    28. 

  28.  Hounds of Love (U.K. one-sided 12" white label test pressing): 15
Pounds 

     

    29. 

  29.  Experiment IV (white label test pressing with display box): 15 Pounds 

     

    30. 

  30.  The Big Sky (U.K. picture disc single): 15 Pounds 

     

    31. 

  31.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, blue vinyl): 15 Pounds 

     

    32. 

  32.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, white vinyl): 15 Pounds 

     

    33. 

  33.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, red vinyl): 15 Pounds 

     

    34. 

  34.  Sat In Your Lap (Canadian mini-LP, green vinyl): 15 Pounds 

     

    35. 

  35.  The Dreaming (U.S. four-track 12" promo EP): 15 Pounds  [Again, this
mini-LP is not called The Dreaming. Since in this case, however, it has no title
at all, The Dreaming suffices to identify it.] 

     

    36. 

  36.  Running Up That Hill (Japanese promo single): 15 Pounds 

     

    37. 

  37.  Ne T'enfuis pas/Un Baiser d'enfant (Canadian single): 12 Pounds 

     

    38. 

  38.  Running Up That Hill (Argentinian 12" promo, b/w Duran Duran's A View
to a Kill): 12 Pounds 

     

    39. 

  39.  Them Heavy People (U.S. mono/stereo 12" promo): 12 Pounds  [The U.S.
mono/stereo 7" promo of The Man With the Child in His Eyes is also quite
collectable, certainly enough so to have been included somewhere in this list.]

     

    40. 

  40.  Moving (Polish "postcard" single): 12 Pounds 

     

    41. 

  41.  Strange Phenomena (Polish "postcard" single): 12 Pounds 

     

    42. 

  42.  Saxophone Song (Polish "postcard" single): 12 Pounds 

     

    43. 

  43.  Kate Bush On Stage (Canadian 7" gatefold sleeve in outer 12"
sleeve): 12 Pounds 

     

    44. 

  44.  Kate Bush On Stage (Japanese picture sleeve single with pull-out
biographical insert):  12 Pounds 

     

    45. 

  45.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (Dutch single, with different picture
sleeve to U.K.):  12 Pounds 

     

    46. 

  46.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (Belgian single, with different picture
sleeve to U.K.):   12 Pounds 

     

    47. 

  47.  Wuthering Heights (Italian single with slightly different picture sleeve
to U.K.): 12 Pounds  [Why is this single, whose only remarkable feature is its
Italian translation of the song's title (Cime Tempestose), placed so high up in
the list, when the German Wuthering Heights single, featuring an article about
Kate by one Dr. Biolek on the cover, is omitted altogether? Ditto for the
Spanish Sat In Your Lap, which features a translation of the title (Sentada en
tu Ragazo). These are certainly as highly sought after as the Italian Wuthering
Heights.] 

     

    48. 

  48.  The Kick Inside (U.S. original LP with different, "country-western"
cover to U.K.):   12 Pounds [See note to no. 12.] 

     

    49. 

  49.  Kate Bush (Belgian flexidisc with magazine): 12 Pounds 

     

    50. 

  50.  Kate Bush On Stage (EMI promo double-pack single in gatefold sleeve): 12
Pounds 

     

    51. 

  51.  Wuthering Heights (U.K. promo single): 12 Pounds 

     

    52. 

  52.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (U.K. promo single): 12 Pounds 

     

    53. 

  53.  The Big Sky (U.K. 12" promo single): 10 Pounds 

     

    54. 

  54.  The Kick Inside (Canadian LP with different cover to U.K.): 10 Pounds 
[The same design as that featured on the cover of no.12.] 

     

    55. 

  55.  Wuthering Heights (Dutch single with slightly different picture sleeve to
U.K.): 10 Pounds 

     

    56. 

  56.  Wuthering Heights (Polish single with same picture sleeve as U.S.): 10
Pounds 

     

    57. 

  57.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (French single with picture sleeve) 10
Pounds 

     

    58. 

  58.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (Japanese single with different picture
sleeve to U.K.):  10 Pounds 

     

    59. 

  59.  Wow (French single with slightly different picture sleeve to U.K.): 10
Pounds 

     

    60. 

  60.  Wow (Belgian single with slightly different picture sleeve to U.K.): 10
Pounds 

     

    61. 

  61.  Kate Bush On Stage (Portuguese double-pack single in gatefold sleeve): 10
Pounds 

     

    62. 

  62.  Running Up That Hill (U.S. 12" promo single): 10 Pounds  [This is as
good a place as any to comment on the frequent absurdity of the high prices paid
for "promo" items. In many cases--such as this one--the promo LP is no
different from the officially marketed LP, except that the promo has been
gold-stamped. In fact, the promo is often quite easy to find, and is generally
less well made than the official marketed item; usually its only claim to fame
is its relative scarcity--a poor justification for its high price.] 

     

    63. 

  63.  Hounds of Love (U.S. long/short 12" promo): 10 Pounds  [This is not
an edit of the LP track, nor is the long version the same as the Alternative
Hounds re-mix; rather, it is the normal LP mix, backed with the same mix
artificially extended another 30 seconds by an American engineer.] 

     

    64. 

  64.  The Big Sky (U.S. 12" promo of single mix): 10 Pounds 

     

    65. 

  65.  Experiment IV (U.S. picture sleeve 7" promo): 10 Pounds  [If U.S. "promo"
7" singles of Experiment IV and Running Up That Hill (see no. 97) are
listed, then why aren't their 12" counterparts--just as "rare"
and more valuable--included as well?] 

     

    66. 

  66.  Moving (Japanese single with picture insert): 9 Pounds 

     

    67. 

  67.  The Man With the Child in His Eyes (U.K. original picture sleeve single):
8 Pounds 

     

    68. 

  68.  Hammer Horror (U.K. promo single): 8 Pounds 

     

    69. 

  69.  Babooshka (U.K. promo single): 8 Pounds 

     

    70. 

  70.  Wuthering Heights (Belgian single with slightly different picture sleeve
to U.K.): 8 Pounds 

     

    71. 

  71.  Ne T'enfuis pas/Un Baiser d'enfant (French Odeon single): 8 Pounds [This
single did not come out on the Odeon label, but on the Pathe-Marconi label.] 

     

    72. 

  72.  Interview (green vinyl picture sleeve single): 7 Pounds 

     

    73. 

  73.  Interview (yellow vinyl picture sleeve single): 7 Pounds 

     

    74. 

  74.  Interview (red vinyl picture sleeve single): 7 Pounds 

     

    75. 

  75.  Interview (blue vinyl picture sleeve single): 7 Pounds  [These are bootleg
seven-inch "fake-interview" colour-vinyl disks. Why are they included
in the list, when none of the other bootleg items, several of which are now
quite rare and highly sought-after, are ommitted? For example, there are: a
bootleg cassette of Kate's Bristol concert, complete with incidental music and
John Carder Bush's readings; the U.S. bootleg albums Wow, Live in Paris '79, A
Bird in the Hand, Live in Europe '79 - '80, (a three-record set), and Passing
Through Air (a two-record set); a European bootleg LP called Moving; three U.S.
bootleg picture-disc LPs (at last count); two U.K. twelve-inch picture-disk
interview records; and many others. All of these are certainly as collectable as
the records listed in positions 80 through 100 on this list--some of them far
more so.] 

     

    76. 

  76.  Wow (U.K. promo single): 7 Pounds 

     

    77. 

  77.  Breathing (U.K. promo single): 7 Pounds 

     

    78. 

  78.  Army Dreamers (U.K. promo single): 7 Pounds 

     

    79. 

  79.  Running Up That Hill (Spanish promo single in picture sleeve): 7 Pounds 
[Why is this promo alone described as being in a picture sleeve? The notation
implies that other promos do not have picture-sleeves, which is not always the
case.] 

     

    80. 

  80.  December Will Be Magic Again (U.K. promo single): 6 Pounds 

     

    81. 

  81.  There Goes a Tenner (U.K. promo single): 6 Pounds 

     

    82. 

  82.  Running Up That Hill (U.K. promo single): 6 Pounds 

     

    83. 

  83.  Experiment IV (one-sided white label single): 6 Pounds 

     

    84. 

  84.  Wuthering Heights (French picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds  [Why is this
French single listed, and not the far more highly sought-after French Breathing,
which, unlike the present entry, features a sleeve different to both the U.K.
and the German editions?] 

     

    85. 

  85.  Hammer Horror (Japanese picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds  [Why are this
single, and the Japanese singles Moving (entry number 66) and The Man With the
Child in His Eyes (no. 58) listed, but not the equally collectable Japanese
singles of Babooshka, Running Up That Hill and Symphony in Blue-- the last of
which even features a picture-sleeve different from that of the U.K. edition?] 

     

    86. 

  86.  Hammer Horror (Italian picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds  [Again, why not
the Spanish edition of Hammer Horror also? Record Collector's anonymous compiler
admits that this list is not truly "definitive" because of the
existence of so many foreign pressings. But he/she then insists that the list "represents
all the collectable items that are in general circulation," which is simply
false. The list is very arbitrary, and includes numerous items which are no more
highly sought-after than others which have been inexplicably ommitted; no. 86
being one more case in point.] 

     

    87. 

  87.  Kate Bush On Stage (Dutch 12" single in picture sleeve): 6 Pounds 

     

    88. 

  88.  Kate Bush On Stage (French 12" single in picture sleeve): 6 Pounds 

     

    89. 

  89.  Breathing (German picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds  [See note to no. 84.] 

     

    90. 

  90.  Babooshka (Brazilian 33rpm picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds 

     

    91. 

  91.  Night of the Swallow (Irish picture sleeve single): 6 Pounds 

     

    92. 

  92.  Hammer Horror (Original U.K. picture sleeve single): 5 Pounds 

     

    93. 

  93.  Kate Bush On Stage (U.K. 4-track single in gatefold sleeve): 5 Pounds 

     

    94. 

  94.  Running Up That Hill (U.K. gatefold sleeve single: 5 Pounds 

     

    95. 

  95.  Don't Give Up (with Peter Gabriel; poster sleeve single): 5 Pounds 

     

    96. 

  96.  Running Up That Hill (U.S. 7" promo single): 5 Pounds  [See note to
no. 65.] 

     

    97. 

  97.  Hounds of Love (Canadian picture sleeve single): 5 Pounds 

     

    98. 

  98.  Wuthering Heights (U.S. single with different picture sleeve to U.K.): 5
Pounds 

     

    99. 

  99.  Wuthering Heights (Swedish picture sleeve, issued with U.K. copy of
single): 5 Pounds 



Note: The missing item is also missing in the text version of The Garden. 
VM






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The Garden
 ©1990  
Andy Marvick