Bass guitarist extraordinaire Tony Levin said he was looking for the perfect muted bass sound for this track but just couldn't get it right. At the last minute, he noticed that he had his baby girl's diaper bag with him in the studio, so he stuck a diaper underneath his bass strings and got the perfect muted sound he wanted! Peter Gabriel was inspired to write this song after looking at pictures of dust bowl families during the Great Depression of the 1930's and seeing the desperation and hopelessness in their eyes. He first asked Dolly Parton to sing the duet with him, but she declined and he then asked his good friend Kate and in my opinion she really makes the song what it is. Producer Daniel Lanois said that when Kate came into the studio to perform her part, they all felt like they were in the presence of genius and that an angel had come down to sing for them.
@@bwilson5401 that may have been part of his inspiration, but Gabriel said himself on the Classic Album series documentary that the song came about after he saw the American dust bowl / depression pictures. That's why he initially asked Dolly Parton - he wanted an Americana vibe
@@mvellis3863 He probably said that to get American audiences on board.But it's definitely about the miners strike.As for asking Dolly, who wouldn't want to do a duet with her.
@@mvellis3863 Also Dolly has British ancestry and has sung loads of British folk songs.Ive googled it,and it is about the state of Britain under Thatcher's rule.But it's universal.Its like any song.Interperate as you want.It could easily be about 30s depression America.But don't think that songs from English artists are all about the US. We have our own culture and our musicians sing about it.Look at a few videos,like the US isn't the center of the World.Listen to Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel.They sing about Britain.Because they're British.
This was played at my Dad's funeral after his suicide in 2004. He was a huge Genesis/Phil Collins/Peter Gabriel fan. RIP Dad. 18 years, feels like yesterday.
My comment above said this song can make me smile or cry - your comment here pushed firmly down on the tears side of that seesaw. Such a brave thing to write in the comments.
This song and REM’s Everybody hurts” has ensured I didn’t follow your dads steps , having been made redundant 4 times between 21 and 26 , a friend at the time bought me this record and said “ life has been a struggle many a times but still fighting the ultimate at 58 Sorry for your loss , it probably seems like,yesterday
This song has always moved me ..but as I have gotten older it never fails to make me tear up listening to it.. it really strikes me hard to where i am in life right now. the whole SO album is amazing piece of work.
I have always thought of Peter Gabriel as an "experimental artist". Someone that is always trying something new and certainly not main stream. I had heard the song before but never seen this video. I agree... this is more like an emotion than song. It evokes a lot of feelings. It is not a song that I would listen to regularly but when I wanted to look inward and take stock of my life.
The music is beautiful, the video is unique, the instrumental is amazing, the singers are exceptional - and you seem very moved. Welcome to the club! :) Great reaction.
Kate and Peter are artists. Not just singer songwriters or musicians. They draw from everything in life ( and come at you in unsuspecting angles) to make Art that you will empathize and emote with them to.. I know Anton doesnt take requests from yt , but he if he wants more Kate Bush , i would love to see him react to "Moments of Pleasure". "Wow" is another of my favs.
The only time I saw Peter Gabriel live is on his ‘So’ album tour and I can’t remember how he did this song, or whether or not he was duetting with someone. I think I was secretly hoping that Kate Bush was going to make a surprise appearance. Anyway, it’s a song I’ve always loved and I think the video is genius and nothing less. It reminds me of some of the hard times in England when people, skilled in jobs that were no longer relevant, were desperately looking for work in new and strange job market. Luckily for this man, he had the love of his wife and family to hopefully see him through. Great reaction, thank you.
I listen to this regularly for 2 reasons - it sounds epic on a mid to high end hifi, it's so well recorded and mastered, but also as someone who has lived for 35yrs with constant pain after badly breaking my neck, it's my wife and kids that have kept me going, I've often wanted to give up cos the pain has been unbearable for weeks at a time, so I really relate to the message!
The bass is played by Tony Levin who has played in many contexts, King Crimson, Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, in Bill Bruford's projects, Pink Floyd and many more.
A song inspired by the huge numbers of displaced coal and steel workers, made unemployed due to the policies of British PM Margaret Thatcher, and the end of the union power system that brought the country to a shuddering halt during the 70s, even resulting in the famous 3 Day Week, where the previous PM limited electricity for firms and businesses to just 3 days a week as strikes took hold. As more and more unions joined in strikes became a national crisis, with undertakers allowing bodies to mount up and rubbish piling up. At the time that Thatcher took on the unions she also passed laws that there would be no welfare for the families of any striking miner. Many of the workers were in a no win situation. They could not go against their union or they would face violence, and they could not support their union or they would starve. The suicide rate amongst those men rocketed. Looking back now, it seems, as needed as those reforms of a dying economy were, there must have been a better way. Eventually, the unions caved in. The economy of the modern Britain was born in the 1980s. The nation's industrial heartland died, with cheaper foreign imports and globalism turning areas of the North of the country into welfare dependant ghost towns. To live through this era was a strange and unsettling experience. Add to that the threat of nuclear destruction and these seemingly "tender" love songs do take on a deeper and more serious nature.
He always said that its original inspiration was a book of photographs he saw about the Great Depression in the US , which is why he originally asked Dolly Parton to do the duet. When she declined Kate Bush stepped in. The Thatcher thing was thrown into the mix after this - I’m not sure Dolly Parton would have even known who Thatcher was or that Dolly Parton’s vocal style would have summoned up an image of ‘70’s Britain’ in any way.
@@rk41gator I don't think there is music lover alive who'd ever overlook the talent, soul and intelligence of Ms Parton. She is a rare and impressive singer/songwriter.
I think the video is a perfect example of less is more and this was an age where artists no longer had the luxury of recording and releasing a song and hoping for maximum airplay on radio/tv would generate sales. Videos with the explosion of MTV forced artists to go a step further. Now, to the MTV audience this must have appeared extremely boring but what else could they have done with such a serious and somber song? It’s perfection, the two are clinging on for dear life, start to finish perfectly visualising the song’s message. Class, pure class! 😊
@@Newfie-zc7ug oh, NO COMPARISON!😉 Just that entire concert! I kinda rolled my eyes when I saw her tbh, I thought Where's KATE, GAH lol! but she did great!! I think he'd especially love the performance, since he mentioned that ending sound... it's almost "tribal" & the dancing, etc... all just perfect! Well, I know what I'll put putting on next!🎶🙂
Really impressive insight into this song. You are right that both Gabriel and Bush transcend music. Tony Levin played the bass. Relationship between Gabriel and Bush is I understand platonic.
I've seen this in a bit of a different way. I feel Gabriel and Bush were trying to create that experience, but it is an artificial replication of the story in the song. Very simple and elegant, but it's about how a man is facing obstacles on his journey through life and his woman is his rock she's his tether to which he is grounded, and tho life may force them to move from place to place and face dark cold nights they will be together through it and wherever she is, is home for him. And this isn't the case for everyone. Not everyone can relate to this but they can relate to seeking this. So Bush and Gabriel wanted to create that sound painting, but hugging for several minutes is awkward, and these two probably had to do this for more than just one take. There were probably stand ins for the majority of the set up, but then Bush and Gabriel were called in one day while the lights and sound in the studio and scenery and everything was set up just right to get one solid take. They were probably holding each other for a few hours at least. The director had to figure out how to spin them on the Lazy Susan they're standing on. It's very choreographed. Some things are intentionally improvisational but there's little things like how Gabriel continues to move his head when Bush is singing. Where she puts her arms and when. How he tries to keep his face towards the camera as long as he can each time he turns so Bush can be seen to lipsync her part. Notice there are NO cuts. There's nowhere to hide a cut. They had to do one full perfect take. I doubt they only ran this once. For all we know it took days but I rather imagine a few hours at the very least. That's for the principals on camera. Weeks of prep before it was game time. Everything had to be just right. So I don't see this as a meditation or a pop song. It's a tour de force of production. It's just shy of a miracle that this video exists. No one wants to know how the sausage got made. I rather imagine it was very difficult to get this proverbial meat into its casing.
for many (or the few left), we bought this album or cassette when it came out in May 1986.. the video didn't come out until October (i think), so we listened to it first.. it was a personally helpful song at my particular time in life.. the song was psychologically helpful, for me, & then to see the video later was like a rejuvenation/reinforcement of "i'm not alone".. & yes, the bass (Tony Levin) was almost the "lead" to the entire song, plus the seemingly sudden shift in rhythm/direction of the song at the end was helpfully driven by the bass.. it felt like "there's hope after all the questioning of one's self in life".. that's my personal takeaway, anyway, but the album "So" was also accompanied by another duet w/Laurie Anderson in "We Do What We're Told (Milgram's 37)" whose duet favor was recorded again for Laurie Anderson's album w/a uniquely different version.. i'd say that all 3 artists are brilliant, standout musical artists who all take their own time between album releases.. hell, i think Kate Bush took a very long break just to give birth/raise her child.. Peter Gabriel took 6 years to release his follow-up while he dealt w/divorce (if i recall), & Laurie Anderson is a multimedia artist, so you can imagine her attn to project focusing, all 3 still to this day! thank you for your reaction!
You need to check out Peter Gabriel's secret world live, really pick any song from it, if not all of them, it's absolutely stunning. Paula Cole is the duet partner on many songs and has an incredible voice. Just watch it, it's just freaking amazing! Stop thinking about it... Just go... Go watch!
I suggest you search for Rick Beato's video on why "Wuthering Heights" (not "Weathering") is a great song. It's true that Rick goes too technical sometimes, but it could still change your perception and understanding of that song. From that early Kate Bush era, I also love "Babooshka" and its disconcerting lyrics, which many people in troubled relationships should reflect on. You were right in that there was a special connection between Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush in this song and video --- they're close and dear friends, and that's saying a lot when it comes to Kate, who is very private and recluse. But I wouldn't call their embrace "sensual" --- it's totally chaste, just a good friend's hug, which was exactly what Peter's character in the song needed.
Kate and Peter were good friends and definitely on the same wavelength when it came to musicianship. So their pairing for this song made so much sense. I'd suggest checking out Cloudbusting and The Sensual World from Kate Bush. They're closer in style and era to RUTH so I think you'll enjoy them more! (Hope so anyway!)
"It feels like they're just two people on the journey of life cataloguing their experiences in the medium that they intuitively understand the most." I've never heard you say so many profound things in one reaction video.
Recently discovered your channel. Love your reactions. I strongly recommend you check out " This Woman's Work " by Kate Bush, " May it be " by Enya and " Love Song for a Vampire " by Annie Lennox.
You captured the essence of this song beautifully my friend! You said that they were just being human, cataloging periods of life thru music just because it happens to be their area of genius, you made me think of Tori Amos and that you need to absolutely listen to her if that’s the type of artistry you appreciate. I wouldn’t even know where to tell you how to begin Based the type of music you like because her catalog is huge and diverse…but her claim to fame is called “me and a gun.” Although she is a piano genius/prodigy and performance genius, this song is a cappella and you can watch her silence A room when she does it live. It tells you who she was when she was young and the rest of her music Tells her life story and philosophy through the decades.. along with the most bad ass and unique covers out there. And not just beautiful music, but important. She’s one of the best live performers you’ll ever see, Rolling stone magazine agrees and I hope you get the chance to check her out and enjoy the ride! ✌️💕✨
Peter is a floutist. And a vocalist. And a wanna be drummer. But most importantly, Peter is a....story teller? Idk. Peter is awesome. And he was sooooo fortunate to get the great Kate Bush on this beautiful track. Either way, thank you for the react😍
This song is incredible. It grows on you but listening to the album might make it make more sense. It's definitely emotive. Very palpable feelings that translate now more so than ever. Two of my favourite voices of all time. Both never replicated. And there are lots of great voices that sound the same. No copy of either of their's. I've always loved Peter but didn't really appreciate Kate as much as I should have back in the day. My mistake. Love the Red Shoes by her.
Will you like Wuthering Heights better with her more mature vocal around Don't Give Up era? (Maybe '86-87) Also, his duet with Paula Cole in Secret World Tour is also great, with the ending more realized.
Just people......no, 'just' artists. Finding the essence of the pain. Such pared down music and simple video that bares the emotion. This is hugging as support for the characters plight, beyond sex. You should try some early Peter Gabriel in Genesis. The whole Genesis concept album 'The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway' is about finding your humanity.
As good as this song is the back story about Peter and Kate and the making of this video is better ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cOhuYEZqgCg.html 10m46sec if the link doesn't take you there
