Wuthering Heights (song)

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"It was suddenly non-stop working. I put up with sixteen months of that and then I said: look, I've just got to stop or I'm not going to be able to write any songs any more."

—Bush reflecting on "Wuthering Heights" instant success. [29]

After being delayed for two months, "Wuthering Heights" was officially released in early 1978 and entered the top forty in the official singles chart in the United Kingdom at number twenty-seven on 18 February. [30] It rose to number one three weeks later dethroning ABBA's "Take a Chance on Me" from the top spot. [31] Bush became the first female artist to have an entirely self-written number one in the UK. [32] The single release unwittingly pitted Bush against another female vocalist also charting with her first UK hit: Debbie Harry with her band Blondie and their single "Denis", which stalled at number two. [33] [34] "Wuthering Heights" remained at number one for a month until it was replaced at the top by Brian and Michael's celebration of the then-recently deceased artist L. S. Lowry, "Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs". [35] Bush's début single finished the year as the tenth highest-selling and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry, denoting sales of over half a million. [36] [37]

"Wuthering Heights" also hit number one in Ireland, [38] in Italy, [39] in New Zealand, where it spent five weeks at number one and achieved platinum status, [40] and in Australia, where it stayed at the top of the charts for three consecutive weeks and achieved gold status. [41] [40] It proved to be one of the biggest hits of 1978 in Denmark. [42] It reached the top ten in Spain, [43] Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, France, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, as well as the top twenty in Austria and West Germany. [44] Bush had performed the song on the first episode of the West German music talk show Bio's Bahnhof on 9 February 1978. [45]

Following the live performance of the song by Laura Bunting on The Voice in Australia, "Wuthering Heights" re-entered the country's top 40 in 2012, 34 years after its original release in 1978. [46]

Legacy

Written when Bush was 18 years old, this eerie gothic tale of lost love and longing cemented her individuality from the very beginning. She appeared on Top of the Pops with it five times in 1978, cementing her public image as an ethereal spirit, embodying the essence of Cathy through a combination of wide eyes, floaty fabrics and wild choreography, still fondly mimicked and parodied today.

—Rebecca Nicholson in The Guardian on the impact of the song. [7]

A remixed version, featuring rerecorded vocals, was included on the 1986 greatest hits album The Whole Story. [10] This version also appeared as the B-side to her 1986 hit "Experiment IV". [47]

In 2018, as part of the Bradford Literature Festival, it was announced that Bush had been invited to write an epitaph to Emily Brontë, which would be inscribed on one of four stones erected near the Brontë's home in Haworth, West Yorkshire. [48] Commenting on the unveiling of her poem, entitled Emily, Bush said "to be asked to write a piece for Emily's stone is an honour and, in a way, a chance to say thank you to her". [49]

A flashmob event known as the Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever was officially created in 2016 and is held annually. Fans gather in locations around the world to recreate the "red dress" video. [21] [50] [51] [52] Upon seeing a video clip of the event, Bush said that she found it "very touching and sweet". [53]

The song has been interpreted by comedians Steve Coogan and Noel Fielding, on two occasions, as part of the BBC fundraising telethon Comic Relief . [21] Coogan sang the song in the 1999 show as part of a medley of other Bush material in character as Alan Partridge. [21] Fielding performed to the song in the 2011 series of Let's Dance for Comic Relief , placing in the final of the competition. [54] [55]

Personnel

Credits sourced from Sound On Sound [13]

Charts

"Wuthering Heights"
Kate Bush - Wuthering Heights.png
Standard European artwork of the single cover
Single by Kate Bush
from the album The Kick Inside
B-side "Kite"
Written5 March 1977 (1977-03-05)
Released20 January 1978 (1978-01-20)
Recorded1977
Studio AIR (London)
Genre
Length4:29
Label EMI
Songwriter(s) Kate Bush
Producer(s) Andrew Powell
Kate Bush singles chronology
"Wuthering Heights"
(1978)
"Moving"
(1978)
Music video
"Wuthering Heights" on YouTube

Certifications and sales

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [40] Gold50,000^
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [79] Gold150,000 [79]
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [80] Gold45,000
France200,000 [81]
Germany100,000 [82]
Italy300,000 [83]
Netherlands (NVPI) [84] Gold40,000 [84]
New Zealand (RMNZ) [85] Platinum20,000*
United Kingdom (BPI) [86]
Physical
Gold500,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [87]
Digital
Platinum600,000
Summaries
Worldwide
1978 sales
1,000,000 [88]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

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