Q (6/00, p.78) - Ranked #20 in Q's "100 Greatest British Albums" - "...This beautiful, crazy record remains her finest hour....the music was to prove her most sophisticated....Fantastic."
Alternative Press (7/95, p.87) - Ranked #44 in AP's list of the `Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...HOUNDS OF LOVE introduce[s] a more streamlined sound, keyed to the relentless beat of [songs like] `Running Up That Hill' and `Cloudbusting'..."
Personnel: Kate Bush (vocals, piano, synthesizer); Bill Whelan, Michael Kamen (arranger); Alan Murphy, Brian Bath, John Williams (guitar); Donal Lunny (bouzouki); John Sheaham (fiddle, whistles); Paddy Bush (violin, fujare, dijeridu, balalaika, background vocals); Jonathan Williams (cello); Liam O'Flynn (Uilleann pipes); Kevin McAlea (synthesizer); Del Palmer (bass, background vocals); Eberhard Weber, Danny Thompson (bass); Morris Pert (percussion); Stuart Elliot, Charlie Morgan (drums); Brian Bath, John Carder Bush (background vocals).
Additional personnel: The Medicci Sextet, The Richard Hickox Singers.
Engineers: Del Palmer, Haydn Bendall, Brian Tench.
Personnel: Kate Bush; John Williams , Youth.
Recording information: Windmill Lane, Dublin, Ireland; Abbey Road, London, England (1985).
Though not the most prolific of album artists, Kate Bush's works make up in impact what they lack in frequency. Her style and material has always been unique, eccentric even, but HOUNDS OF LOVE is probably the strongest mix of controlled musical experimentation and lyrical expression. It deals with big issues--childhood fantasy and trauma, conflict, sexuality--but rarely lapses into pretension. The intense arrangements are perfectly matched to the subjects: "Running Up That Hill" is climactically erotic, "Cloudbusting" broodingly triumphant, while "The Big Sky" is just big. And it's all her own work.