Bush began writing songs at 11. She was signed to EMI Records after Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour helped produce a demo tape. Her debut album, The Kick Inside, was released in 1978. Bush slowly gained artistic independence in album production and has produced all her studio albums since The Dreaming (1982). She took a hiatus between her seventh and eighth albums, The Red Shoes (1993) and Aerial (2005). Bush drew attention again in 2014 with her concert residency Before the Dawn, her first show since 1979's The Tour of Life.
The TV series "Stranger Things" used Bush's "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)" in Season 4. As a result of the resurgence of interest, in 2022 the song reached #1 on the UK charts, 37 years after its initial release, and generated 100s of millions of streams.
Bush's eclectic and experimental musical style, unconventional lyrics, performances, and literary themes have influenced a diverse range of artists. She has been nominated for 13 British Phonographic Industry accolades, winning for Best British Female Artist in 1987, and has been nominated for three Grammy Awards. In 2002, Bush was recognized with an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. Bush was appointed a CBE in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to music. She was nominated three times for induction in the 2018, 2021, and 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Mrs. Bartolozzi
Kate Bush Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh when it rained and it rained
They traipsed mud all over the house
It took hours and hours to scrub it out
All over the hall carpet
I took my mop and bucket
And I cleaned and I cleaned
Until it sparkled
Then I took my laundry basket
And put the linen all in it
And everything I could fit in it
And all our dirty clothes that hadn't gone into the wash
And all your shirts and jeans and things
And put them in the new washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
I watched them go 'round and 'round
My blouse wrapping itself in your trousers
Oh the waves are going out
My skirt floating up around my waist
As I wade out into the surf
Oh and the waves are coming in
Oh and the waves are going out
Oh and you're standing right behind me
Little fish swim between my legs
Oh and the waves are coming in
Oh and the waves are going out
Oh and the waves are coming in
Out of the corner of my eye
I think I see you standing outside
But it's just your shirt
Hanging on the washing line
Waving its arm as the wind blows by
And it looks so alive
Nice and white
Just like its climbed right out
Of my washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
Slooshy sloshy slooshy sloshy
Get that dirty shirty clean
Slooshy sloshy slooshy sloshy
Make those cuffs and collars gleam
Everything clean and shiny
Washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
The song "Mrs. Bartolozzi" by Kate Bush is a poignant and surreal reflection on the mundane routine of house-cleaning and laundry. The song details the singer's cleaning activities, mopping the kitchen floor, scrubbing mud from the hall carpet, and finally doing laundry with her new washing machine. As she watches her clothes go "round and round," she imagines the waves coming in and going out, with her skirt floating up around her waist. She even imagines her husband standing behind her, catching glimpses of him "out of the corner of her eye," only to realize he's not there. The song ends with Mrs. Bartolozzi describing her washing machine with fondness, as if it represents a greater sense of purpose and control in her life.
On one level, the song can be interpreted as a meditation on the beauty and the poetry of the mundane. Kate Bush is able to turn the prosaic act of doing laundry into a potent symbol for the ups and downs of life. Just as the washing machine churns through the water, the waves come in and go out, reflecting the ebb and flow of human experience.
On another level, the song can be seen as a subversive commentary on gender roles and domesticity. Mrs. Bartolozzi's domestic chores are the quintessential work of women at home, yet the song elevates them to a higher level of significance, suggesting that all of life's activities have value, even those that are stereotypically associated with women.
Line by Line Meaning
I remember it was that Wednesday
Kate is taken back in time to the day that Wednesday
Oh when it rained and it rained
It was a rainy day
They traipsed mud all over the house
People who came into the house made it very muddy
It took hours and hours to scrub it out
It took a lot of time and work to clean the dirt and mud out
All over the hall carpet
The mud was all over the carpet in the hallway
I took my mop and bucket
Kate used a mop and bucket to clean the house
And I cleaned and I cleaned
Kate kept cleaning until everything was clean
The kitchen floor
Kate cleaned the kitchen floor
Until it sparkled
The kitchen floor was shiny and clean
Then I took my laundry basket
Kate got a laundry basket
And put the linen all in it
Kate put all the linens in the basket
And everything I could fit in it
Kate put all the dirty things in the basket
And all our dirty clothes that hadn't gone into the wash
Kate put all the clothes that had not yet been washed in the basket
And all your shirts and jeans and things
Kate put everything of yours in the basket
And put them in the new washing machine
Kate put everything in the new washing machine
Washing machine
Referring to the new washing machine
I watched them go 'round and 'round
Kate watched the clothes go round and round in the washing machine
My blouse wrapping itself in your trousers
Kate's blouse got wrapped in your trousers while in the machine probably due to size difference and mayhem caused by the washing machine
Oh the waves are going out
Imagining like the clothes (waves), Kate is leaving
My skirt floating up around my waist
Her skirt is floating like the waves
As I wade out into the surf
Wading into the ocean which is also a metaphor for leaving
Oh and the waves are coming in
The waves repeat themselves
Oh and you're standing right behind me
Imagining him standing right behind her
Little fish swim between my legs
Literal meaning, little fish swimming around her legs in the ocean (imagining the ocean again)
Oh and the waves are coming in
The waves are still going on
Oh and the waves are going out
The waves continue to go out
Oh and the waves are coming in
The waves come back again
Out of the corner of my eye
Not looking directly, but from the side of her vision
I think I see you standing outside
Imagining that he is outside
But it's just your shirt
It's not him, it's just his shirt hanging on the line
Hanging on the washing line
Hanging on a line outside to dry
Waving its arm as the wind blows by
The shirt moves due to the wind blowing
And it looks so alive
The wind blowing looks like it's alive
Nice and white
The shirt looks clean and white
Just like its climbed right out
The shirt looks as though it has just been washed
Of my washing machine
The washing machine again
Slooshy sloshy slooshy sloshy
Making the sound of the washing machine going round
Get that dirty shirty clean
Let's clean the dirty clothes
Make those cuffs and collars gleam
Make the cuffs and collars of clothes shine
Everything clean and shiny
Everything is now clean and shiny
Washing machine
The washing machine one last time
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KATE BUSH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Lucky Star Amour Angel
Such a beautiful description of the intimacy that happens between partners who are truly in love
Maybe it doesn't last because we die
And yet it lasts
Forever
He stands behind me In the waves
Eternally
Our Souls entwined on the beach
At sunrise and sunset
And in the afternoon
Flo Jo
+Vinny Ah yes, and now you've brought me back to 'Mrs. Bartolozzi', to which I have not listened for many months. So thanks for that.
"Who WAS that masked man?" Oh no, wait... that wasn't Zorro, was it? When I was a kid, I had a Zorro sword (chalk on the end, so you could leave your mark on walls) and the mask, and the hat, and the cape ..... I also watched The Lone Ranger ("Bad men coming, Kimosabe!") with Jay Silverheels, and "Davy Crockett' (Chingachcook - "Last of the Mohicans!"), although I never had the raccoon hat. So guess my age and whether I am male or female.
There may be a small prize.
And now a feel a 'Kate Bush' day coming on ........ I have been caught up with her more recent stuff for too long.
If you like Kate Bush, go find some videos of the cover band 'Cloudbusting' - even better, go and see them.
Iñigo Kintana
I remember it was that Wednesday
Oh when it rained and it rained
They traipsed mud all over the house
It took hours and hours to scrub it out
All over the hall carpet
I took my mop and bucket
And I cleaned and I cleaned
The kitchen floor
Until it sparkled
Then I took my laundry basket
And put the linen all in it
And everything I could fit in it
And all our dirty clothes that hadn't gone into the wash
And all your shirts and jeans and things
And put them in the new washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
I watched them go 'round and 'round
My blouse wrapping itself in your trousers
Oh the waves are going out
My skirt floating up around my waist
As I wade out into the surf
Oh and the waves are coming in
Oh and the waves are going out
Oh and you're standing right behind me
Little fish swim between my legs
Oh and the waves are coming in
Oh and the waves are going out
Oh and the waves are coming in
Out of the corner of my eye
I think I see you standing outside
But it's just your shirt
Hanging on the washing line
Waving its arm as the wind blows by
And it looks so alive
Nice and white
Just like its climbed right out
Of my washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
Slooshy sloshy slooshy sloshy
Get that dirty shirty clean
Slooshy sloshy slooshy sloshy
Make those cuffs and collars gleam
Everything clean and shiny
Washing machine
Washing machine
Washing machine
Sophia Crawshaw
Rips at your soul you can feel the pain of her loss and grief. She certainly knows how to use music as therapy. Just another magnificent track from a truly gifted and beautiful soul. The whole album 'Ariel' is sublime.
SilverRascal
❤
Auras Sparsas
Kate Bush is the only woman who can sing "washing machine" WITHOUT sounding ridiculous.
d1jezek
she's also the only woman who can totally gut you by singing the words 'washing machine'.
Marianne Laba
true. she sings beautifully. I go now to my own washing machine....
broken dahlia
And Mitski (;
Auras Sparsas
@broken dahlia ;-)
marievi KLOUSSE
ure funny man
June Asiimwe
Initially, when I heard this song, I thought it was about a woman who found the act of doing laundry to be erotic. But, the more I examined the lyrics, I realised it's a sad song about a woman's grief. And how doing laundry helps her feel a connection to her husband/boyfriend by watching their clothes moving together in the washing machine.
This is brilliant songwriting.
trinityefe v
I found This CD a few days ago in a old box in the basement, now i repeatedly listening in the car
When this song comes, something from the depths of just being hits me in a such profound sadness
but so lovely to feel..
thank you Kate