Band formed in 1977 by Brian Bath, Vic King, Del Palmer and Kate Bush. After practicing in Greenwich and East Wickham Farm, they made their live debut in April 1977 at the Rose Of Lee in Lewisham. The set list consisted of standards like Come Together, ‘Sweet Soul Music’, ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’, ‘Tracks Of My Tears’, ‘Shame Shame Shame’, but also early versions of Kate Bush songs like James And The Cold Gun, Saxophone Song and Them Heavy People. During the summer of 1977 the band played various venues, mainly in and around London.
A list of known dates:
- 17 March 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 31 March 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 14 April 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 28 April 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 2 May 1977, The Duke of Richmond, Earl’s Court Road, London
- 3 May 1977, The Bell, Pentonville Road, London
- 4 May 1977, The White Hart, Tottenham, London
- 5 May 1977, The Target, Northolt
- 6 May 1977, The Railway Hotel, Putney, London
- 7 May 1977, Trafalgar, Kings Road, Chelsea, London
- 11 May 1977, Knight’s, Catford, London
- 12 May 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 13 May 1977, The Bell, Pentonville Road, London
- 26 May 1977, The Rose of Lee, Lee High Road, London
- 27 May 1977, Great Eastern Hotel, London
- 30 May 1977, The Duke of Richmond, Earl’s Court Road
- 2 June 1977, The Target, Northolt
- 3 June 1977, The Trafalgar, King’s Road, Chelsea
- 4 June 1977, The Ballroom, Essex (midday) and Railway Hotel, High Street Putney, London (evening)
- 6 June 1977, Seven Stars, Brighton
- 9 June 1977, The White Elephant Club, Mayfair, London
When Kate Bush started recording her debut album The Kick Inside, she actually recorded versions of ‘Them Heavy People’ and ‘James And The Cold Gun’ at De Wolfe Studios in London with the KT Bush Band, but in the end, the band members were not used for the album recordings. Also, an attempt to release a single of the KT Bush Band’s version of Johnny Winter’s ‘Shame Shame Shame’, recorded at Graphic Sound studios in Catford was halted either by Kate’s family or EMI Records. Although many of the band’s gigs were filmed, photographed and recorded, none of these have surfaced.
In 2016, Brian Bath reformed the KT Bush Band together with Vic King and new members Steve Bevan on drums and Jodie May on vocals. They have played various live gigs in the UK.
References
- Graeme Thomson, Under the Ivy: the Life & Music of Kate Bush. ISBN 9781780381466
- Kate Bush Fan Podcast Episode 62 – Brian Bath Interview – Part One! Retrieved 18 November 2023