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Kate Bush announces a new illustrated edition of 50 Words For Snow

The Polar Edition

By Paul Sinclair

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30

Kate Bush is following up her ‘Escapologist Edition’ of The Dreaming with a third “illustrated” vinyl edition of one of her studio albums, this time 2011’s 50 Words For Snow.

Called, the ‘Polar Edition’ this ties in with her new animation, Little Shrew, which features a new radio edition of ‘Snowflake’, the song which opens 50 Words For Snow. The new 2LP set features new artwork, which has been designed by Timorous Beasties, the same Glasgow-based design studio responsible for the the two previous illustrated editions (Hounds of Love and The Dreaming).

The new illustrations inside the gatefold of the Polar Edition of 50 Words For Snow (click image to enlarge)

The double album has been pressed on 180 black vinyl at Record Industry from new lacquers cut by Bernie Grundman of the 2018 remasters. This is presented in a gatefold sleeve with metallic belly band with embossed text. The albums come in poly-lined sleeves and this set also includes a special Christmas card! 

The Polar Edition of 50 Words For Snow will be released on 15 November 2024 via The State51 conspiracy.

It’s available to pre-order via the SDE shop using this link or via the pre-order button below.

Tracklisting

50 Words For Snow Kate Bush / Polar Edition

    • LP 1
      Side A
      1. Snowflake
      2. Lake Tahoe
      Side B
      1. Misty
    • LP 2
      Side C
      1. Wild Man
      2. Snowed In At Wheeler Street
      Side D
      1. 50 Words For Snow
      2. Among Angels

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30 thoughts on “Kate Bush announces a new illustrated edition of 50 Words For Snow”

  3. Not in love with the new artwork. I really haven’t been feeling her design aesthetics in the “Fish People” era. Will always look forward to new music from her.

  4. Just another pointless release. Kate has never been too good at reading the room. Reissues with new artwork would be waaaaaaay toward the bottom of my want list.

  5. Noooo! £48 for some terrible artwork. The original release was a brilliant pressing for @£25.

    I love the album, but not this tosh packaging. How bad is the Never For Ever artwork going to look if they eventually change that cover?

    So far the artworks used on the three albums wrecked so far, remind me of The Bake Off Extra Slice, when they show you the funny, but disastrous attempts to make a cake look like a pet dog. Or in this instance, a crap snowman.

  6. I’ve been thinking about this question for years and particularly since the last Kate post last week….

    Why is it that we regularly get new music or at least tours from Paul, Bob, the Glimmer Twins, Neil, Gilmour, Bruce, Petty and Leonard both until the very end, Declan…. but have heard virtually nothing in a very long time from Joni, Carole, Carly, Kate, Grace… we got a great new single from Ms. Nicks but no album in 13 years (I’m aware that there are many other thriving female artists but I’m thinking specifically about a certain very top tier of the greatest musical generation of a certain age.) (Year Zero proponents shush, don’t care… lol)

    Joni has done a very few live shows recently that seem like a miracle because we thought she was really gone for the last decade — but I would love to hear a new album in that very deep elderly voice … but it seems unlikely, even though Leonard and Bob’s last croaky several have been great. It just seems odd to me…. none of the guys sound just like they did decades ago, and I assume none of the gals do either but I don’t see why it’s a barrier for one group and not the other, and also I very much value what artists do with the instrument they have as they age (I love Paul’s recent albums, new elderly vocal cords and all since retains all his melodic and arranging genius and he writes wondrous things suiting the bit of voice he has remaining.)

    1. Hey Ken E

      Maybe its nothing more than that girls know when to walk away and call it a day.

      There are far too many boys still trotting out product way beyond their facility to exercise some quality control. When even auto-tuning can’t hide the mess, its terribly sad.

      Witness the Fabs… ‘Free As A Bird’ was three living Beatles and a ghostly noise that we think may have been John Lennon on a C-90, with the audio bouncing off a radiator. Fast forward 30 years and AI gives us a fake clear-as-a-bell Lennon and some awful drain gurgling behind him that turns out to be Macca ‘harmonising’.

      Fellas… know your limits!

    2. In addition to what has already been said, women also tend to face a great deal more criticism than men do about many aspects of their careers, and aging is yet another one. You’ll hear critics praise the “weathered” voice of Bruce Springsteen, but talk about how Marianne Faithful’s voice is “fading” or “nothing like it’s former glory.” It’s like in the days before auto-tune, when Mick Jagger was able to get by barely carrying a tune, but people would criticize just about every singer whose last name wasn’t Houston or Aguilera as having “subpar” voices, or not being able to sing.

    3. Another female CBE, Joan Armatrading has a new album out next month at the good age of 73.
      However that’s topped by folk legend, Shirley Collins, whose latest album was released last year, at the age of 87.

  8. This is Kate Bush. If all her output since The Dreaming has taught us anything it is that she will always do exactly as she’s minded to without fear of consequence from record companies, or the record buying public. Accept it. Either buy or don’t buy but let’s not have a constant barrage of comments about why Kate can’t give us more of what the fans want. It’s not as if she will ever read any of these comments. Now if we can just have her back catalogue remixed in Atmos by Steven Wilson that would be fantastic ……DOH!

  10. Unlike a lot of people I like this album, whilst recognising that it’s not by any means her best album, and enjoy it when the mood is on on me. I also think that this is probably a better cover than the original. However there is no way I feel the need to buy another version of the album that offers nothing new musically.

    1. Agree! I think its an exquisite mood piece but for my listening pleasure I always remove that awful Elton John duet. I know she adores him but his voice on that track! Nah, I’m good.

      1. Agree! x 2 – I actually regard the album as Kate’s best work, with the use of space, time and mood deeply powerful…it’s all about that left hand of hers on the piano. I could listen to it for days…

        BUT – ohhhhh, why did she go for Elton and Stephen? Considering the major influence of Mark Hollis all over this LP, it would have been astonishing to hear him with Kate. As well as Tom Baker instead of Mr. Fry. In my dreams, this LP exists somewhere, waiting to be discovered, even with the terrible new artwork.

        1. I would loved to hear Brian Blessed booming out those fifty words.
          I like Elton but his voice is so low these days it’s hard to take it seriously.

    1. Obviously a new album would be ‘better’ for us, but if she hasn’t got an album ready yet how is that going to happen? Whatever she chooses to do is probably ‘better’ for her.

      1. Indeed. Just think – pressured by fans, she rushes out (i.e. within five years) a mediocre album and SDE is full of people asking ‘Why oh why didn’t she stick to putting out overpriced vinyl reissues with well-intentioned yet ultimately second-rate children’s book illustration designs?’

        1. Oh that made me chuckle. Thank you.
          And now I also know that the name of Kate’s personal pension fund is ‘Well Intentioned’, so it’s been a learning experience too.

          p.s. did the marketing department miss a trick here by failing to arbitrarily sling on ‘December Will Be Magic Again (bongo mix)’ as a random bonus offering?

          1. Hi Stan/Colin

            I’m probably going to make myself unpopular but I LOVE the illustration work from Timorous Beasties. I managed to get hold of this very limited edition cover for the new LP and I can’t believe the craftsmanship that’s gone into the work.

          3. A collectors item indeed, Isadora. Their best one yet. Actually, given the subject matter of the song Misty, I’d be interested to see what they came up for that song. A melting snowman in bed with Kate.

          5. I would buy a picture disc of that as a blank recording masquerading as new Kate Bush music……needle scraping on plastic…..in a snowstorm.

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