"Rubberband Girl" is a song by English singer-songwriter

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer. Bush began writing songs at age 11. She was signed to EMI Records after David Gilmour of Pink Floyd helped produce a demo tape. In 1978, at the ...

released on 6 September 1993, by

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a British multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company EMI in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succes ...

. It was the lead single of her seventh album, '' The Red Shoes'' (1993). The single peaked at 12 on the UK Singles Chart and charted for five weeks. It was Bush's last top-20 hit in the UK until " King of the Mountain", which peaked at No. 4 in 2005. The song was a moderate success worldwide, reaching the top 40 in Australia, Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand. In the United States, it peaked at No. 88 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart.

Versions

Three versions of "Rubberband Girl" were released commercially: an LP version, an extended mix and a remix by American DJ

Eric Kupper Eric Kupper is an American keyboardist, arranger, songwriter, remix artist, DJ, and record producer of French descent. Biography Eric Kupper began playing in bands in his formative years, and got his real start in the mid-1980s working as a keyb ...

called the US Mix, which was released towards the end of 1994 on the " And So Is Love" single. The B-side is "Big Stripey Lie" in the UK and "Show a Little Devotion" in the US. In 2011, Kate Bush recorded a new version of the song that was included on her ninth studio album, '' Director's Cut''.

Critical reception

Alan Jones from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as ''Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music We ...

'' gave the song a score of four out of five and named it Pick of the Week, writing, "With Kate at the helm any single would be quirky but by her own otherwordly standards this is Ms. Bush at her most direct." He added, "It's a rhythmic, almost raunchy, workout with the occasional outburst of

rock guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with some exceptions) and typically has six or twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the d ...

, strange lyrics—'if I could twang like a rubberband, I'd be a rubberband girl' is as ordinary as it gets—and a weird vocal impression of said office accessory being stretched. It is also a very commercial rejoinder and will probably be Kate's first Top 10 solo hit since '

Running Up That Hill "Running Up That Hill" (also titled "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)") is a song by the English singer-songwriter Kate Bush. It was released in the UK as the lead single from Bush's fifth studio album, '' Hounds of Love'', on 5 August 19 ...

' hit the spot eight years ago."

Everett True Everett True (born Jeremy Andrew Thackray on 21 April 1961) is an English music journalist and musician. He became interested in rock music after hearing The Residents, and formed a band with school friends. He has written and recorded as The ...

of ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

'' felt that the song is "a little too uptempo for my tastes" and noted that he prefers Bush when she is "all dreamy and mysterious". Despite this, he added, "It still has enough kookiness to draw me under, and she's still the only artist for whom the word 'kooky' isn't an insult." Another ''Melody Maker'' editor, Chris Roberts, praised it as "a gorgeous, daft, ''groovy'' single with a bassline to shame

Bootsy Collins William Earl "Bootsy" Collins (born October 26, 1951) is an American bass guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Rising to prominence with James Brown in the early 1970s before joining the Parliament-Funkadelic collective, Collins established himse ...

". Terry Staunton from ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' wrote, "Kate's self-doubt emerges right from the beginning on 'Rubberband Girl', the relentless one-chord single where she wishes she could learn to give, learn to bounce back on her feet." Parry Gettelman from ''

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region, in the United States. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by pare ...

'' said that "Bush waxes positively perky as she struggles to forge a '

Sledgehammer A sledgehammer is a tool with a large, flat, massive, often metal head, attached to a long wooden or solid handle. The long handle is combined with a heavy head which allows the sledgehammer to pick up momentum during a swing and applying a large ...

' out of a flimsy tune, dopey lyrics and bouncy dance-floor beat." Richard C. Walls from ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' noted the "pure pop" of "Rubberband Girl". Tom Doyle from ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand ...

'' also gave the song four out of five, saying that it's "a bit of a shock because she's gone all funky with

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

-ish drums all over the shop".

Track listings

Personnel

– vocals, keyboards *Danny McIntosh – guitar *

John Giblin John Giblin (26 February 1952 – 14 May 2023) was a Scottish musician who worked as an acoustic and electric bass player spanning jazz, classical, rock, folk, and avant-garde music. He was a member of Simple Minds from 1985 to 1988, and w ...

– bass guitar * Stuart Elliott – drums, percussion *

Nigel Hitchcock Nigel Hitchcock (born 4 January 1971) is an English jazz saxophonist. Biography Hitchcock began to play alto sax at the age of eight. In 1982 he and his elder brother Clive joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. After one year Nigel took the ...

– tenor and baritone saxophones *

Steve Sidwell Steven James Sidwell (born 14 December 1982) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Sidwell was a product of the Arsenal academy, and after winning two FA Youth Cups, he had constructive loan spells at Brentfo ...

– trumpet *Paul Spong – trumpet *Neil Sidwell – trombone

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1993 singles 1993 songs Columbia Records singles EMI Records singles Kate Bush songs Songs written by Kate Bush