Suspended in Gaffa

"Suspended in Gaffa" is a song recorded by English art rock singer Kate Bush. It was the fourth single release from her album The Dreaming. "Suspended in Gaffa" was released as a single in continental Europe and Australia, but not in the UK.

"Suspended in Gaffa"
German 7" single cover
Single by Kate Bush
from the album The Dreaming
B-side"Ne t'enfuis pas"
Released2 November 1982
17 January 1983 (Australia)[1]
Recorded1982
Genre
Length3:50
LabelEMI
Songwriter(s)Kate Bush
Producer(s)Kate Bush
Kate Bush singles chronology
"There Goes a Tenner"
(1982)		 "Suspended in Gaffa"
(1982)		 "Ne t'enfuis pas"
(1983)
Music video
"Suspended in Gaffa" on YouTube

The song lyrics are about seeing something one really wants (God in this case), then not being able to see or experience it ever again.[3] The "gaffa" of the title and chorus refers to gaffer tape, the strong matte black tape used by technicians in the film and concert industries.[4]

The B-side is the original mix of "Ne t'enfuis pas", which is misspelled on the original sleeve as "Ne T'en Fui Pas", and was only released on a handful of singles in late 1982. "Ne t'enfuis pas" is a French phrase which means "don't run away". In some countries, the B-side was "Dreamtime" (which originally appeared as the B-side to "The Dreaming").

Music video

A music video was produced for the song, which features Bush performing an interpretive dance in what appears to be a barn.

Personnel

Charts
Chart (1983) Peak
position
France (SNEP) 33
Netherlands (MegaCharts)[5] 50
Spain (AFYVE) 38

Covers

A cover of "Suspended in Gaffa" appears on Syracuse-based indie rock band Ra Ra Riot's debut album The Rhumb Line.[6]

The song was also covered by garage rock band The Figgs on their 2019 album Shady Grove.[7]

Rec.music.gaffa[8] has been the name for the Kate Bush Usenet newsgroup since 16 August 1985,[9] and is now resident at Google Groups and other Kate-Bush-related websites.[10]

"Kate Boosh" by Brooklyn-based rapper Himanshu "Heems" Suri samples the two-line post-chorus vocal of this song and co-opts it as a chorus. The song appears on Suri's 2012 mixtape Nehru Jackets.

References
  1. "Platterlog; Singles – 17 January 1983". Imgur.com (original document published by Platterlog). Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  2. Zaleski, Annie (8 June 2022). "The 10 Best Kate Bush Songs". Stereogum. Retrieved 17 May 2023. An ornate waltz with crisp, conspiratorial vocals and prominent synclavier and strings, "Suspended In Gaffa" feels like antique treasure.
  3. "Kate Bush in Her Own Words". gaffa.org. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  4. "Kate's KBC article, Issue 16, Untitled & Interview". gaffa.org. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  5. "dutchcharts.nl > Kate Bush – Suspended in Gaffa". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  6. "Ra Ra Riot: The Rhumb Line". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  7. "The Figgs - Shady Grove". Zub Records. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  8. "Rec.music.gaffa - Google Groups".
  9. "FAQ: rec.music.gaffa - Love-Hounds - Kate Bush". faqs.org. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  10. "Gaffaweb - A Tribute to Kate Bush and her fans". gaffa.org. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
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