Hounds of Love Lyrics

Lyric discussion by Theresa_Gionoffrio 

Cover art for Hounds of Love lyrics by Kate Bush

On "The Red Shoes" album credits, KaTe thanks Joseph Campbell.

KaTe says that when she was writing 'Hounds of Love' she came across a line about hounds and the whole idea of being chased by love as something terrifying. The imagery of being hunted by love made a marked impression on her.

KaTe: "When I was writing the song I sorta started coming across this line about hounds and I thought "hounds of love" and the whole idea of being chasing by this love that actually gonna... when it get you it just going to rip you to pieces, [raises voice] you know, and have your guts all over the floor! So this very sort of... being hunted by love, I liked the imagery, I thought it was really good." Radio 1, Classic Albums interview: Hounds Of Love, aired January 26, 1992 http://gaffa.org/reaching/ir85_r1.html

So could the inspiration for Hounds of Love have been Thompson's poem, "The Hound of Heaven"? Thompson's poem is quoted in The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell, p.50.

It's in the trees! It's coming! ... In the 1999 book Paradox, author Richard Patterson suggested that Francis Thompson was Jack the Ripper!