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Kate Bush - Signed Books Available On Friday 20 Jan at 9am (Waterstones, Rough Trade & Selected Independents)

A very limited number of signed copies will be released and can be pre-ordered from selected bookshops and record shops, from 9am on Friday 20th January (UK only).

NME state Waterstones and Rough Trade will be two of the bookshops.

How To Be Invisible: Selected Lyrics - Paperback | Kate Bush

Tags: Bush, Kate

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Permalink Reply by itf on January 26, 2023 at 11:25pm

The signed hardback still sells for £1k on eBay which is what it was selling at when it was released (retail was £150 I think) and there was no stranger things back then. I’d say that’s solid evidence it’ll hold value.

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Permalink Reply by Stepeanut on January 26, 2023 at 11:37pm

I think you underestimate her cult appeal. As noted above, she has a highly dedicated fanbase, many of whom have been following her since 1978. Her long term fame doesn’t stand or fall on Stranger Things.

I am only a very casual admirer myself, so I’m not coming at this from a fanboy perspective. But I do know a couple of major Kate Bush collectors on both sides of the Atlantic, so I’ve witnessed firsthand just how dedicated they are. A good friend of mine in London attended all 22 of her Hammersmith Apollo shows in 2014. That’s commitment.

Because she doesn’t tour, and personal appearances have been extremely limited for several decades now, opportunities to obtain her autograph in person are rare. And she’s widely faked, which only adds to fans’ frustration. So anything signed that has decent provenance, such as these books, is always going to be sought after.

Despite the whining on Facebook and Reddit about all the books going to scalpers, I don’t think that’s actually true. As noted above, relatively few copies have been offered for sale on eBay, and those that have are changing hands for around £300 on average. I don’t think that’s outrageous, given the circumstances.

It’s possible the more savvy scalpers are waiting to see if they have one of the rare invisible ink copies first. No doubt one or two will be offered for public sale come April, but I can’t imagine it’ll be much more than that. Depending on the nature of those hidden messages, I can easily see those copies selling for £1,000-plus.

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Permalink Reply by itf on January 27, 2023 at 2:30am

Of the people I know (fans) who were trying for one, 4/5 including myself got one from the Waterstones link published here, which isn't bad really. I think quite a few probably ended up in fan hands.

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Permalink Reply by crazyrabbits23 on January 27, 2023 at 6:22am

Correct - Bush has an extremely-rabid fanbase, which was going strong long before Stranger Things was an idea. Couple that with an artist who's famously reclusive (to the extent that it's hard to find semi-modern photos of her, as she doesn't even want to be seen), a well-regarded discography and a continuing influence in popular music, and you have the musical equivalent of J.D. Salinger.

And it's not even 500 copies that were released into the wild -- we know that Coles held back their supply for private sale, which means that the available pool of books offered were likely closer to 450. Of those, we can expect a fair few number of those to stay in private collections -- Bush's signature is an extremely-coveted item, and fakes have been rampant. As others said above, to get a signed item from her at MSRP with provenance (in the form of the sales receipt/slips from the booksellers/record stores) is a huge boon.

I don't think a lot of these copies have gone to scalpers, either -- I would make a guess that maybe 5-10% of the total supply got snapped up. The odd hour of the drop here in North America, and the fact that so few copies were relegated to most chains, meant an increase in frustration from fans who weren't able to access the site(s).

Regardless of what happens, I can't see this dropping low in terms of value. This isn't a Dylan situation where copies were refunded and scalpers try to apply artificial scarcity to an item that has a price floor of face value or less.

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Permalink Reply by Allginger on January 27, 2023 at 11:23am

I wonder if these are sealed?

If not I am sure unscrupulous shop owners will be UV lighting the bejesus out of these just before packaging

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Permalink Reply by itf on January 27, 2023 at 11:29am

Never seen a sealed paperback. I'm sure Waterstones won't, it'll be just another thing passing through the warehouse.

The original hardbacks were wrapped in brown paper and sealed with a hand numbered sticker but they were a special edition and much more pricey than this.

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Permalink Reply by NeilL on January 27, 2023 at 12:09pm

Likewise, I think in all my years I’ve had one sealed paperback so I’d suggest not. Chances are folks in the warehouses won’t even know about the whole UV thing. Now I’m wondering if we’ve got a UV lamp somewhere at home - can’t be bothered having to buy one!!

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Permalink Reply by crazyrabbits23 on March 10, 2023 at 4:14pm

I have found sealed books at thrift before (vacuum-sealed), but AFAIK, they were unused bookstore inventory that was never properly unwrapped from a skid, let alone unpacked properly.

If you're going to hold such a book long-term, keep it in a polybag, store it in a cool, dry place, keep the purchase receipt with the book, and refrain from handling it too often (or with clean, dry hands if you do).