Peak
3
Weeks
24
Score
3,597
Chart Year
1989
"Buffalo Stance" is a very funky track with an anti-pimp message. On her website, Cherry says this song "is about sexual survival. It's not a feminist record - none of my songs are. But it's about female strength, female power, female attitude." Cherry originally recorded "Buffalo Stance" for the B-side of Morgan McVey's 1986 single "Looking Good Diving." Morgan McVey was the pop duo of Cameron McVey and Jaime J. Morgan - Cameron was Neneh's boyfriend and eventually became her husband. He later produced All Saints and Sugababes and managed Massive Attack in their early days. Under the alias Booga Bear, he wrote much of the material that would comprise Raw Like Sushi. Three years later, Neneh Cherry began working on her first solo album. Among the songs was a version of "Buffalo Stance" that mutated, via a remix by Bomb The Bass's Tim Simeon, into an international hit. The song title refers to "Buffalo," a hip fashion and style collective formed by Scotsman Ray Petri. Neneh Cherry first encountered them during a plane journey to Tokyo for a modeling job and the singer began a creative and personal relationship with one of the Buffalo crew, photographer and musician Cameron McVey, that continues to this day. Cherry told Uncut magazine: "Buffalo was obviously a reference to the Buffalo Collective. It never had anything to do with Malcolm McLaren's 'Buffalo Gals,' everybody gets mixed up. Buffalo is also a reference to being a survivor, to being headstrong, with horns on your head, to fence your way through the ups and downs of life." The lyrics, "Looking good, hanging with the Wild Bunch" are a reference to a collective of DJs and engineers in Bristol, England in the 1980s out of which came Massive Attack and other contributors to the trip-hop sound. Cherry recruited Mushroom of Massive Attack to appear in the video for this song, and he also mimed the DJ sections for her performance on the UK TV show Top Of The Pops. Cherry was eight months pregnant when she performed this on Top Of The Pops. "When I found out I was pregnant, my mother said, 'Don't separate your life, the life that you're going to make with this child, from the things that you are and what you want to do,'" she recalled to The Observer. "Getting on Top of the Pops and having that feeling with me was such a saving grace." Cherry gave birth while Shara Nelson was recording the vocals for Massive Attack's Blue Lines album in the same house. Swedish singer-songwriter Robyn released a cover on March 3, 2022. Her version features Swedish-American singer-songwriter Mapei with production by Devonté Hynes, Michel Zitron and herself. Robyn recorded her Scandi-pop interpretation for The Version. The album is a collection of covers from Cherry's catalog by an all-female lineup.
Who's lookin' good today? No moneyman Can win my love Who's that gigolo on the street With his hands in his pockets and his crocodile feet? Hangin' off the curb, lookin' all disturbed And the boys from home, they all came runnin' They were makin' noise, manhandlin' toys There's the girls on the block with the nasty curls Wearin' padded bras suckin' beers through straws Droppin' down their drawers, where did you get yours? Gigolo Huh, sucka? Gigolo Huh, sucka? Who's lookin' good today? Who's lookin' good in every way? No style rookie You better watch don't mess with me No moneyman can win my love It's sweetness that I'm thinkin' of We always hang in a Buffalo Stance We do the dive every time we dance I'll give you love, baby, not romance I'll make a move nothin' left to chance So don't you get fresh with me So you say you wanted money but you know it's never funny When your shoes worn through and there's a rumble in your tummy But you had to have style, get a gold tooth smile Put a girl on the corner so you can make a pile Committed a crime and went inside It was comin' your way but you had to survive When you lost your babe, you lost your race Now you're lookin' at me to take her place Who's lookin' good today? (Really though?) Who's lookin' good in ever way? (Yeah) No style rookie You better watch don't mess with me Oh, no moneyman can win my love (mm-hmm, you think you got it) It's sweetness that I'm thinkin' of We always hang in a Buffalo Stance (you feel it, babe?) We do the dive every time we dance (give it to me) I'll give you love, baby, not romance I'll make a move nothin' left to chance So don't you get fresh with me Smokin' not cokin' Get funky sax Lookin' good, hangin' with the Wild Bunch Lookin' good in a Buffalo Stance Lookin' good when it comes to the crunch Lookin' good's a state of mind State of mind don't look behind you State of mind or you'll be dead State of mind may I remind you Bomb the bass, rock this place Yo, he's a fuckboy No moneyman can win my love It's sweetness that I'm thinkin' of (oh, oh, oh) We always hang in a Buffalo Stance We do the dive every time we dance (oh, oh, oh) I'll give you love, baby, not romance I'll make a move nothin' left to chance So don't you get fresh with me Wind on my face, sound in my ears Water from my eyes, and you on my mind As I sink, divin' down deep Deeper into your soul Yeah No moneyman can win my love It's sweetness that I'm thinkin' of No moneyman can win my love No moneyman can win my love No moneyman can win my love No moneyman can win my love No moneyman can win my love No moneyman
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr 1, 1989 | 83 | 43 |
| 2 | Apr 8, 1989 | 70 | 56 |
| 3 | Apr 15, 1989 | 61 | 65 |
| 4 | Apr 22, 1989 | 48 | 78 |
| 5 | Apr 29, 1989 | 41 | 85 |
| 6 | May 6, 1989 | 32 | 94 |
| 7 | May 13, 1989 | 23 | 103 |
| 8 | May 20, 1989 | 19 | 107 |
| 9 | May 27, 1989 | 12 | 114 |
| 10 | Jun 3, 1989 | 9 | 117 |
| 11 | Jun 10, 1989 | 5 | 121 |
| 12 | Jun 17, 1989 | 5 | 121 |
| 13 | Jun 24, 1989 | 3 | 123 |
| 14 | Jul 1, 1989 | 4 | 122 |
| 15 | Jul 8, 1989 | 9 | 117 |
| 16 | Jul 15, 1989 | 20 | 106 |
| 17 | Jul 22, 1989 | 24 | 102 |
| 18 | Jul 29, 1989 | 33 | 93 |
| 19 | Aug 5, 1989 | 40 | 86 |
| 20 | Aug 12, 1989 | 50 | 76 |