Your Woman
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"Your Woman" | ||||||||
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File:Your Woman single.jpg | ||||||||
Single by White Town | ||||||||
from the album Women in Technology | ||||||||
B-side | "Give Me Some Pain" | |||||||
Released | 13 January 1997 | |||||||
Format | ||||||||
Recorded | 1996 | |||||||
Genre | ||||||||
Length | 4:20 | |||||||
Label | ||||||||
Writer(s) | Jyoti Mishra | |||||||
Producer(s) | White Town | |||||||
White Town singles chronology | ||||||||
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"Your Woman" is a song by British one-man band White Town. It was released on 13 January 1997 as the lead single from the album, Women in Technology. It features a muted trumpet line taken from "My Woman" by Al Bowlly. The song peaked at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. Outside the United Kingdom, the single topped the charts in Spain, peaked within the top ten of the charts Australia, Canada, Denmark and Finland and peaked within the top thirty of the charts in the United States.[1]
The song was named the 158th best track of the 1990s by Pitchfork Media.[2]
Contents
Background and writing
White Town's sole band member and writer of "Your Woman", Jyoti Prakash Mishra, has stated that the lyrics could stem from or be related to multiple situations. He says "When I wrote it, I was trying to write a pop song that had more than one perspective. Although it’s written in the first person the character behind that viewpoint isn’t necessarily what the casual listener would expect".[3]
Mishra writes that the themes of the song include: "Being a member of an orthodox Trotskyist / Marxist movement. Being a straight guy in love with a lesbian. Being a gay guy in love with a straight man. Being a straight girl in love with a lying, two-timing, fake-arse Marxist. The hypocrisy that results when love and lust get mixed up with highbrow ideals."[3]
The '>Abort, Retry, Fail?_' message that appeared on some inlay cards is explained by the artist thus: "Well, this cheerful message became a kind of shibboleth for me and sort-of characterizes what's been going on for me the last few years."
Music video
The music video was produced in black-and-white silent film style. Most of the outdoor scenes were filmed in Derby.
In the video there are numerous elements of acting, cinematography, and editing that suggest an old-fashioned film style. The exaggerated gestures of the hat-wearing woman, helpless and fearful, and those of her quick-tempered lover hint at the acting style from 1920s expressionist films. The ostensive metaphors, such as the use of hypnosis on the woman by the man or the recurring shots of crossroad signs bearing names of romantic relationship-related attitudes, remind of the 1920s and 1930s efforts to express subjectivism in film.
The use of circular masks, as to emphasize focal points or for a mere elegant look, also belongs to the aforementioned period. At the point where the woman first enters the man's bedroom and in the final rope scene, match cuts are used in a manner resemblant of that from silent experimental films. Mishra can be seen for brief moments on television screens in the background.
There is also a scene where the woman closes the door on the man's arm, as she tries to escape from his advances. This is a direct reference to a very similar scene from Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel's 1928 surrealist film Un chien andalou.
Charts
Weekly charts
Chart (1997) | Peak position |
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Australia (ARIA)[4] | 2 |
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[5] | 23 |
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] | 20 |
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[7] | 7 |
Canada Alternative 30 (RPM)[8] | 2 |
Canadian Dance (RPM)[9] | 5 |
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[10] | 4 |
Denmark (IFPI)[11] | 4 |
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[12] | 4 |
France (SNEP)[13] | 5 |
Germany (Official German Charts)[14] | 24 |
Ireland (IRMA)[15] | 5 |
Italy (FIMI)[16] | 3 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[17] | 21 |
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[18] | 5 |
Norway (VG-lista)[19] | 5 |
Spain (AFYVE)[20] | 1 |
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[21] | 10 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[22] | 19 |
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company) | 1 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 23 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 26 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 5 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks | 16 |
U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 5 |
Year-end charts
End of year chart (1997) | Position |
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Canadian RPM Singles Chart[23] | 22 |
Canadian RPM Alternative 30[24] | 19 |
Italian Singles Chart[25] | 25 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[26] | 65 |
Australian ARIA Charts[27] | 35 |
Tyler James version
"Your Woman" | ||||
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Single by Tyler James | ||||
from the album The Unlikely Lad | ||||
Released | 22 August 2005 | |||
Format | CD, Digital download | |||
Recorded | 2004 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 3:45 | |||
Label | Island Records | |||
Tyler James singles chronology | ||||
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British singer–songwriter Tyler James released a cover of the song. It was released as the third and final single from his debut album studio album The Unlikely Lad (2005). It was released as a Digital download in the United Kingdom on 22 August 2005. The song peaked to number 60 on the UK Singles Chart.
Track listings
Digital download | ||
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No. | Title | Length |
1. | "Your Woman" | 3:45 |
2. | "Temptation" | 3:15 |
Chart performance
Chart (2005) | Peak position |
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UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[28] | 60 |
Release history
Region | Date | Format | Label |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 22 August 2005 | Digital download[29] | Island Records |
CD[30] |
Princess Chelsea version
"Your Woman" | ||||
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Single by Princess Chelsea | ||||
from the album Your Woman - Single | ||||
Released | 06 February 2009 | |||
Format | Digital download | |||
Recorded | 2004 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 4:39 | |||
Label | Lil' Chief Records | |||
Producer(s) | Chelsea Nikkel, Jonathan Bree | |||
Princess Chelsea singles chronology | ||||
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New Zealand musician Princess Chelsea released a cover of the song in 2009. It was released as her first single and was a non-album single. It was released as a digital download.[31]
Track listings
Digital download | ||
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No. | Title | Length |
1. | "Your Woman" | 4:39 |
Other covers
- Wiley featuring Emeli Sandé, sampled the song in "Never Be Your Woman" in 2010
- Cats on Fire, a Finnish band, covered the song in 2010 on their album Dealing in Antiques.[32]
- Darren Hayes performed an acoustic version of this song in a BBC 2 live session with Jo Whiley in November 2011[33]
- British India performed a version live on Triple J Like a Version in October 2013 [34]
See also
- 1997 in British music
- One-hit wonders in the UK
- "Tongue" - another song sung by a man and written from a woman's point of view
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7854-the-top-200-tracks-of-the-1990s-200-151/5/
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "Australian-charts.com – White Town – Your Woman". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
- ↑ "Austriancharts.at – White Town – Your Woman" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
- ↑ "Ultratop.be – White Town – Your Woman" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
- ↑ "Ultratop.be – White Town – Your Woman" (in French). Ultratop 50.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "White Town: Your Woman" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
- ↑ "Lescharts.com – White Town – Your Woman" (in French). Les classement single.
- ↑ "Musicline.de – White Town Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – White Town search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40.
- ↑ "Charts.org.nz – White Town – Your Woman". Top 40 Singles.
- ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – White Town – Your Woman". VG-lista.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – White Town – Your Woman". Singles Top 60.
- ↑ "Swisscharts.com – White Town – Your Woman". Swiss Singles Chart.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yends/hpe1997.htm
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b016x4h8
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOUWYgpTgIY
Preceded by | UK Singles Chart number-one single 19 January 1997 – 25 January 1997 |
Succeeded by "Beetlebum" by Blur |