"Woman"
Single by Neneh Cherry
from the album Man
B-side
  • "Had You in Me"
  • "Heart Throbs"
  • "Telephone Pole" (demo)
Released22 July 1996 (1996-07-22)
StudioCherry Bear, Westside (London, England)
Genre
Length
  • 4:37 (album version)
  • 3:47 (radio edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Neneh Cherry singles chronology
"Love Can Build a Bridge"
(1995)		 "Woman"
(1996)		 "Kootchi"
(1996)
Music video
"Woman" on YouTube

"Woman" is a song by Swedish singer-songwriter Neneh Cherry from her third studio album, Man (1996). Written by Cherry, her husband Cameron McVey, and Jonathan Sharp, the song was created as a take on American singer James Brown's 1966 hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World". The song's lyrics describe the difficulties women face in life, allowing Cherry to be seen as an empowering female recording artist. Released on 22 July 1996, "Woman" became a chart hit in Europe and Australia, reaching the top 10 in Finland, Hungary, Iceland, the United Kingdom, and the Wallonia region of Belgium.

Critical reception

Ross Jones from The Guardian described it as an "awe-inspiring new work", adding that it "evoke" James Brown's "It's a Man's Man's World", while the singer "bawls her soul into the mic."[2] Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote that the song is Cherry's "own take" on the Brown song ("this is a woman's world/ it's my world"). "Even the melodies and chord changes sound the same, but this track obviously has a message: it's a tribute to femininity and its loving, caring power."[3] Music Week rated it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. The reviewer declared it as "a gorgeous, heart-rending song in the vein of Trout and Manchild. Cherry at her best."[4] Writing for NME, Dele Fadele noted that the singer's "forages into soul possess an irreverence that lift otherwise earnest pastiches", stating that "Woman" rewrites Brown's song as a "feminist tract".[5] British columnist James Masterton called "Woman" one of Cherry's best tracks up to that point, complimenting its mood and writing that it "beats the pants off anything she has released before".[1]

Commercial performance

"Woman" was released as a single on 22 July 1996,[6] becoming Cherry's last substantial hit. It reached number two in Iceland,[7] number three in Walloon Belgium,[8] number four in Finland and Hungary,[9][10] and number nine on the UK Singles Chart.[11] In her native Sweden, the song peaked at number 20 in its second week, spending 10 weeks on the Swedish Singles Chart.[12] Elsewhere in Europe, the single reached the top 20 in Flemish Belgium, France, Norway and Switzerland.[8] On the Eurochart Hot 100, it peaked at number 21 during its second week on the chart, after a debut at number 37.[13] In Australasia, "Woman" was moderately successful, peaking at number 17 in Australia and number 35 in New Zealand.[14][15] The song has received a Gold certification in France, denoting sales greater than 250,000.[16]

Aftermath

After the success of "Woman", Cherry stated that she felt she was pushing her limits with the level of fame she was experiencing, claiming that the success she was receiving was enjoyable, but it was not completely what she wanted. She explained, "The idea behind making 'Buffalo Stance' and Raw Like Sushi wasn't to be famous, it was to change things and do things the way that we do them, always with an idea of activism or a kind of rebellion."[17]

Track listings

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
France (SNEP)[16] Gold 250,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom 22 July 1996
  • CD
  • cassette
 Virgin [6]
Japan 28 August 1996 CD [40]

References

  1. 1 2 Masterton, James (28 July 1996). "Week Ending August 3rd 1996". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  2. ↑ Jones, Ross (27 July 1996). "Music > Rock & Pop > Reviews – Singles". The Guardian.
  3. ↑ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 31. 3 August 1996. p. 12. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  4. ↑ "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 13 July 1996. p. 24. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  5. ↑ Fadele, Dele. "Neneh Cherry – Man". NME. Archived from the original on 17 August 2000. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  6. 1 2 "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 20 July 1996. p. 46. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  7. 1 2 "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (14.9 – 20.9. '96)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 14 September 1996. p. 41. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  8. 1 2 3 "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  9. 1 2 "Neneh Cherry: Woman" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  10. 1 2 "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 33. 17 August 1996. p. 30. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  11. 1 2 "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  12. 1 2 "Neneh Cherry – Woman". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  13. 1 2 "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 33. 17 August 1996. p. 28. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  14. 1 2 "Neneh Cherry – Woman". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  15. 1 2 "Neneh Cherry – Woman". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  16. 1 2 "French single certifications – Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  17. ↑ Conroy, Catherine (11 April 2016). "Neneh Cherry: 'There is a very shallow, sexualised entrapment that women get sucked into'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  18. ↑ Woman (European CD single liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records. 1996. HUTCDE70.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ↑ Woman (European maxi-CD single liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records. 1996. HUTCDF 70, 7243 8 93699 2 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ↑ Woman (UK CD1 liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records, Hut Records. 1996. HUTCD70, 7243 8 93689 2 5.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  21. ↑ Woman (Australian CD single liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records. 1996. 7243 8 93699 2 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. ↑ Woman (Japanese CD single liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records. 1996. VJCP-12043.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. ↑ Woman (UK CD2 liner notes). Neneh Cherry. Hut Records, Virgin Records. 1996. HUTDX70, 7243 8 93690 2 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. ↑ Woman (UK cassette single sleeve). Neneh Cherry. Virgin Records, Hut Records. 1996. HUTC70, 7243 8 93689 4 9.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  25. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  26. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  27. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  28. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  29. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Woman". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  30. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 34, 1996" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  31. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  32. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman". VG-lista. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  33. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  34. ↑ "Neneh Cherry – Woman". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  35. ↑ "Rapports annuels 1996" (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  36. ↑ "1996 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 51/52. 21 December 1996. p. 12. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  37. ↑ "Tops de L'année | Top Singles 1996" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  38. ↑ "Árslistinn 1996". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 2 January 1997. p. 25. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  39. ↑ "Swiss Year-End Charts 1996" (in German). Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  40. ↑ "ウーマン | ネナ・チェリー" [Woman | Neneh Cherry] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
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