Tag: Malcolm McLaren

Malcolm McLaren And The House Of McLaren – Deep In Vogue (UK 12″) (1990)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

Today’s Pride Month post dives into one of the boldest pre-mainstream celebrations of ballroom culture: Deep in Vogue by Malcolm McLaren and the House of McLaren. Released in 1989—before Madonna brought voguing to the masses—this track was a cultural time capsule and a tribute to the underground scene that shaped a generation of queer identity, dance, and fashion.

Malcolm McLaren, best known as the former manager of the Sex Pistols, was no stranger to subculture. With Deep in Vogue, he turned his fascination to New York’s ballroom scene—specifically the voguing houses that thrived in Black and Latinx LGBTQ+ communities. Collaborating with Mark Moore (of S’Express) and William Orbit, McLaren sampled raw audio from Paris Is Burning (prior to its theatrical release), as well as original beats, house grooves, and runway-ready attitude.

This wasn’t just music—it was documentation.

The single features the fierce chant: “Strike a pose! Strike a pose!” long before those words became iconic. It features contributions from members of the House of McLaren, and it’s steeped in the language, style, and pageantry of ballroom culture. Unlike the glossy pop of Madonna’s “Vogue” the following year, this record feels gritty, real, and reverent—a beat-driven love letter to the creativity and resilience of LGBTQ+ communities who carved out safe spaces in a hostile world.

This 12″ helped usher voguing into the mainstream without stripping away its defiance. It’s a celebration from the underground rather than about it. A song that not only embraces Pride, but helps define it through self-expression, movement, and the refusal to apologize.

For anyone passionate about queer history, dancefloor evolution, or the intersections of activism and art, Deep in Vogue remains essential listening. It’s more than a house track—it’s a mirrorball manifesto.

The song’s music video features none other than Willie Ninja, the legendary godfather of voguing, whose style, grace, and competitive fire helped define an era. His presence in this video is not just fierce—it’s foundational. Willie helped bring ballroom to the world stage, and his legacy continues to inspire dancers, artists, and activists today.

Tragically, like so many icons from this period, Willie Ninja was lost to AIDS-related complications in 2006. His story, and that of countless other queer talents of color, is a heartbreaking reminder of how the HIV/AIDS epidemic devastated an entire generation of artists, thinkers, and performers. Deep in Vogue doesn’t just celebrate a culture—it preserves it, and the people who made it unforgettable.

💿✨ Celebrate Pride. Celebrate expression. Celebrate the ballroom.

SIDE A:
Deep In Vogue (Banjie Realness) 9:04
Producer – David Lebolt, Malcolm McLaren, Phil Ramone
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – Mark Moore, William Orbit

SIDE B:
All Night Long 4:55
Producer – Malcolm McLaren

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Epic – WALTZ T6
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: UK
Released: 1990
Genre: Electronic
Style: House, Synth-pop

CREDITS:

NOTES:
Made in the U.K.
From the LP “WALTZ DARLING”

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for burningtheground.net

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus:  Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!


Password: burningtheground

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Malcolm McLaren and the World’s Famous Supreme Team – Buffalo Gals (Special Stereo Scratch Mix) (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1982

“Buffalo Gals” is a 1982 hip-hop single released by Malcolm McLaren and the World’s Famous Supreme Team, from McLaren’s 1983 album Duck Rock. The song is composed of extensive scratching with calls from square dancing. The music video prominently features the Rock Steady Crew.

While in New York City looking for a support act for Bow Wow Wow, McLaren got the idea for the song when he went to an outdoor concert (known as a “Block Party”) by Afrika Bambaataa and Universal Zulu Nation. This is where he was exposed to Hip-Hop for the first time and discovered the scratching technique he would use on this song. Most of the scratching and the beat of the song were composed by Trevor Horn.

In the liner notes for Duck Rock, McLaren wrote that this track was “recorded with the World’s Famous Supreme Team and Zulu singers backing them up with the words ‘she’s looking like a hobo.’ The performance by the Supreme Team may require some explaining, but suffice to say they are DJs from New York City who have developed a technique using record players as instruments, replacing the power chord of the guitar with the needle of a gramophone, moving it manually backward and forwards across the surface of a record. We call it scratching.”

Charisma Records were not initially keen on releasing the song but releasing after a strong positive response to the first broadcast of the track by DJ Kid Jensen.

The single peaked at #9 on the UK Singles Chart and #33 on the US Billboard Dance Chart.

SIDE A:
Buffalo Gals (Scratch) 3:42
Performed By – Malcolm McLaren And The World’s Famous Supreme Team**
Written-By –  Dudley*, McLaren*, Horn*

SIDE B:
Buffalo Gals 3:42
Performed By – Malcolm McLaren And The World’s Famous Supreme Team**
Written-By –  Dudley*, McLaren*, Horn*

Buffalo Gals (Trad. Square) 3:41
Performed By – Malcolm McLaren
Written-By – McLaren*, Trad.*

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1982 Buffalo Gals U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play #33

 

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Charisma ‎– MALC 12
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1982
Genre: Electronic, Hip Hop
Style: Electro, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Design – Nick Egan
Photography By – N. Matthews*, R. Beeche*
Producer – Trevor Horn

NOTES:
Mastered at TOWN HOUSE

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
DAC/Phono Pre-amp: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

Username: btg
Password: burningtheground

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