The song is stylized in ways that make it difficult to recognize or feel the pain behind the actual lyrics, with bright and popping brass instruments and snappy drum hits, displaying many qualities of both soul and ska. The song seems as though it is cheerful and upbeat, with vocals that are smooth and relaxed, unlike what you would expect of somebody who is crying out in passion. The mood of the music ironically undermines the meaning of the lyrics throughout, as it is a passionate song in which a man professes his unrequited love for a girl who has continuously thwarted his affection. The entire essence of the song is a single persons’ desperation about a girl who does not reciprocate the same feelings of affection. Their second greatest single, “Build Me Up Buttercup” reached number two in the UK and was number three on the US’s Billboard Hot 100 in 1968.

“Build Me Up Buttercup”, was written by producer Tony Macauley and songwriter Mike D’Abo, neither of whom were members of the band. The Foundations, a multiracial group signed by the UK’s Pye Label, were formed in 1967 and are considered to be one of the first British groups to successfully adopt the Motown sound.

Fill me up buttercup song