Mica Paris - One (Perfecto Dub) | 90's Massive Attack Style Remix. Powerful Soul Vocal (W/ lyrics).

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With pitch-perfect intonation honed singing in North London church gospel choirs from early childhood, 19 year old Mica Paris' voice was already a powerhouse of soul by the time of her breakthrough platinum-selling debut album 'So Good in 1988.

Three albums in, and by 1995 — with a few more of the ups and downs of life (and the music industry) under her belt — Paris brought a mature, more spiritual reverence to her interpretation of U2’s “One”.

Originally something of a country-tinged rock ballad, Paris took the song into more soulful R&B territory, with Muscle Shoals style 60s soul instrumentation somehow at home with an anachronistic acid-house style synth bubbling away underneath.

Her powerful, passionate vocal deepens the song’s intimate, at times bitter, but ultimately tender message of hope over adversity — hinting that the song might be more at home in a gospel church than a rock stadium.

While Paris’ vocal unquestionably delivers - on the Perfecto remixes Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne dipped back into the palette of their Massive Attack remixes to move the track towards the a more dimly lit spirituality. The kind you might have found as the last tune played out in the dark, smokey, backroom of a club in the early 90's.

On the Perfecto Dub, natural dub-style drum fills add tension and release to the era's signature slow, gritty, looped breakbeats, while extended instrumental passages help lock in the groove as the original's synth lines are unleashed to create an evolving undercurrent of trippy analogue sounds and warped bass.

So far, so very good. But. It’s the strings, when perfectly paired with Paris’ emotionally charged, crystal-clear delivery, that really add another level of emotional resonance to Bono’s contemplation on the difficulties of getting along.

The Perfecto Dub is one of those artful productions from the early 90's in the classic Massive Attack, Portishead, Bristol beats mould, that’s able to tug on the heart, without getting too sentimental about it (not something you’d normally associate with a U2 song).

One could hazard a guess as to why this remix - arguably the best version of this song - flew under the radar at the time of its release (and since). It could be it was too mainstream to be cool, and to cool to be mainstream...
Maybe that was the point. And maybe that's part of what qualifies it as 'Balearic'; it can cross boundaries, it can bring division, but with an open-mind, it can also bring people together...

If you like this, and the general chilled out, retro Balearic vibe, you might like to know the track is featured on a recently re-discoverd Classic Balearic Chillout DJ Mix - recorded by Nic Conef @mettlemusicproductions around the Millennium - alongside a diverse set of artists from the era such as Fleetwood Mac, U2, Massive Attack, Moby, Cinematic Orchestra & Goldfrapp.

For the full continuous DJ mix click here: https://youtu.be/9HH_Un-pTlM

Playlist of short track tasters here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOtRCMKMVegEA1WRlf_QlLmZnNffRd59C&si=_3TU3Ngi6jKX7RUW

Playlist of full individual tracks from the mix here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOtRCMKMVegEVlcd-aQodXxmkFLQGEjm5&si=NZ2FMm9iXHGq6AR5

If you'd like to get more chilled out playlists and dj mixes created by humans for humans in your Youtube feed, subscribe: @notablemusic1


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