My God not heard this for a long time, one of the original hybrid remixes, makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up the memories this beauty is attached to....
Didn't they always...? I mean, that's pretty much Hybrid's M.O., isn't it?! Like... What song did Hybrid fuck up their remix of it? Even the remixes that Mike refers to as "ropey" or "dodgy" which they made late one night with some laptop on their tour bus still sound better that a great many remixes from other artists! (Those remixes are "South Side" & "Expander")
What's really crazy & stupid is Alanis's decision to suppress & forbid the release of this remix! I don't recall the exact timing or sequence of events, but she also refused to allow the release of the remix that she/her label commissioned Hybrid to make of "So Pure"! They decided to make this one entirely on their own. What's f*cked up about the "So Pure" remix is that the commission amount was almost nothing because their payment was meant to come through records sales for which they had negotiated a good deal. So, she screwed them out of getting paid... At least for this one they didn't have any definite expectation of getting paid... One thing that is often misunderstood by the public is that DJs (or actually dance music remix artists) have unrestricted rights and need NO permission to play ANY music which they own (have purchased an official copy of) in their DJ sets, in any form... Which includes any remixes, mash-ups, samples, etc which they have made/produced. And they can not get in any legal trouble by doing so because that is how the copyright & usage rights/licensing laws are written. What DJ/remix artists/producers are NOT permitted to do is to sell those remixes, or to perform/play them on the radio (without permission).
You have no idea how much this white label was coveted on vinyl back in the day. I managed to snag a copy at my local record shop just on a whim and people were mad jealous.
Alanis's decision to suppress & forbid the release of this remix is so crazy & stupid! (and that is truly the nicest way anyone could say that...) Apparently (supposedly... Or at least she claims) she really hated this when she heard it. Personally, I don't buy (accept) that! I'd be willing to bet that the truth is that she just wanted to flex her "empowered" feminist muscle to assert & flaunt her power & control, especially over these men, who represent the evil patriarchy. But in truth it just makes her look like a total b*tchy c*nt! My theory is that the remix is so good that once you've heard it, the original kind of loses its power & impact... she certainly could not permit that to happen!!! I don't recall the exact timing or sequence of events, but she also refused to allow the release of the remix that she or her label specifically commissioned Hybrid to produce of "So Pure"! She apparently cited the same reasoning for that one as she did for this one. Which is even more ludicrous & preposterous for "So Pure" than it is for this one. And I am convinced that the real reason is the same. The bottom line is: hearing the remix makes the original sound mediocre, if not pathetic. Hybrid decided to make this remix entirely on their own. What's even more f*cked up about her decision to forbid the release of "So Pure" remix is how it affected Hybrid's payment for making it. The actual amount they were paid as commission was almost nothing at all because their compensation was meant to be fulfilled through record sales for which they had negotiated a good deal. So, she totally screwed them out of getting paid... At least for this one they didn't have any definite expectation of getting paid... But at least there wasn't anything she could do to stop them from playing the remixes in their DJ sets. One thing that is often misunderstood by the public is that DJs (or actually dance music remix artists) have unrestricted rights and need NO permission to play ANY music which they own (have purchased an official copy of) in their DJ sets, in any form... Which includes any remixes, mash-ups, samples, etc which they have made/produced. And they can not get in any legal trouble by doing so because that is how the copyright & usage rights/licensing laws are written. What DJ/remix artists/producers are NOT permitted to do is to sell those remixes, or (in many cases) to perform/play them on the radio (without permission). So then... How does this exist? Well, the story is that Hybrid personally paid to have a dub plate privately cut and for 50 (or 500) copies to be pressed so that they could play then even at gigs without CDJs (which are not yet in widespread use). And they were also said to have given most of the extra copies to the biggest DJs who they believed would play them. The legality of that is a gray area, and with nothing printed on the label to even identify the manufacturer there is really nothing that could be proven anyway. Now, where the story gets dark is that someone (actually several people) who had been given a copy realized the demand that existed and decided to bootleg a small pressing (probably 500) to sell. There are several different bootleg pressings that surfaced of the remixes of both tracks. And, because of how bootlegs are created & manufactured their quality is poor, they are pressed at low amplitudes and they often have physical defects. So, basically... The remixes were not just played by Hybrid, or even the top global DJs, multiple pressings were made and released around the world to meet demand, but the quality was crap, and at least one pressing had a defect... But NOBODY that should have gotten paid actually did get paid! GOOD JOB ALANIS... BRILLIANT!!!
