Career
Mattern moved to New York as a young adult in order to pursue a career in music production. His early work, in the 1980s, was under the guidance of notable disco DJ and pop remixer/producer Shep Pettibone.
From 1989 to 1995, Vasquez gained national prominence — along with music industry influence — through his residency at the original Sound Factory, a club he cofounded at 530 West 27th Street in Manhattan's Chelsea District. Because of the heavy influence he had over his crowd, Vasquez was able to make or break new releases, and major record labels solicited Junior to craft club-friendly remixes of pop-oriented songs. Junior also created his own "private collection" of remixes of songs he was authorized to remix — and also for those he wasn't — that made his sets even more special to his audience.
After the closure of Sound Factory, Vasquez held residencies at the Tunnel, then his Arena party at the Palladium. In 1997, he returned to the Sound Factory's old space, remodeled to include a custom-designed DJ booth for Junior's exclusive use and reopened as Twilo, for a residency that lasted until that club's closure in 2001. Later that year, Vasquez began a new Sunday-morning afterhours residency -- Earth, at Exit Nightclub, that lasted until 2003. In the years that followed, he held shorter-lived residencies at various clubs in New York, including Discotheque (Fridays), Sound Factory (a club on West 46th Street, not to be confused with the "original Sound Factory"; since 2005, it has reopened with the name of Pacha), Spirit (the again-remodeled and reopened space at 530 West 27th Street that was formerly the home of legendary nightclub Twilo), and Roxy NYC. He now holds a small, monthly, Sunday-night residency at Cielo, a small bar located in the West Village section of Manhattan and spins at various other venues in New York and around the world.
In addition to his work as a DJ and remixer, he has co-produced albums for John Mellencamp, For Real, Lisa Lisa, and Cyndi Lauper, among others.
Madonna controversy
Vasquez had a public falling out with Madonna in 1996, after the release of an unauthorized single titled "If Madonna Calls". The original version that Junior plays at clubs contains what is widely believed to be an actual phone message from Madonna left on Junior's answering machine.
The song lyrics are as follows:
(voice recording ostensibly left by Madonna on Junior's answering machine at his home in New York):
"Hello Junior, This is Madonna. Are you there? (short pause) Call me in Miami."
This is follow by the voice of a male that says:
"If Madonna calls, I'm not here"
This is followed by hard tribal rhythms, with the samples of the message still playing in the loop of the track, and the male singer repeating the words shown above. Towards the end of the song, the words change and the male voice then says:
"If Madonna Calls…actually if she calls just disconnect her."
The song reportedly was produced after Madonna failed to show up for a surprise performance at one of Junior's parties held at legendary New York City club "Tunnel" at the last second. Although never confirmed, Madonna did not approve of Junior's actions, ending their professional relationship on bad terms. Chances for a reconciliation are impossible according to Madonna's longtime rep Liz Rosenberg, who in a June 2003 news story in New York Magazine said “I can assure you that Madonna will never work with Junior again.”
One By One
Junior Vasquez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You know that is free as the love you have
Where does it end It's too much for me to take
There's no peace, you close your eyes
I'm all out of truth, I'm outta alibis
Where does it end
It's too much for me to take
We're gonna love one another 'til morning comes
Seek the sweet salvation for what we've done
Give up resisting one by one
One by one
He gives a new kinda meaning to what I am
I know that I could never love any other man
One of these days you'll understand
Understand
And his face his heaven sent
He makes me believe there must be something else
Where does it end It's too much for me to take
I can feel the need in you
There isn't a thing, I want you do
Where does it end It's too much for me to take
[Chorus: x2]
We're gonna love one another 'til morning comes
Sweet salvation for what we've done
Give up resisting one by one
One by one
We're gonna love one another
We're gonna love one another
Give up resisting one by one
One by one
The lyrics of Junior Vasquez's song "One by One" speak about the power of love and faith. The song begins with the lines "When you pray with every breath, you know that is free as the love you have. Where does it end? It's too much for me to take. There's no peace, you close your eyes. I'm all out of truth, I'm outta alibis. Where does it end? It's too much for me to take." These lines illustrate the overwhelming emotions that come with prayer and love. They suggest that love and faith are never-ending, and that they can sometimes be too much to handle. The lyrics also hint at the importance of peace and the idea of finding oneself in difficult times.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "We're gonna love one another 'til morning comes. Seek the sweet salvation for what we've done. Give up resisting one by one. One by one." This hook emphasizes the importance of love and unity. The lyrics suggest that love and forgiveness can heal all wounds, and that peace can be achieved through the act of surrender. The final verse of the song speaks about the transformative power of love. "And his face his heaven sent. He makes me believe there must be something else. Where does it end? It's too much for me to take. I can feel the need in you. There isn't a thing, I want you do. Where does it end? It's too much for me to take." These lines talk about the spiritual experience of falling in love and the idea that love has the power to elevate one's life.
Line by Line Meaning
When you pray with every breath
When you pour your soul into prayer
You know that is free as the love you have
You realize that your love is unconditional and without cost
Where does it end It's too much for me to take
The unending nature of this love is overwhelming
There's no peace, you close your eyes
Even with your eyes shut, you're unable to find peace
I'm all out of truth, I'm outta alibis
You're unable to sugarcoat the truth anymore and don't have any excuses left
We're gonna love one another 'til morning comes
We'll continue this journey of love all through the night
Seek the sweet salvation for what we've done
We look for redemption for our past actions through love
Give up resisting one by one
We'll accept and embrace love gradually, step by step
He gives a new kinda meaning to what I am
He inspires me and makes me a better person
I know that I could never love any other man
I know that he's the only one for me
One of these days you'll understand
Someday, you'll realize the power of love just like I did
And his face his heaven sent
He's a blessing and like an angel from heavens
He makes me believe there must be something else
He makes me feel there's more to life than what I know
I can feel the need in you
I sense your desire and yearning for love
There isn't a thing, I want you do
I don't need anything from you, other than your love
We're gonna love one another
We're bound to love each other and nothing can stop us
Give up resisting one by one
We'll let go of our inhibitions and embrace love gradually
One by one
We'll take our time to fall in love with each other
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: CHER, ANTHONY GRIFFITHS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Emmyfan
This remix is amazing and does not play around. Everyone ran to the dance floor when this was played!!!
Regy Noble
Emmyfan We Sure Did!!!
Joey Cosentino
Qp
Joey Cosentino
7
Michael Macera
Remember this like it was yesterday ...... "97"
Rick Vacha
The 90s were really such good times. Life was so simple and fun ! This is still my all time favorite Cher songs.
Rick Vacha
This one slipped by so many but we used to throw down to this at club Visions in Cleveland Ohio circa 1997 .Robin Harris used to work the queens silly with 3 turntables at the same time. Those really were good times.
Miss Melody
Robin knows what's up.
brianbearco
love this version!
Joey Delgardio
OMG!!! This song (with Junior's awesome remix), brings me back to the good ole days of my absolute favorite nightclub of all time - the Colosseum in NJ!!! 😍😍😍😛 Made so many life-long friends there and I remember running to the dance floor as soon as I heard the opening beats to this song!! So many awesome memories that I will keep close to my heart always!! ❤❤❤❤❤❤