Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Paulini, Starpower 2022.
Saturday 26 February is the date of the Australia Decides concert to determine our nominee for the Eurovision song competition, one of the entrants is Paulini and her latest single We Are One.
It’s not the well-known I Am Australian song by the Seekers, but an entirely new song written by Rick Price and John Capek.
Rick Price is a well-known and respected Australian singer/songwriter/producer who has been living in Nashville for many years.
He’s worked with Tina Arena and Tommy Emmanuel amongst many others.
John Capek was born in Prague but emigrated to Australia with his parents as a child where his passion for music led him to form Carson, one of Australia’s premier blues bands.
He moved to Canada in 1973 and started writing and arranging songs for many well-known Canadian artists including Dan Hill and Dianne Brooks.
He then moved to Los Angeles where he wrote for Rod Stewart, Joe Cocker and Diana Ross, amongst many others.
All this explains that these two songwriters know how to pen and produce catchy hits, so Paulini’s choice of their song is a wise one.
We Are One is a dancefloor anthem and Paulini has the right voice to present it in full diva mode.
It’s a song that implores us to come together, to unite in the face of the many issues confronting humanity.
She comments “the world is hurting so it’s time to bust out with a little hope, unity and joy.”
She notes that there are many things that divide us. “I’m tired of being the person of colour, Australians are tired of lockdowns… and the world is tired of being divided by religion and fear.
“It’s time to remind everyone that we are all humans standing on the same earth, breathing the same air.”
We Are One is the sort of song that could do very well at Eurovision.
It’s beautifully performed by Paulini and the production values are outstanding.
