If you've turned on any sort of pop radio in the last month, chances are you're already familiar with Mark Ronson on some level. His single "Uptown Funk!" featuring Bruno Mars has been getting a lot of airtime on the airwaves, and while it would be easy to dismiss the rest of his album without listening to it, we'd advise that you don't pass over Uptown Special just yet. Sure, it could be chalked up as a period piece with an unabashed affinity for the type of funk popular in years past, but Mark Ronson has so expertly put this body of work together that you can't help but be impressed. What's interesting, too, is that, while he hasn't done a lot to revolutionize the type of vintage sound, it's the modern technology and new recording techniques utilized that make his evolutionary step forward something truly fun to listen to. There are a lot of great tracks on here that probably won't be Billboard hits, but that doesn't mean you're not going to enjoy them as much as the hit singles, and if we're being honest, it's actually the deeper cuts that end up being the most memorable. Tracks like "In Case of Fire", "Summer Breaking", and "Heavy and Rolling" are all specimens of Mark's attention to detail, and the fit and finish each piece of music displays is well beyond what your average producer is capable of. Since Mark is mainly the producer for the album, each track features different vocalists, and while this usually causes problems with album continuity, Mark's signature sounds ensure Uptown is fully his from start to finish. You can stream Uptown Special over on Spotify.
Mark Ronson