Version (album)
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Version is the second album by New York-based English DJ Mark Ronson. It is an album of cover versions. It was released on 14 April 2007 in the iTunes Store. It entered the UK Album Chart at number two on 22 April 2007.
About
Released in mid 2007, the album charted in the Billboard 200 and debuted at number 2 in the UK, supported by the success of single Stop Me, which charted at number 2 in the UK, top 5 of the US Dance charts, and in the top 40 of Italy and Australia. Upon its release, the album managed to crack into the World Top 40, charting at 29.
Ronson's next single, Oh My God with Lily Allen, became his second top 10 single, peaking at 8 in the UK. Valerie, Ronson's third single, also peaked at number 2 in the British charts, kept out of the top spot by the Sugababes. It has spent a dozen weeks in the top 10 and has sold well over 300,000 copies. The song ended the year as the ninth biggest seller, behind number 1's "Bleeding Love", "Umbrella", "Grace Kelly" among others. Valerie also charted in the Switzerland and New Zealand charts and even managed to top the Dutch Top 40 for four consecutive weeks, keeping Leona Lewis from the top spot.
Ronson is set to release Just, featuring Alex Greenwald of Phantom Planet, as the fourth single in the United Kingdom. The song was quickly added to BBC Radio 1's "A-List".
Overall, the album has spent 45 weeks in the UK Top 75, with 10 weeks in the top 10. In December 2007, the album was certified double platinum in the UK for sales of over 600,000 copies[1]
BBC Radio 1 listed the album as the 12th most successful of 2007 in the UK, outperforming the likes of Justin Timberlake, Foo Fighters, Nelly Furtado and Lily Allen.
In February 2008, Ronson received a BRIT Award for Best British Male Solo Artist over favorite Mika. He also performed a medley of 3 songs from the album, the most acclaimed being Valerie in which Amy Winehouse appeared. After the ceremony, four of Ronson's songs appeared in the iTunes Top 100, while Version soared from 22 to 4 in the UK Albums chart.
Response
Critical response to the album was generally positive. Billboard called Version "the massively enjoyable sound of a guy determined to not miss a minute of his moment."[2] The New Statesman commented on "the record’s most essential qualities: warm-heartedness and a sense of fun."[3] Giving the album three-out-of-five stars, Rolling Stone called Version "an audacious set of...leftfield covers...turned into dance-soul tracks.[4] Despite the praise, the album inspired a number of mixed reviews. Giving it a 60% rating, Rich Hughes said that "whilst it was an admirable project and some of the results here are genuinely great, the misses just seem to dominate it."[5] Michelle Dhillon called the album "a conglomeration of obvious singles, littered with distinctly horrible numbers that are better ignored."[6]
In 2008, Version was nominated for Best Album[citation needed], one of Ronson's three nominations. The award would eventually go to the Arctic Monkeys for their album Favourite Worst Nightmare.
Tracklist
| No. | Title | Original artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" (featuring Daptone Horns) | Coldplay | 3:12 |
| 2. | "Oh My God" (featuring Lily Allen) | Kaiser Chiefs | 3:35 |
| 3. | "Stop Me" (featuring Daniel Merriweather) | The Smiths | 3:53 |
| 4. | "Toxic" (featuring Tiggers) | Britney Spears | 4:05 |
| 5. | "Valerie" (featuring Amy Winehouse) | The Zutons | 3:39 |
| 6. | "Apply Some Pressure" (featuring Paul Smith) | Maxïmo Park | 3:36 |
| 7. | "Inversion" | 1:47 | |
| 8. | "Pretty Green" (featuring Santigold) | The Jam | 3:16 |
| 9. | "Just" (featuring Phantom Planet) | Radiohead | 5:20 |
| 10. | "AMY" (featuring Kenna) | Ryan Adams | 3:32 |
| 11. | "The Only One I Know" (featuring Robbie Williams) | The Charlatans | 3:59 |
| 12. | "Diversion" | 1:19 | |
| 13. | "L.S.F." (featuring Kasabian) | Kasabian | 3:30 |
| 14. | "Outversion" | 1:50 |
Bonus Tracks
iTunes digital edition
| No. | Title | Original artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Pistol of Fire" (featuring D. Smith) | Kings of Leon | 2:57 |
| 16. | "No One Knows" (featuring Domino Kirke) | Queens of the Stone Age | 4:37 |
| 17. | "All I Need" (featuring Wale & Tawiah) | Ashford & Simpson | 3:10 |
Japanese CD Edition
| No. | Title | Original artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Stop Me (Kissy Sellout remix)" (featuring Daniel Merriweather) | The Smiths |
Singles
- "Just" - 2006 #48
- "Toxic" / "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" - 2006 (promo/vinyl release only)
- "Stop Me" - 2007 #2
- "Oh My God" - 2007 #8
- "Valerie" - 2007 #2
- "Just" - 2008 (re-release of 2006 single) #31
Release history
| Country | Date |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 16 April 2007 |
| United States | 10 July 2007 |
| Brazil | 22 July 2008 |
References
- ^ "Version goes 2x Platinum". Retrieved 2007-12-27
- ^ Vrabel, Jeff (2007-07-14), "Version". Billboard. 119 (28):43
- ^ Rogers, Jude (2007-04-09), "Here comes the summer". New Statesman. 136 (4837):42
- ^ Rob Sheffield (2007-06-14), "Version". Rolling Stone. (1028):101
- ^ Hughes, Rich 13 April 2007, "Mark Ronson - Version". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 2007-12-14
- ^ Dhillon, Michelle (2007-05-06). "Mark Ronson: Version" NG Magazine. Retrieved 2007-12-14