Version (album)

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Version
Cover album by Mark Ronson
Released	16 April 2007 10 July 2007 22 July 2008
Genre	Alternative rock/RnB/Pop/Trip-Hop
Length	43:53
Label	Columbia
Producer	Mark Ronson
Professional reviews
AMG link The Guardian link NME (6/10) link Okayplayer link Pitchfork Media (3.3/10) link Stylus Magazine B link Rolling Stone link
Mark Ronson chronology
Here Comes the Fuzz (2003) Version (2007)

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 favourite 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. People magazine gave the album three and a half out of four stars.^[2] Billboard called Version "the massively enjoyable sound of a guy determined to not miss a minute of his moment."^[3] The New Statesman commented on "the record’s most essential qualities: warm-heartedness and a sense of fun."^[4] Giving the album three-out-of-five stars, Rolling Stone called Version "an audacious set of...leftfield covers...turned into dance-soul tracks.^[5] 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."^[6] Michelle Dhillon called the album "a conglomeration of obvious singles, littered with distinctly horrible numbers that are better ignored."^[7]

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

1. "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" (featuring Daptone Horns) - Originally by Coldplay - 3:12
2. "Oh My God" (featuring Lily Allen) - Originally by Kaiser Chiefs - 3:35
3. "Stop Me" (featuring Daniel Merriweather) - Originally by The Smiths - 3:53
4. "Toxic" (featuring Tiggers and Ol' Dirty Bastard) - Originally by Britney Spears - 4:05
5. "Valerie" (featuring Amy Winehouse) - Originally by The Zutons - 3:39
6. "Apply Some Pressure" (featuring Paul Smith of Maxïmo Park) - Originally by Maxïmo Park - 3:36
7. "Inversion" - 1:47
8. "Pretty Green" (featuring Santogold) - Originally by The Jam - 3:16
9. "Just" (featuring Phantom Planet) - Originally by Radiohead - 5:20
10. "AMY" (featuring Kenna) - Originally by Ryan Adams - 3:32
11. "The Only One I Know" (featuring Robbie Williams) - Originally by The Charlatans - 3:59
12. "Diversion" - 1:19
13. "L.S.F." (featuring Kasabian) - Originally by Kasabian - 3:30
14. "Outversion" - 1:50

Bonus Tracks

• "Pistol of Fire" - Originally by Kings of Leon - 2:57, published on "Oh My God" single, and bonus track on iTunes digital edition
• "No One Knows" (featuring Domino Kirke) - Originally by Queens of the Stone Age - 4:37, published on "Stop Me" single, bonus track on iTunes digital edition & Japanese CD edition
• "All I Need" (featuring Wale & Tawiah) - Originally by Ashford & Simpson - 3:10, bonus track on iTunes digital edition
• "California" (featuring Alex Greenwald) - Originally by Phantom Planet - 3:40, published on "Valerie" single
• "Stop Me (Kissy Sellout Mix)" (featuring Daniel Merriweather) - published on "Stop Me" single, bonus track on Japanese CD edition

Singles

1. "Just" - 2006 #48
2. "Toxic" / "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" - 2006 (promo/vinyl release only)
3. "Stop Me" - 2007 #2
4. "Oh My God" - 2007 #8
5. "Valerie" - 2007 #2
6. "Just" - 2008 (re-release of 2006 single) #31

References

External links

• Version at MetaCritic