Mark Ronson featuring Ol Dirty Bastard and Tiggers

One of pop music’s hottest producers, Mark Ronson, has chosen to unveil his new album, Version. Surprise, surprise, it’s devoted entirely to giving a Motown or Stax makeover to a bunch of songs that really needn’t be touched. This crack at Britney’s "Toxic,” is, despite many flaws, actually one of the album’s better moments, largely because of ODB’s disorderly conduct. Unlike the other sinful reconstructions of classics by the Smiths, Radiohead and the Charlatans (all of which can be heard through this link), the late ODB seems like the perfect guest for a song by the world’s most famous skinhead. Ronson zig zags through the track, treating it with his grandiose, trademark production skills (overpowering horns, 30-year-old funk riffs), while throwing in a predictable beat that we’re all too familiar with thanks to Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black. Yes, her album was special, and this one, not so much, considering it’s purely a vanity project by someone cashing in on his 15 minutes. However, this is prime rib for people that buy records at their supermarkets, and with Allen, Winehouse and Robbie Williams among others lending their support, you know this well sell like hotcakes.
Mark Ronson featuring Ol Dirty Bastard and Tiggers "Toxic”