Uptown Funk hit maker Mark Ronson returns to Australia to launch new record

WITH his chart-topping Bruno Mars collaboration sitting on top of the charts, Mark Ronson has promised to bring the funk on his upcoming Australian visit.

Mark Ronson

STYLISH hit maker Mark Ronson is bringing the funk to Australia as his retro-fuelled record Uptown Special shapes up to dominate global charts this year.

Ronson and his buddy Bruno Mars have sat atop the ARIA charts for six weeks with their inescapable party anthem Uptown Funk.

His performance of the song with Mars on the Ellen Show with the audience joining in on the choreography last week went viral and has had almost two million views.

And now Ronson’s fourth record Uptown Special is shaping up for a No. 1 debut this weekend.

The album has a strong Australian connection, thanks to Tame Impala’s creative guru Kevin Parker, who lent his signature psychedelic vocals to three songs and also played drums, guitars and synths to others.

One of the tracks, Daffodils, has already scored a big thumbs-up on music blog sites when it dropped late last year and it is believed Ronson and Parker are trying to lock in a performance of the song during his visit.

The Grammy Award-winning producer has been wildly respected in music circles since his work on Amy Winehouse’s massive Back to Black album, followed by his own breakthrough record Version in 2007.

That album generated his first chart-topping single, a reworking of The Smiths’ hit Stop Me with Australian soul singer Daniel Merriweather.

Ronson, the brother of Hollywood celebrity DJ Samantha, has also had his hands on some of the most acclaimed and successful singles in the past decade including the Bruno Mars smash Locked Out Of Heaven, Adele’s Cold Shoulder, Christina Aguilera’s Hurt, Robbie Williams’ underrated tune Lovelight, Kaiser Chiefs’ Never Miss A Beat, Lily Allen’s Littlest Things and Paul McCartney’s New.

Ronson’s visit to Australia in early February will be devoted to talking up Uptown Special but it is believed he may surprise fans with some secret DJ sessions.

Originally published as Uptown Funk hit maker Mark Ronson returns to Australia to launch new record