Album of the Week: Mark Ronson - Version

So first, I've got to come clean and admit that I too could've sworn that Mark Ronson was the son of guitar god Mick Ronson of Ziggy Stardust fame. However, it turns out that Mark is actually the stepson of guitarist Mick Jones of Foreigner fame. Granted the Foreigner pedigree is decidedly less hip than the Ziggy pedigree, but it seems that Mark has built up enough cred to withstand any sort of "Dirty White Boy" taunts.

Case in point, his latest record Version. A covers record with a sort of DJ/producer remix twist, Ronson not only compiled an uber hip mix of source material, but he also managed to snag some of the hottest acts out right now to lay down the vocal tracks. One of the most compelling tracks is arguably The Smiths cover "Stop Me" which features a young Aussie superstar unknown on these shores named Daniel Merriweather. It starts off a bit slow and sounds like it's going end up sucking royally, but then it kicks in and completely knocks you on your ass. Also, while I never would've associated Phantom Planet with Radiohead in a million years, Ronson's spin on "Just" from The Bends with the Socal boys on vocals works amazingly well. Oh, and then there's that brilliant mashed-up appearance by Dirt McGirt on the "Toxic" cover...but I could go on and on.

Check it out for yourself on MySpace, as of Monday night the whole album was still available being streaming audio on Ronson's page, but it probably won't be up there in its entirety for long. And, one last important note, Version only hit UK store shelves this week so you're going to have to shell out a bucks for this one right now (and making matters worse, the exchange rate actually hit $2 per quid yesterday!!).

Download: Mark Ronson - "Toxic"