Growing up in North London you feel like you are only ever two degrees of separation away from Mark Ronson. He’s your best friend’s-cousin’s-cousin or a family friend’s-friend’s-godson, he has the quality of feeling entirely local while simultaneously being a global mega producer who has worked with some of the biggest artists on the planet.
He has produced hits like ‘Uptown Funk’, the cover of ‘Valerie’ with Amy Winehouse, that is arguably more famous than the original version, by The Zutons and his work with Lady Gaga on her album Joanne led to his involvement in the Oscar-winning, A Star Is Born.
I first came across Mark Ronson, flicking through the music channels back in the days when we relied on MTV to tell us what was cool. The video was ‘Oh My God’ featuring a cartoon Lily Allen prowling around an underground club just like Jessica Rabbit in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, cartoon Lily even had the same sleepy bedroom eyes, and pastel coloured eyeshadow. The cover art for Ronson’s album Version was also everywhere! That distinct, dark quiff and brooding stare with the ripped red motif is an enduring image of 2007 and a style reference for any man living north of Kings Cross.
My personal Mark Ronson obsession started with ‘Somebody to Love Me’, from his album Record Collection. Released in 2010, I loved the longing in the lyrics and the way Boy George crooned the words with this distressed cracking in his voice. The bluesy proclamation of wanting to be loved is underscored by an upbeat, pounding base line which is everything you want when you’re seventeen. The song also instantly makes me think of the potential of a summer evening in Camden, not sure who or what is going to be waiting for you and I still listen to it whenever I am feeling a little homesick.
This brings me on to my most recent Mark Ronson obsession, his 2019 album Late Night Feelings. I only discovered the album last year, when feeling homesick and unable to travel to London during lockdown, I put on some Mark Ronson and a track from the album came up on shuffle.
In interviews Mark talks at length about encouraging the artists he works with to be authentic in their songwriting. He wants their real stories and their real emotions which has led to albums like Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black telling stories of pain, longing and love while having a bright and catchy sound. From interviews and documentary footage he is meticulous in the studio, he understands how to rip a track apart, work it until it is layered with intricate sounds and tiny satisfying details and then he puts it back together: shiny and ready to be heard. He is a master producer. So it was no surprise that after putting the album on for the first time, I haven’t turned it off since.
Late Night Feelings opens with ‘Late Night Prelude’, it has this twinkly, intermittent feel, like trying to see across haze on a dark dance floor. There are soaring strings which remind me of the opening bars of ‘Love’s Theme’ by Love Unlimited Orchestra and knowing Mark and his limitless list of references I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a loving nod to this classic track.
The track then blends seamlessly into the titular track of the album, ‘Late Night Feelings’. With Swedish singer Lykke Li on vocals, and a funky base line, ‘Late Night Feelings’ encompasses everything the album is about. The lyrics feel personal yet relatable with lines like ‘Make me psychotic, you’ve pulled away/ You take the sane in me and tear it like a page/ Write you erotic but I know you’ll wait/ Before you answer just to make me go insane.’ (We’ve all sat staring at our phones waiting for that person to reply!) The post -chorus has the repetitive ‘On and on and on’ giving a sense of the cyclical feelings we experience post-breakup, replaying, reminiscing, remembering, usually as we lie awake in the dark waiting for sleep to find us.
The album continues as a catalogue of break-up songs you can dance to and lyrics that explore heartbreak, loneliness and longing but underscored with driving baselines, twinkly echos and punchy beats. To coin the marketing jargon of the album, every track is a ‘sad banger’ but my favourites include:
Pieces of Us
‘Pieces of Us’ featuring King Princess throbs like a heavy heart and I love the lyrics in the chorus, ‘Our love/ Our trust/ No matter which way you cut it, there’s pieces of us.’ King Princess is signed to Ronson’s label Zelig Records and their recent single ‘PAIN‘ is also a must-listen.
Don’t Leave Me Lonely
‘Don’t Leave Me Lonely’ featuring YEBBA has this intricate pounding rhythm section and an echo-y, ethereal reverb on the vocal that makes it sound like a disco prayer. I love the pleading line, ‘If we fall apart let’s do it in the dark/ Hit me in heart this time’.
Nothing Breaks Like a Heart
‘Nothing Breaks Like a Heart’ featuring Miley Cyrus has Miley’s country signature all over it. I love the spangly guitar that rolls throughout the track and how it sounds against Miley’s husky vocals. The video is also three-parts apocalypse action film and one-part midnight movie.
Spinning
Potentially my favourite track on the album, ‘Spinning’ featuring Ilsey, is the perfect outro to the record. It feels pensive and reflective, calling back the ‘on and on and on’ refrain from ‘Late Night Feelings’ in that same hazy way as ‘Late Night Prelude’. It makes me think of a record on a turn table slowing down before coming to a complete stop.
I am always interested in learning about an artists creative process from the tentative beginnings of an idea to the tangible record in front of us. Musicians touch on so many aspects of creativity: poetry, technology, sound and feel. For an insight into Ronson’s process in the studio I would highly recommend the Lady Gaga documentary, Gaga: Five Foot Two which is available on Netflix and the documentary Mark Ronson: From the Heart which aired on BBC Two last year and showcases Mark’s work on this album and his career so far. It is not currently available to watch online but keep an eye out as it is the sort of thing BBC will most likely repeat at 1am on a random weeknight!
To hear Mark talk to other artists he admires about their creative process he is currently hosting The FADER Uncovered podcast, interviewing artists and bands like Tame Impala and David Byrne. I recently listened to the HAIM interview and the conversation is absolute fire!
Listen to Late Night Feelings on Spotify and check out Mark Ronson’s YouTube channel for music videos and more.
Midnight Culture 