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July 13, 2007 at 08:49:00 AM | more stories by this author
NYC DJ and producer dons a guitar and leads a full band and loads of guests through a set of tracks from his new album, Version.
New York, N.Y.--As one of New York's most in-demand DJs and a scorching hot producer of late, Mark Ronson has built himself quite a Rolodex.
Mark Ronson at the Highline Ballroom.
So when Ronson booked his first live band performance--with the always-enticing "special guests" promised--at the Highline Ballroom Wednesday night, Gotham was abuzz with rumors of who'd show up. Would Lily Allen or Amy Winehouse, both of whom owe at least a portion of their success to Ronson's horn-soaked production on each of their albums, show up?
How about Robbie Williams, who covered the Charlatans' "The Only One I Know" for Ronson's new album of covers, Version? Or maybe Ghostface, whose star turn on "Ooh Wee" was a standout of Ronson's 2003 debut, Here Comes the Fuzz?
Well, not exactly.
But a batch of second-tier guests--and the fledgling venue's fantastic sound system--nearly made up for the lack of star power in the room. Donning a guitar, Ronson was backed by a tight, seven-piece band that included Scotland's Haggis Horns, a top-notch brass replacement for the vaunted Dap Kings, who have been backing Winehouse for most of the year.
Version largely amounts to covers of popular songs that are re-worked, Ronson-style: loads of horns and strings over hip-hop beats.
Wednesday night's 45-minute set kicked off with a reworked, instrumental version of Coldplay's "God Put a Smile Upon Your Face," and quickly segued into the most bizarre track on Version: a cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic," with a guy named Tiggers singing the vocals and DC rapper Wale standing in for the late Ol' Dirty Bastard on raps.
Alex Greenwald and Mark Ronson at the Highline Ballroom.
Other than the Haggis Horns, Wale was the dominant force of the night, as the band backed him on several of his solo joints. Saigon, the NYC rapper who has appeared on HBO's Entourage and whose much-hyped debut album has been delayed for years, also jumped onstage. For "Oooh Wee," Wale took Ghostface's part while Saigon did his own.
It was all fairly by-the-book, with the band laying down lots of funky grooves and several vocalists doing their thing. The highlight of the night was Alex Greenwald of Phantom Planet, who handled lead vocals on one of Ronson's best tracks, a remix of Radiohead's "Just" for the otherwise dreary tribute album Exit Music: Songs With Radio Heads.
Greenwald also led the band through his most popular song, "California," which served as the theme song for the defunct Fox soap The O.C..
