Uptown Funk

Uptown Funk's harmony is deliberately minimal — a two-chord funk vamp that channels James Brown and Prince. The genius is in what it doesn't do: by refusing to add more chords, it forces all the energy into rhythm, production, and vocal performance. The Dorian mode gives the minor key a brighter, more danceable quality than natural minor would provide.

The song originated from a jam that Bruno Mars and his band The Hooligans had been playing on tour. When Mark Ronson joined Jeff Bhasker and Mars for a session at Mars's studio, Ronson wanted to finish leftover demos from Unorthodox Jukebox, but Mars wanted to create something new. Mars started playing drums while Bhasker played keyboards and Ronson played guitar, and they began developing the tour jam into what became 'Uptown Funk'. The process took seven months of grueling, stressful sessions recorded in various locations.

Released in November 2014 as the lead single from Mark Ronson's Uptown Special, 'Uptown Funk' revived 80s funk with irresistible groove and charisma. It topped charts in 19 countries, spent 14 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, and became one of the most-viewed YouTube videos of all time with over 5.6 billion views.