Rediscover the style-meshing debut that shot Mars onto pop’s A-list

Bruno Mars is a musical renaissance man with an ear for current trends and fluent in old-school methods of songwriting and production. “Just the Way You Are”, “Talking to the Moon” and “Our First Time” are suave slices of R&B/pop with finely-honed hooks. Stretching out further, he dives into a ’60s-style soul rave-up (“Runaway Baby”) and has a fling with classic summertime pop (“Marry You”). Mars handles the instrumental duties as well as the lead vocals, bringing a unified feel to this eclectic and delightful album.