It's Better If You Don't Understand
It's Better If You Don't Understand | ||||
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EP by | ||||
Released | May 11, 2010 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Length | 13:32 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | The Smeezingtons | |||
Bruno Mars chronology | ||||
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It's Better If You Don't Understand is the debut extended play (EP) by American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars. The pop EP consists of four tracks and its title comes from the final lyrics of one of its songs, "The Other Side". It was released on May 11, 2010 by Elektra Records in the United States, and on August 11, 2010 by Atlantic Records in France. The song "Count on Me" was not featured on the track list of the latter release. All of the material on the EP was produced by the Smeezingtons, the production team composed by Mars, Philip Lawrence and Ari Levine, with the closing track being co-produced by Jeff Bhasker.
It's Better If You Don't Understand received generally positive reviews from
All of the songs from It's Better If You Don't Understand were later included on Mars's debut
Background
After the release of the singles "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy, both featuring Bruno Mars in the chorus, it was decided that the following step would be releasing a four-track digital EP as fast as possible, so that people would understand that Mars was a "real artist". Those two singles contributed to launching his career as a solo artist.[2] Mars explained that the strength and story behind "The Other Side", one of his favorite songs on the EP, led him to name the recording after the final lyrics on the track.[3][4]
In an interview with Rap-Up, Mars explained that the song "Somewhere in Brooklyn" is dedicated to his father, who is from Brooklyn, adding that: "everyone can agree that New York is a special place". Lyrically, a girl is the subject of Mars's attention. After they met briefly, he tries to find her again somewhere in Brooklyn.[5] Ari Levine talked in an interview with Sound on Sound about producing some of the songs. "The Other Side", whose production was re-arranged, was intended for somebody else, and several people wrote parts of the track.[6] Concerning the lyrics' concept Mars said that they describe: "the lifestyle you end up living as an artist".[7]
In the same interview, Levine explained that "Talking to the Moon" took a long time to record, while he, Mars, and Lawrence decided which drums to use. As a result, the song was arranged and produced "in four different ways".[6] When the team started composing the track, they "only had the first verse and the horns". However, their gut told them they were onto something. At one point the team: "had three different bridges and [they] spent a lot of time trying to find out which one was the best". American record producer and songwriter Jeff Bhasker also collaborated on the track's composition.[6] "Talking to the Moon" was the first song written for the debut release once the three of them finished working with other artists and focused on the EP.[5]
Composition
It's Better If You Don't Understand is composed of four pop songs.
Release and promotion
It's Better If You Don't Understand was released exclusively for digital download on May 11, 2010, by Elektra Records in the US,[10][13] and in France, on August 11, 2010, by Atlantic Records; this edition did not feature "Count on Me" on the track list.[14]
On July 16, 2010, a home video for "The Other Side", directed by Nick Bilardello and Cameron Duddy, was released. The song features
Reception
Critical reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
About.com | [9] |
AllMusic | [8] |
Upon its release, It's Better If You Don't Understand received rave reviews from
Chart performance
It's Better If You Don't Understand failed to achieve commercial success. It debuted at number 99 on the
Track listing
Credits adapted from It's Better If You Don't Understand liner notes.[25]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Somewhere in Brooklyn" |
|
| The Smeezingtons | 3:48 |
3. | "Count On Me" |
| The Smeezingtons | 3:16 | |
4. | "Talking to the Moon" |
|
| 3:27 |
Charts
Charts (2011) | Peak position |
---|---|
97 | |
US Billboard 200[21] | 99 |
Personnel
Credits adapted from It's Better If You Don't Understand digital booklet and AllMusic.[8][25]
Additional musicians and production
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Recording personnel
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Release history
Region | Date | Label | Format | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | May 11, 2010 | Elektra | Digital download | [13] |
France | August 11, 2010 | Atlantic | [14] |
References
- ^ Wood, Mikael (December 26, 2012). "Bruno Mars gladly loses his cool on 'Unorthodox Jukebox'". Los Angeles Times. p. 2. Archived from the original on December 18, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2016.
- ^ a b Smirke, Richard (July 15, 2011). "Bruno Mars: The Billboard Cover Story". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
- ^ a b c d Rodriguez, Jayson (July 15, 2010). "Bruno Mars Shows His 'Darker' Self On 'The Other Side' Video". MTV News. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
- ^ a b c Fried, Melanie (July 16, 2010). "Bruno Mars Brings Cee-Lo to 'The Other Side'". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c Cline, Georgette (March 3, 2010). "Bruno Mars Calls on B.o.B, Cee-Lo for EP". Rap-Up. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ a b c Tingen, Paul (June 2011). "Ari Levine & The Smeezingtons: Producing Bruno Mars". Sound on Sound. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
- ^ "Bruno Mars bio" (PDF). Warner Entertainment. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Jeffries, David. "It's Better If You Don't Understand > Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on July 21, 2012. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
- ^ About.com. Archived from the originalon March 3, 2016. Retrieved June 20, 2011.
- ^ Marketwire. May 11, 2010. Archived from the originalon June 16, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
- ^ DeAndrea, Joe (October 12, 2016). "Bruno Mars' 5 Best Deep Cuts". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
- ^ a b Lamb, Bill (June 30, 2016). "Top 10 Graduation Songs for 2014". ThoughtCo. Archived from the original on July 25, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
- ^ a b "It's Better If You Don't Understand: Bruno Mars". Archived from the original on May 11, 2010. Retrieved September 17, 2010.
- ^ a b "It's Better If You Don't Understand: Bruno Mars" (in French). Amazon Inc. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2010.
- ^ "Bruno Mars' The Other Side". MTV. August 23, 2010. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
- Idolator. Archived from the originalon September 12, 2010. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
- Amazon.com, Inc. Archived from the originalon January 11, 2013. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
- ^ Escudero, Nicki (November 21, 2010). "Bruno Mars at Martini Ranch Last Night (Video)". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ Schutte, Lauren (June 15, 2011). "Bruno Mars: Concert Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 16, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
- ^ Gray, Chris (May 19, 2011). "Last Night: Bruno Mars & Janelle Monae At Reliant Arena". Houston Press. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- ^ a b "Bruno Mars Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
- ^ Caulfield, Keith (July 27, 2017). "Billboard 200 Chart Moves: Bruno Mars' '24K Magic' Album Hits 1 Million Sold in U.S." Billboard. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
- ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK: B – 2011". Official Zobbel Website. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2012.
- ^ a b It's Better If You Don't Understand (Digital booklet). Atlantic Records, Elektra Records. 2010.