My mom used to play Elton John’s music all the time. I grew up on it. His songs played a large part of my musical childhood. In fact, I’m told that the first song I ever sang was, “B-B-B-Bennie and the Jets.” Having not listened to much of Elton’s music in recent years, I found myself truly inspired having gone to see the movie, Rocketman. The music brought back intense feelings from both my childhood and where I find myself in the present moment. I immediately went into the studio and started work on this remix.

As a musician, I’ve always related deeply to the original song which was inspired by the 1951 science fiction short, The Rocket Man, by Ray Bradbury. The story depicts the complex relationship between technology and psychology, and in particular, an astronaut's love of the stars. A man ventures into space for three months at a time and returns to earth for only a few short days to see his wife and son, deeply torn between his love of space and his family. The song imagines what his long adventures, while filled with loneliness, would be like. I've always viewed this as a metaphor for the life of an artist. 

This remix makes a great precursor to the release of my next full-length album, Setting Fire To The Stars. (Coming this fall). It's a sci-fi themed record that vibes on the darker side of our feelings. Thoughts of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and social isolation are recurring ideas in both the lyrics and music found on this album. Subjects that many of us are all too familiar with. 

So here's my remix of Rocket Man for you. I hope you catch a new vibe off my interpretation of the original classic.
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Shout out to my good homies, Moon Suk Lee, for the original artwork and Brett Shredmunds for the title work.

Mixed and Mastered by Mark A. Cooley and Chris Wright at Violet Recording

2019

Rocket Man (Shuj Roswell Remix)

Booking: shujroswell@gmail.com

Shuj Roswell is the latest musical creation of Denver's own, Mark A. Cooley. Releasing his debut album on Michal Menert's Super Best Records label in 2015, he carefully curates vinyl samples of 60's and 70's funk and soul as a foundation for his production. Fusing traditional sample based hip-hop techniques with warm analog synthesis and hard hitting beats, he sets the table for a sound within the Electro Soul movement he calls, Funk-tron-a-delic.

When playing out, Shuj Roswell Live takes the musical experience to the next level by bringing live instrumentation into the mix. Mark plays guitar and is accompanied on stage by drummer and good friend, Eric Imbrosciano. Eric comes from a hip-hop, funk, and jazz background originating from his early years gigging in and around the New York music scene. He injects a soulful vibe into the Shuj Roswell live sound from laid back hip-hop grooves to drum & bass breaks. Eric also performs in the jazz-fusion quartet, Space Orphan. You might have run into him as he hosts several open jams around the Denver area

In addition to his drummer Eric, Shuj Roswell Live consists of emcee, J. Shook, who’s recorded vocals on several Shuj Roswell tracks and a rotating who’s who on saxophone, trumpet and trombone. Mark recorded with and sampled his live band in the studio on the EP, Shuttlecock

Shuj Roswell has performed along side the following artists: Daily Bread, Michal Menert, Maddy O'Neil, Marvel Years, Late Night Radio, Break Science, Exmag, Blockhead, Adam Deitch, Borahm Lee, Chris Karns, Funkstatik, Birocratic, Alvin Ford Jr, Russ Liquid Test, The Werks, Paul Basic, Tnertle, Kevin Donohue (Sunsquabi), Mux Mool, Mark Farina, David Murphy (STS9), Lucid Vision, Nosaj Thing, and Analog Son among others

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Rocket Man (Shuj Roswell Remix)

Shuj Roswell (Super Best Records)