Uncle Dysfunktional received generally mixed reviews from music critics, some enjoyed it more than they expecting to, while others found it to be uninspired and lacking direction.
[7] The band's line-up by this point consisted of Ryder, Whelan, Bez, Sandhu, Mikey Shine, Julie Gordon and Dan Broad.
Levine produced and engineered the final recordings at Moolah Rogue Studios in Stockport, with assistance from Seadna McPhail.
[14] Ryder said Levine's connections allowed them to bring in outside musicians who he was friends with to contribute to the recordings, including his father Stewart Levine, Ry Cooder and his son Joachim, Juliette Commagere of Hello Stranger, Paul Newsome of Proud Mary, multi-instrumentalist Robert Francis and singer Selema Masekela.
[8][15] The opening track to Uncle Dysfunktional, the psychedelic "Jellybean", sees Ryder detailing an obsession with transgenderism over a baggy drum pattern and synth stabs.
[20] On 26 March 2007, it was announced that Happy Mondays had signed to Sanctuary Records, and that their forthcoming album was scheduled for release in a few months' time.
[21] In April 2007, Happy Mondays appeared at the Coachella Festival in the United States, marking their first visit to the country in 15 years.
[24] Happy Mondays were scheduled to the US to perform at the In the City festival, which was run by Factory Records founder Tony Wilson.
[26] Between June and August 2007, the band played various festivals, including Electric Gardens, T on the Fringe and V, and a one-off show at The Ritz in Manchester.
[28] Ryder said he could have put the album out under the Black Grape name as it "would have saved us loads of legal hassles - but because it was Gaz and Bez it just was the [Happy] Mondays".
[29] Despite Factory Records having closed 15 years before, Wilson personally assigned Uncle Dysfunktional a FAC catalogue number, FAC-500.
[28] In September and October 2007, they went on another UK tour, with support from the Sunshine Underground, which was followed by a trek to mainland Europe in November 2007.
[35] The band then performed at the Versus Cancer benefit gig on 23 February 2008,[36] followed by an appearance at the Wakestock festival later in the year.
[44] musicOMH contributor Claire Simpson referred to the album as a "huge amount of fun", serving as a "reminder that it's great that the Happy Mondays have never completely disappeared".
Music's Niall O'Keeffe did not consider it a proper Happy Mondays album by virtue of excluding former members, such as guitarist Mark Day.
editor Rich wrote that despite only having three original members, Ryder, Bez and Whelan "managed to resuscitate the Happy Mondays in a dignified way with this album", though he could not "really call the music innovative".
He added that if the listener tackled the album as "as little more than an excuse for Shaun Ryder to head back out on the road, I guess it works fine".
He found the music to be "directionless", and stated that if Ryder was able to offer lyrics that "linger in the imagination," the album could have had "some longer staying power".