January 5th, 2014 - Live In Tokyo With A Kirin Ichiban

Konbanwa!  The Meista here with a pairing from the land of the Rising Sun... tonight I'm pairing a Kirin Ichiban from Kirin Brewery Company, Limited and "Live In Tokyo" by the Hughes Turner Project (HTP)!

HTP was a short-lived, yet brilliant collaboration between bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (Black Country Communion/ Deep Purple/ Black Sabbath/ Trapeze/ solo) and vocalist Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple/ Rainbow/ Yngwie Malmsteen/ solo).  "Live In Tokyo" was released on August 21st (the birthday of Glenn Hughes and mine as well!), 2002 and was recorded at the Shibuya Club Quattro on May 17-19, 2002.  Akira Kajiyama (guitar), Toshio Egawa (keyboards) and Yoshihiro Kudo (drums) were the band for the Japanese leg of the HTP tour.  This amazing live performance is pure rock and roll adrenalin!  The set includes kick-ass rockin' tracks from HTP's first album, wonderful track from solo albums by both Turner and Hughes, as well as a few fantastic renditions of Deep Purple and Rainbow tunes!  The European edition (which is what I have) also includes a bonus studio track: "Against The Wall."  Here's the amazing full track list:

1. "Devil's Road" – 6:11 (Hughes, Marsh, Turner)
2. "Cant Stop Rock and Roll" – 4:45 (Hughes, Marsh, Turner)
3. "Death Alley Driver" – 4:22 (Blackmore, Turner)
4. "I Surrender" – 4:11 (Ballard)
5. "Stormbringer" – 4:41 (Blackmore, Coverdale)
6. "Dark Days" – 3:57 (Kajiyama, Turner)
7. "Mistreated" – 9:15 (Blackmore, Coverdale)
8. "No Stranger To Love" – 7:23 (Tony Iommi) (Japanese version only)
9. "Can't Stop the Flood" – 3:41 (Hughes, Marsh)
10. "Better Man" – 6:00 (Hughes)
11. "Ride the Storm" – 4:03 (Hughes, Marsh, Turner)
12. "King of Dreams" – 6:44 (Blackmore, Glover, Turner)
13. "Street of Dreams" – 5:01 (Blackmore, Turner)
14. "Spotlight Kid" – 5:08 (Blackmore, Glover)
15. "Against The Wall" – 4:36 (Hughes, Marsh, Turner) (European version only)

Kirin Ichiban from Kirin Brewery Company is essentially an American Pale Lager (sometimes called an "all-malt").  It pours a clear, straw-gold color with a frothy, 1/2 finger white head that dissipates fairly quickly leaving no lacing.  The nose is mellow and slightly sweet.  There are faint notes of grassy hops and bready malts.  The flavor is grassy and slightly yeasty with notes of corn and a hint of citrus.  The mouthfeel is light and crisp and it finishes clean.  It goes down easy.  Admittedly, this beer doesn't do "Live In Tokyo" justice, but I wanted something easily drinkable and refreshing to finish up the day... something that would take a backseat to the brilliance of musicianship from HTP!

Kampai!!