May 22nd, 2015 - Pinned Up Pin Ups

Hallo my friends!  Your pal the Meista here today pairing David Bowie's album of covers, "Pin Ups" and a Pin Up Pale Ale from Mother Earth Brewing Company!

Album Info:

• Artist: David Bowie
• Title: "Pin Ups"
• Recorded: July 1973 at Château d'Hérouville, Hérouville, France
• Release date: October 19th, 1973 (7th studio album by David Bowie)
• Record company: RCA
• Production: Ken Scott and David Bowie
• Album cover photo: Justin de Villeneuve
• Personnel: David Bowie (vocals, guitar, tenor and alto saxophones, harmonica, arrangements, backing vocals, and Moog synthesizer) with Trevor Bolder (bass guitar), Aynsley Dunbar (drums), and the late Mick Ronson (guitar, piano, vocals, and arrangements)
• Additional musicians: Ken Fordham (baritone saxophone), Mike Garson (piano, organ, harpsichord, and electric piano), and G.A. MacCormack (backing vocals)
• Musical style: Glam rock, rock and roll, power pop, proto-punk
• Sound: Good old-fashioned rock and roll with lots of wonderful glam rock posturing!  Along with Bowies incredible vocals and sax, the real highlight on this album for me is the breathtaking guitar work of the late, great Mick Ronson!  
• Major themes: 1960s nostalgia - of the album, Bowie states in the liner notes: "These songs are among my favourites from the '64–67' period of London. / Most of the groups were playing the Ricky-Tick (was it a 'y' or an 'i'?) -Scene club circuit (Marquee, eel pie island la-la). / Some are still with us. / Pretty Things, Them, Yardbirds, Syd's Pink Floyd, Mojos, Who, Easybeats, Merseys, The Kinks. / Love-on ya!" 
• Notes: The woman on the album cover with David Bowie is none other than supermodel Twiggy. The photo was originally going to be used for Vogue magazine, but Bowie liked it so much that he requested that he be allowed to use it for the "Pin Ups" album.
• Tracks:   

1. "Rosalyn" (The Pretty Things cover)
2. "Here Comes The Night" (Them cover)
3. "I Wish You Would" (The Yardbirds cover)
4. "See Emily Play" (Pink Floyd cover)
5. "Everything's Alright" (The Mojos cover)
6. "I Can't Explain" (The Who cover)
7. "Friday On My Mind" (The Easybeats cover)
8. "Sorrow" (The Merseys cover)
9. "Don't Bring Me Down" (The Pretty Things cover)
10. "Shapes Of Things" (The Yardbirds cover)
11. "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" (The Who cover)
12. "Where Have All The Good Times Gone" (The Kinks cover)

    Brew Info:

• Brewery: Mother Earth Brewing Company (Vista, California)
• Website: http://www.motherearthbrewco.com/
• Brew: Pin Up Pale Ale
• Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 5.6%
• IBUs: 43
• Ingredients: Bittered with Summit and dry hopped with Citra and Chinook hops
• Pour: Very murky honey-gold with a thin, bright white head
• Nose: The nose of the Pin Up is characterized by herbal and floral hop aromas along with sweeter aromas.  There is lots of mango, orange, and pineapple fruitiness along with soft caramel, honey, jasmine, and very subtle pine and black tea. 
• Taste: Much sweeter than I expected, the Pin Up Pale Ale is a very drinkable brew. Following the nose, the flavor is characterized by lots of juicy citrus and tropical fruit (mango, orange, lemon, grapefruit, etc.) along with malty and bready biscuit and caramel and honey and jasmine tea.  
• Mouthfeel: Incredibly smooth, refreshing, and slightly sticky, the Pin Up is medium-bodied and well-carbonated with a slightly sweet, but clean finish. 

Overall pairing: Well I initially thought to pair these two based on the names.  However, the poppy/punky/punchy sound of "Pin Ups" goes perfectly with the wonderfully drinkable, fresh, sweet and citrusy flavors of the Pin Up Pale Ale from Mother Earth Brewing!!

Cheers!!