David Bowie "Pin Ups" 1973***

This is one of those albums I've bought twice. There's no other way to get his version of Jacques Brel's "Port Of Amsterdam" (at the time a B-side to the "Sorrow" single) - one of my favourite songs from the great Belgian troubadour. I love Bowie's sparse, acoustic delivery and the way he brings the lyrics to life - the English translation of the song is poetic and wonderfully decadent. It wasn't part of the original LP, but included as a bonus track in the 1990 Rykodisc reissue and cruelly pulled out for later editions. That whole remastering program from 1990 saw Bowie's albums augmented with rare bonus tracks, and most of them were real gems which remain unavailable since. I own most of the Rykodisc reissues either on LP or CD, which means I own a big chunk of Bowie's catalogue twice. "Pin Ups" is considered at best a curiosity in Bowie's catalogue - at worst, a useless distraction. For a singer-songwriter in the midst of a phenomenal creative streak, it doesn't make much sense to release an album of covers from mid-60's British R&B groups. Of course one can argue that, next to his other innovations, Bowie also discovered the tribute album. In his own words, he wanted to present some of his favourite songs that he thought were unfairly neglected by American audiences at their time. It was a weird exercise in nostalgia, as these songs were only 6 or 7 years old - not yet golden oldies by any standards. When they originally surfaced, Bowie was an aspiring R&B/pop singer working under the name Davy Jones. By 1973 he was probably rock's greatest star, certainly one of the most interesting artists around, and the leader of the glam rock movement. Recorded immediately after "Ziggy Stardust" and "Aladdin Sane", he's backed here also by the Spiders of Mars, the sole change being Aynsley Dunbar on drums. Which guarantees that, while rarely surpassing the originals, these versions don't lack punch. Actually, if a weak spot even exists, it'd be Bowie himself, whose voice is a bit too mannered for some of the rougher songs. Mick Ronson being the guitar god he is, covers from Pretty Things ("Rosalyn", "Don't Bring Me Down"), Yardbirds ("I Wish You Would", "Shapes of Things") and Who ("I Can't Explain","Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere") rock hard and are pretty exciting. They're mostly played in a straight, garage-y, manner. "Shapes of Things"is quite different from the original, with a more theatrical vocal delivery. prominent saxophone and keyboard. Ronson's guitar performance, at least, rivals Jeff Beck's original. "I Can't Explain" is also noticeably different, as it's played at a slower tempo. The change doesn't work in the song's favour. The Kinks' "Where Have All The Good Times Gone" is at least as enjoyable as the original while The Easybeats' "Friday On My Mind" misses something in the vocal department. Notice that the Easybeats were the only non-British band covered here: They're Australian, although none of its members were born there: They came from England, The Netherlands and Scotland (George Young, older brother of AC/DC's Angus and Malcolm). So I guess you can say the were at least part British, after all. Now, audiences in 1973 were very much familiar with Pink Floyd, but I doubt many of them had ever heard "See Emily Play", a Syd Barrett-penned single from 1967. Bowie's version utilises saxophone, wild piano and harpsichord, psychedelic guitars and classical strings - inventive and true to Barrett's spirit, if not to the song's original structure. Van Morrison's "Here Comes the Night" gives Bowie a chance to try his hand at soul while the Mojo's "Everything's Alright" is an upbeat soul/rock number a la Mitch Ryder. Finally, the album's lead single was paradoxically the slowest song, the Merseys' "Sorrow". On the other hand, it is the one most resembling 70's Bowie and such an obscurity that people would probably take it for an original composition. This reissue offers yet another rarity, a previously unreleased cover of "Growin' Up" by a then still unknown American artist called Bruce Springsteen. Say what you will about Bowie, there's no denying he's always had an eye for talent! Ultimately, "Pin Ups" is a pleasant album that finds itself in the awkward position of following up a string of masterpieces. It may nevertheless have been exactly what Bowie needed to shake himself free from the image of Ziggy Stardust and influence of glam rock and embark on the next stage of his career. 

**** for Rosalyn, I Wish You Would, Sorrow, Don't Bring Me Down, Port of Amsterdam

*** for Here Comes the Night, See Emily Play, Everything's Alright, Shapes of Things, Anyway Anyhow Anywhere, Where Have All the Good Times Gone, Growin' Up

** for I Can't Explain, Friday on My Mind