The Styrous® Viewfinder: 101 Reel-to-Reel Tapes 43: David Bowie 4 ~ Pin Ups

February 18, 2014

101 Reel-to-Reel Tapes 43: David Bowie 4 ~ Pin Ups

reel-to-reel tape box front cover detail

detail photo by Styrous®

I have hundreds of reel-to-reel, pre-recorded tapes in addition to my 20,000 Vinyl LP collection I'm selling. This is an entry about the Pin Ups, reel-to-reel tape, by David Bowie, I will have for sale on eBay on June 15, 2014. I currently have other David Bowie reel-to-reel tapes on eBay for sale. (see link below for others). Interested? Contact me by email, please, not by a comment.

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Pin Ups is the seventh album by David Bowie, containing cover versions of songs, released in 1973 on RCA Records. It was the first of two "1960's nostalgia" albums that Bowie had planned to release. The second, which was planned to be called Bowie-ing Out, would have contained covers of his favorite American artists, but it was never recorded. Bowie considered making a Pin Ups sequel; he had compiled a list of songs he wanted to cover, some of which showed up on his later releases of Heathen (2002) and Reality (2003).

The woman on the cover with Bowie is the 1960s supermodel Twiggy in a photograph taken by her manager at the time, Justin de Villeneuve. It was shot in Paris for Vogue magazine, but at Bowie's request, used for the album instead.

David Bowie ~ Pin Ups

Bowie & Twiggy
reel-to-reel tape box cover
photo by Justin de Villeneuve

photo of album cover by Styrous®

Sorrow is by far my very favorite song on this album. Bowie's remake of the song by The McCoys was the only single released in the UK from the Pin Ups covers project, reaching UK #3 and staying in the charts for 15 weeks. Sorrow was featured in the 2008 John Cusack film War, Inc. It has a nice violin intro and it (the violin) plays intermittently through the song. The tune also features some mean sax by Bowie. In spite of the downer lyrics, it has a terrific dance beat that made me want to get up on the floor and move.

"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!"
- David Bowie, 1973

"These songs . . . "