David Bowie Young Americans CD

Personnel: David Bowie (vocals, guitar, piano); John Lennon (vocals, guitar); Carlos Alomar, Earl Slick (guitar); David Sanborn (saxophone); Mike Garson (piano); Willie Weeks, Emir Kassan (bass); Andy Newmark, Dennis Davis (drums); Larry Washington (congas); Pablo Rosario, Ralph McDonald (percussion); Ava Cherry, Robin Clark, Jean Fineberg, Jean Millington, Luther Vandross (background vocals).
Producers: Tony Visconti, David Bowie, Harry Maslin.
Recorded at Electric Ladyland, New York, New York.
This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: David Bowie (vocals, guitar, saxophone, piano, keyboards); David Bowie; Anthony Hinton, Jeanie Fineberg, Ava Cherry, Warren Peace, Robin Clark (vocals, background vocals); G. Diane Sumler (vocals); Willie Weeks (bass guitar); Larry Washington (congas, percussion); Ralph MacDonald, Pablo Rosario (percussion); Jean Millington, Diane Sumler (background vocals); John Lennon (vocals, guitar); Luther Vandross (vocals, background vocals); Earl Slick, Carlos Alomar (guitar); David Sanborn (saxophone); Mike Garson (piano, keyboards); Dennis Davis (drums, percussion); Andy Newmark (drums).
Audio Mixers: David Bowie; Harry Maslin; Tony Visconti.
Audio Remasterers: Nigel Reeve; Peter Mew.
Recording information: Electric Ladyland Studio, New York, NY; Sigma Sound Studios, Philadelphia, PA; Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, PA.
Photographers: Neal Preston; David Michael Kennedy; Eric Stephen Jacobs; Steve Shapiro.
Arrangers: David Bowie; Luther Vandross; Tony Visconti.
David Bowie had dropped hints during the Diamond Dogs tour that he was moving toward R&B, but the full-blown blue-eyed soul of Young Americans came as a shock. Surrounding himself with first-rate sessionmen, Bowie comes up with a set of songs that approximate the sound of Philly soul and disco, yet remain detached from their inspirations; even at his most passionate, Bowie sounds like a commentator, as if the entire album was a genre exercise. Nevertheless, the distance doesn't hurt the album -- it gives the record its own distinctive flavor, and its plastic, robotic soul helped inform generations of synthetic British soul. What does hurt the record is a lack of strong songwriting. "Young Americans" is a masterpiece, and "Fame" has a beat funky enough that James Brown ripped it off, but only a handful of cuts ("Win," "Fascination," "Somebody up There Likes Me") comes close to matching their quality. As a result, Young Americans is more enjoyable as a stylistic adventure than as a substantive record. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
David Bowie abandoned the glam/sci-fi personae of Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane and Diamond Dogs with this radical departure. Recorded at Sigma Sound Studios, the home of Philadelphia International, it featured the label's crack house band and, as a result, confirmed the singer's growing love of soul and R&B. Pulsating dance grooves abound, in particular on the disco-influenced 'Fame', which topped the US singles chart. The song was co-written with John Lennon, a compliment Bowie repaid by reinventing the Beatles' 'Across The Universe' as a dancefloor classic. Such self-confidence abounds throughout this album which shows the singer firmly in command of yet another musical direction.Rolling Stone (p.74) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The title song might be Bowie's best ever, with the rhythm inspiring his most passionate love letter to his fans."
Q (p.134) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "For one album only, he swooped, strutted and sang lyrics like, 'sho'nuff', all of it convincing. He even sneaked in some big ideas..."
Q (6/91) - 5 Stars - Indispensable - "From '75, 'Young Americans' saw Bowie abandon the mock-apocalyptic rock of his previous three LPs to climb aboard the Philadelphia soul train sound, 'Young Americans" 'relentless plastic soul', as Bowie dubbed it, harnessed his writing to the feverish light funk which would, in a few years' time, mutate into world-conquering disco..."
Q (11/99, pp.140-1) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Bowie's first outright dabble with 'plastic soul' (his description) and provisionally entitled 'Dancin', was trademarked by floppy fringe and smart, tailored jacket, but the balmy guitar of Carlos Alomar is its true signature..."
CMJ (p.48) - "[With] waves of R&B vocal-backing, crests of crunchy sax work from David Sanborn and, of course, Bowie's affected-yet-restrained blues croonery."