Young Americans

Enjoyed overall. If I found the LP for like 5 bucks, I’d pick it it!

*she said she said *good day sunshine

Bowie! Such a great record, coming out of the glam era into something different.

Cool bass on John, I'm only dancing. Fame is an absolute belter. Across the Universe is just sad though, and there wasn't enough gold in the rest of the album.

Not as good as some of Bowie's other albums, but Young Americans, Somebody Up There Likes Me and Fame are classics.

David Bowie does saxy soul. He really commits to it, but it still feels like a bit of a pastiche. 3/5

I like the funk/soul sound of the record, but found that most of the songs did not hit too hard on any sort of emotion. Feels like decent beats with some sort of vague, generic lyrics sung over and repeated. 5/10

easy listening, easily forgotten though too I reckon

Good album

ehhhh nothing was entirely wrong with this album but i didn’t love it. his voice got a tad obnoxious at some points but it was overall meh.

Fun listen! Look forward to other Bowie albums.

It's Bowie, it's fun enough. It's not a masterpiece, but it doesn't suck. Listened to the whole thing without groaning once. 3/5.

not good not bad, would give a 2.5 if i could

Faaaaaame. How was that the closer to the album? Huh.

Another day, another Bowie album. Like most I can take it or leave it. It's a nice album to listen to but nothing that really makes me want to come back to it.

Far from his best, but a decent record with a few of the tracks doing most of the heavy lifting. Quality and timbre of Bowie's voice does alternately grate against and work well with the music, but the overall production and composition is solid

aight

Not my favorite Bowie album, but not a bad one either, and even mid-tier Bowie is better than most of the albums on this list.

Bowie moving away from glam rock towards a more soul/r 'n' b sound and giving us Fame & Young Americans. It's not perfect, hell, as an album it's not even that great. But I get it's inclusion.

a nice disco pop album from the mid 70s. very in tune with the times it feels like.

I enjoyed this album much more than the previous Bowie album. Young Americans and Fame were both great listens and overall I enjoyed the entire album.

I thought this album was really solid. Young Americans is an excellent opening to this album and I would add Somebody Up There Loves Me to playlists of mine to listen to every now and then.

Someone should parody "Fascination" with "Vaccination"

Ever since I was a kid I never got the whole Bowie thing. Growing up I started to appreciate his talent as a musican and songwriter, and I can jam with a lot of the instrumentation on this album; the soul and r&b influences are cool, the tracks are good. But I still don't like his vocals. It leads to this juxtaposition, with this strained white guy voice crooning over these groovy tracks, making them less groovy, and makes the whole thing sound like a poor imitation. Only Fame kind of gets it. Probably because his vocals are sparse.

Never been my kind of music

Not my favorite from Bowie but an enjoyable listen.

Very interesting sound. Clearly, he was very talented, but I did find this album a little repetitive. The only song that I enjoy fully on the album is Fame.

Young Americans by David Bowie (1975) It’s probably just a matter of taste, but I personally prefer this funky R&B sound over David Bowie’s earlier sci/fi ‘space persona’ material. On Young Americans, Bowie takes up more mature themes and shows greater compositional depth and more solid collaborative arrangements and production. These features are evident chiefly in the two very nice hits from this album, “Young Americans” and “Fame”. With stylish backing vocals designed by then-unknown Luther Vandross, the opening track “Young Americans” cooks without boiling over. And teaming up with John Lennon (during his blessed 18-month hiatus from Yoko Ono), Bowie exposes the downside of rock stardom in “Fame” with groove and more than a little panache. This collaboration, however, is not as successful on their joint cover of “Across the Universe”. Yuck. As for the rest of the album, there are lush and elaborate settings (“Win”, “Fascination”, “Can You Hear Me”) for some seriously reflective lyrical motifs. The backing vocals on “Can You Hear Me” are angelic. Bowie’s voice on this album is simply entertaining—not as self absorbed as his previous work. “Somebody Up There Loves Me” at least gets me thinking about the mystery of the Incarnation, even if that almost certainly wasn’t the intent. This blast from the past is suitable background music for cleaning up after a party. Or driving through the car wash. Or packing away your summer clothes for the winter. Or paying bills. But not for riding in an elevator. People would think you’re weird. 3/5

White boy tries funk, mostly gets the gist. Story at 8.

I think I prefer older glam rock period David Bowie more than his soul-inspired era. Lots of good saxophone parts though. I think I prefer the back half of the album to the front. Favorites: Somebody Up There Likes Me, Can You Hear Me, Fame

Not my favorite style for Bowie. It's still pretty good though. The opening and closing track were hits for a reason. Absolute ear worms. Overall it's worth a listen once in a while I suppose. I'd rather go with glam Bowie or Berlin trilogy Bowie in most instances.

Fame is one of my favourite Bowie songs ever - but the rest of the album is a little ho-hum

Classic Bowie

Meh, I know that Bowie = change, but this one is rather boring.

Not a fan of his singing, but the songs are reasonably well written

This is not my style but I'm glad I listened to it. I've never stopped to listen to David Bowie.

great title track, hard to maintain the enthusiasm after that

3.5

-"Young Americans" is good and catchy -I like the funky groove in "Fascination" -The cover of "Across The Universe" was cool -"Fame" is quite catchy, but not mind blowing. I like the low voice bit at the end -Idk just not the most interesting stuff from David Bowie here

Qué bueno que no había nacido todavía porque todavía no le entendía del todo al Davidbowismo.

Está bueno, aunque no es uno de mis favoritos.

I’m sure a lot of deep Bowie fans are going to spit and want to slap me, but Young Americans is not a complete must hear. “Fame” is the only gem, and the title track is embarrassing. There also other good songs, in this album. (5/10) FT: Fame, Across the Universe, Young Americans

Surprised to find I didn’t enjoy this as much as I thought I would. Not a bad album, but not the endless great tracks i was expecting I suppose

I liked the funky vibes of this one more than the other Bowie albums I've heard, but he's still just not my thing.

Some gems, some filler. Ahead of the curve as ever and slightly odd for the Thin White Duke to predict the urban sould of the early 80's.

ну норм, но по музыке если честно не понимаю чо его так все боготворят. Вроде с муз точки зрения все обычно по звуку, наверно скорее за образ, стиль и вот это вот всё

Pop rock. No está mal

This isn't my favourite Bowie album but I still enjoyed it. Didn't much care for the cover of Across the Universe but other than that a solid listen.

Again slightly underwhelmed by Bowie. The hits are good though.

First and last songs are probably the best, but this isn't quite the best Bowie era for me. It has those glimmers of greatness but isn't quite there yet for me. 3.5 down to 3.

Not for me. Kudo's for bowie sound/style

I enjoyed this more this time than when it came up previously in my personal list. High 3 star but not quite 4.

Not one of his best, but still a few classics on here

The two singles are classics, but the rest is quite forgettable. Not a fan of his Lennon cover either.

good album, love david bowie, like the jazzy and soul influences. the songs are very long though

Fame

Bowie's a god, but it really felt like every song consistently went on 2 minutes too long.

A nice album. I was reading that Bowie catalogued this as a phase after having done extensive touring across the US and getting more into soul music. As far as I know there are not any other albums from him that take on this style of music as much as this one. And he does it quite nicely for having come from such different styles over his previous albums.

Not the best David Bowie Album

It was alright, but not fantastic. I've probably only heard a few songs from this album before but I probably wouldn't remember them if I had heard them at some point. The majority of the album was quite forgettable. Except the Beatles cover. I'll try in vain to forget that one!

Unusual style, interesting lyrics. I may liaten again.

More saxophone than I expected

Not Bowie's best.

David Bowie og masser af saxofon, what's not to like? Måske at det er David Bowie og lidt for meget saxofon. 3 stjerner, måske 4 på en god dag.

Some great hits but the others weren’t that impressive

Great sound quality, i didn't know this album. It wasn't riveting.

Okay. Young Americans fantastic track

Gutes Album, aber mir zu einförmig, bleibt weniger hängen!

Schon gut aber nicht ganz unverwechselbar groß

Perhaps it’s a grower

Not a big Bowie fan, and don't think this is his best, shocking beatles cover.

Good Bowie album. Love that Fame is the closer song

fine. meh. it played 80s music for the rest of the day. i want to like bowie more.

It sure is Bowie. Lukewarm on this one

was cool, but i dont feel like it was bowie's best

I can't believe I'm giving  Bowie a rating I would give to mere mortals. The hits never really rocked my boat which resulted in my not listening to the album much. It's a good listen but, for me, I can't give a higher rating. 

I mostly enjoyed this, I've discovered the closer Bowie gets to his "Fame" vibe the more I enjoy him. Big tune.

Good Bowie album, not my favourite. Would be 3.5 if that existed

I didn't think I liked Bowie albums, just his good songs. But this was good. Enjoyable all the way through. Interesting.

Bowie's first "funk" foray. "Fame" is a groovin' classic!

_Young Americans_ - hmm! Apparently this album was the first non-glam record for Bowie, and the record itself has an interesting history. _Young Americans_ and _Fame_ are the songs that stand out, the rest...don’t.

pretty good

Hmmm, couple of tracks saved this from being a 2/5

Across the Universe. Funk, sax..

This is my least favorite Bowie album of the 70s. There are some great songs, especially Right, and not too many artists can say that James Brown “sampled” one of their songs, but the softer soulful numbers don’t do it for me and I never liked the title track. I would give it a 4 but the cover of Across the Universe is SO out of place, unlike the Stones cover on Aladdin Sane.

5

Some interesting tunes that never were appreciated.

it has few of his most famous hits.

Feels like unknown or early (though not really at all) bowie. I never listened to him much honestly outside of his hits. I liked it enough to play it again. Album had some pleasant songs, maybe one or two I recognized. I liked it fine, but I feel pretty neutral about it over all.

Very 70's sounding. Reminded me of porn in some places. I rarely listen to these Bowie tunes so it was surprising to hear them again. This isn't my favorite stuff from him.

Gotta love fashion and style maven Bowie for his chameleon-like changes every few albums. The only other musician that I can think of that does it as well is Neil Young and he's a bloody legend also. However, in this "Soul" phase apart from the wonderful single Young Americans and the lovely song Right, this album has quite a few misses, especially the execrable Fame. Gawd I hate that song. So some great, some bad, some ok means this is 3 stars from me.

Fair to good Bowie. Fame is the highlight. Liked that he covered a Lennon song while having him guest on a different tune.

This was an eclectic sounding record I have to say, from the music to the lyrics. First time ever hearing it. Top 3 Win, Fame, and Can you Hear Me. 3 of 5

Bueno

This isn't my favorite Bowie period. That being said, I still enjoy the album.

I like this album... I want to love it and be cool and call myself a huge Bowie fan. But besides the singles not much else got me too amped... I like the Across the Universe cover. Someone Up There Likes Me is fun. If I gave this higher than a 3 I think I'd be faking the funk to try and look cool.

i don’t think i’ve ever actually listened to bowie other than “heroes” and the other, obvious singles. definitely a different vibe than i figured. after some incredibly brief research, i found out that this was a change from bowie’s previous glam rock style and leaned more towards an r&b and soul vibe.

not my favorite bowie but still pretty cool. catchy but not as consistent. It's cool to see him switch his style up, but it's clear it's not as honed as it could be. Maybe his later projects in this style will have catchier songwriting and more polished instrumentation. favorite songs: young americans across the universe fame

Bowie provides some funk but not quite enough to label it as such, also the Beatles cover throws me off.

Ok, le daré un 3 a este disco. Me gustó que es un poco más 'Funk', y no se siente tan pesado de escuchar. Tengo sentimientos mezclados sobre la versión Across the Universe. El arreglo de la canción está padre, pero no me gusta que en algunas partes usa su "voz espacial" toda pretenciosa. Definitivamente volvería a escuchar el disco, por eso lo califico con tres.

Very 70s. Cover of Across the Universe is godawful.

Decent. Better than the other Bowie album this site offered.

Bra stuff, fin plass å starte med båvvie

7/10 . Solid Album

Great record, though it kind of sounds like the soundtrack to Saturday Night Live sometimes; Fame is one of the greatest Bowie songs of all time

Definitely not one of Bowie's stronger efforts. The album has its charms, including his inspired cover of 'Across the Universe', but overall, this isn't up to his usual level.

Fantastic

bad

idk why but david bowie doesnt do it for me, imma keep sayin it, kinda overrated....?

1975. Ninth studio album. The record showcased Bowie's interest in soul and R&B (different from the glam rock style of previous albums).

Not sure what I wanted out of this one but it all blended together in a bad way. Or at least in a boring way. 2/5

Se o próprio Bowie dizia ser um "facsimile" do soul... Embora teha algumas canções icônicas, como a que dá título do disco e Fame, e curiosidades como a cover dos Beatles tendo John Lennon na guitarra, como disco está abaixo do que Bowie fez em outros trabalhos. Não seria minha indicação dele para ouvir antes de morrer.

Far from my favourite Bowie record, this one is pretty hard work in places - drawn out, aimless and rambling. Fascination really stood out as something pretty good, but maybe that's just because the rest of it was so bad. His version of Across the Universe is excruciating - what was he thinking? Just awful. I've a life-long fascination with John Lennon, so Fame has always been of interest as one of the last things of note he was involved in before taking a five-year break to bring up his son. Historically interesting as the song is, it's pretty thin and plodding, and never really holds my interest for long.

The cheesy sax-pop phase does nothing for me here...

ughh LOVE fame, but not a fan of the rest of the album. also the worst cover of across the universe.

Young Americans encapsulates my take on Bowie in general...some highs some lows and just not enough to make me like his material as much as I want to. The title track is Bowie at his best and (not coincidentally) most accessible. "Right" is an overlooked R&B groove. Beyond that, things get dicey. "Fame" is the third best song on the album - that's pretty telling. And his cover of "Across the Universe" could be taken as the first attempt on Lennon. I can't imagine what the decision-making process was there.

Very mid bowie album

I am tired of bitching about Bowie records on this site…which means I’m just tired of hearing so much Bowie on this site. I think this is the 4th one I’ve come upon. I’m not his biggest fan, although prior to this project I thought he was fine. I’ve learned something by doing this project: I’m not the biggest Bowie fan in the world. And this record showcases why: he’s got, tops, 3 songs per record that are actually worth hearing, and the rest of his work is pure filler. On Young Americans, we’ve got the title track, Fame, and Across the Universe (a cover). Everything else is a slog to get through. A greatest hits record that spans Bowie’s career would be great, but sifting through each individual album is fucking tedious. 5/10

I'm a fan of Bowie, but this is just not good. Soul-less soul...

david bowie before he was david bowie

not a big fan of bowie

I am not a huge David Bowie fan but this album wasn't too bad. His songs are usually alright, but not really my style of music. It was okay having it in the background though.

A little disco/easy listening for my tastes

meh

Tracks to go back to: Right Somebody Up There Likes Me Across the Universe Can You Hear Me Fame Go back to at some point 07/7/26

Not one off david bowie's best works

Another album chosen because of one single. But I guess that's how your average dumbass listens to music anyway.

why does every song have a fade out like LET ME HEAR THE END OF THE SONG

Mid. Very American I guess...I like the tunes though.

Didn’t like, amateur karaoke music

I liked the radio songs, Young Americans and Fame, but the rest of the songs just fell short for me.

I love rock'n'roll Bowie. Jazz/funk Bowie, not so much. There are some good moments but honestly not one song that I feel compelled to take with me on my way. I also found his cover of Across The Universe both pointless and painfully bad, so there's also that.

David Borie

It hurts to dislike this one, because Bowie was really going for something interesting here, but it doesn’t work. He was trying, I can see now, to marry two emotional states that at first seem to be contradictory – emotionless dance music, robotic funk. And he doesn’t succeed (with one major exception). What he wanted was one thing, what happened was just R&B with all the excitement, all the juice, sucked out of it. The aforementioned exception is, of course, “Fame” – the combination of skeletal funk with Bowie’s consciously shouted, ugly vocals is so striking that the song is memorable almost in spite of itself – it’s one of the strangest pop tracks to ever become a classic. And, yeah, the title track has a good chorus, too. But this is best seen as an ambitious failure, a stepping stone to superior later albums. Best track: “Fame”

This was an underwhelming album from Bowie.

"Ultimately just terribly boring to me. The ""plastic"" part of plastic soul really shines through. It feels very disingenuous. Love Bowie, love his voice, style, etc., hate this. The butchering of Across the Universe feels like the defining moment. Just flippant, a sorta cocaine fueled shrug. Fame is the best song for me, and I've got really big issues with it. Terrible ending, some studio tricks that feel heartless to me. David Bowie plays best when he's got an edge. I think the edge he's going for here is that he's friends with black people, which I know in 1975 means something more but to me right now it feels just very shallow. I would much rather listen to the music he's pulling from. I will say I appreciate that it's a collaboration, especially with relatively unknown musicians, given the history of white artists showing up and wholesale stealing black music. It still does very very little for me."

Is this wasn't by Bowie it would just be another forgotten mid 70s album

Bowie no es para mí, lo intenté y no se me dio

had er meer van verwacht. prima maar niet heel leuk.

Bowie und Funky – das ist wie zwei Planeten, die sich höflich zunicken, aber nie wirklich in dieselbe Umlaufbahn finden. Die Grooves wollen tanzen, Bowies Stimme will erzählen, und am Ende bleibt ein seltsamer Schwebezustand: interessant gedacht, aber ohne echten Funkenflug.

Mystic singer... but an overall boring album for me. Slow and uninteresting despite the cover looks. 4/10

hallucinant à quel point il voulait les nachos des beatles oh fraudvid bowie

Decent album, though not as high on the pantheon for me. High 2s. Opening track is a banger

This was fine. It was definitely not my favorite David Bowie album. I knew Young Americans and Fame. I didn’t like his cover of Across the Universe.

bastante normalitas todas, fame la unica que lo salva 2/5

Meh

Ehhhhhh. After 2-3 albums I still don't quite understand Bowie's genre.

Meh

Jazzy sax but nothing too inspiring in the album

Good music, not my type of music.

Mildly groovy though not my favorite sound for Bowie. I like title track and the "Nothing's Gonna Change My World" outro of the Across the Universe cover and Fame.

Weak album compared to many Bowie albums and rather mediocre performance overall.

#393 / 1089 Heard before? ✅ Revisit? ❌ Not the biggest fan of Mr. Bowies music, while I appreciate his skill, the music doesn't do much for me. I wouldn't change the radio station or leave the room if this played, but if this whole album is the main event, I'd get quite bored real soon. Weak 3, strong 2/5

Funky sounds . Enjoyed listening to this.

Not at all a bad album, but also not what I expected of David Bowie. Won't come back to this.

2/5 Pretty short album but not my vibe, didn't really mesh with any song. Favorite Song: Fame

Once again, I don’t understand how Bowie attained the godlike status needed to have 9 albums on this list

This album was so ahead of its' time. Namely: the overuse of saxamaphones that occurred in the 80s. :-).... Honestly pretty low on the Bowie list to my ears.

Ufattelig tamt til å bli blåst opp så voldsomt av så mange. Er nok ikke gammel nok.

Too much bloody saxophone for my liking, but Fame is funky. Not sure why we should celebrate the descent of something amazing into something trying to be soul and funk but mostly failing apart from one interesting edgy song

I feel like this has historical significance that I don’t understand

не мое но не прям плохо

This one didn't click for me. This is the second David Bowie album that I've listened to, and I'm starting to realize that he might not be for me. I liked some of the instrumentals, but nothing really stood out to me. I'm also not of fan of his vocals. It's a little weird and I just don't vibe with it.

Fame is the only redeeming song for me on this album. Not a fan of the Philly solo on this album.

Just David Bowie being annoying, as per. I don't really get why people love this guy so much

Not much of anything in between the first and last track

No wonder he did the Berlin trilogy after this. It's not that this is bad, but it's definitely unsatisfying. It's not as good as the music it's borrowing from and it feels kind of...off? Like Bowie doesn't belong here. He's not bad, but he's misplaced, like it's a mashup. I can't get past that. Fame is rightly the most popular song off this because it's the one that feels like Bowie actually belongs on. Cocaine is a hell of a drug.

I can't help but feel like I'm bound by some unspoken queer oath to love all David Bowie... but this album isn't it for me. This feels like he's throwing musical textures at the wall to see what sticks. His voice is nimble, the guitars are funky, but it's kind of a mess - and not even a hot one. Best song: Fame.

No fue muy de agrado, para escuchar de fondo esta bien pero no hubo una canción que hiciera que volteara y pusiera toda mi atención

There are far better Bowie albums than this, how this on the top 1,000!

Win sounded like i'm going home from rocky horror, the whole album realy, definitely a big influence what with david bowie being the reason there's gender markers on id's. across the universe cover was straight up bad,

i dont like bowie (personal don't get offended pls)

I don't like David Bowie, I don't care.

hmm. it's okay. not my favorite bowie.

Middling.

Honestly Bowie is the worst part of this album. The band and backing vocalists (Ava Cherry, Luther Vandross, and Robin Clark) are great and the highlight of this album. It's pretty bad otherwise.

Bowie decides to suddenly go R and B and soul pop? It's ok and has some decent tunes but it's not the Bowie I want to hear.

Hey look! A David Bowie album! A couple good songs and a bunch of meh. Was on the fence as far as 2 or 3 stars, and Across The Universe pushed it to a 2. Jesus, don't do a cover if you're just gonna fuck it up. Can't wait for more Bowie.

This is my 9th Bowie album on the list, and enough is enough. He’s a bit overrated in my opinion, and the cover of ‘Across the Universe’ was pretty awful. ‘Fame’ was the hit here, but by the time I arrived at that track I was pretty over it.

Holy moly, NOT my favourite Bowie era! Pretty bland funk for the most part, few decent parts. And the Across the Universe cover sounds like someone parodying Bowie singing

young americans is a banger but the rest of it is kinda boring although probably the best bowie album i’ve had yet….. and i still have six to go 😩 2.5

Wait...at first, I thought I accidentally turned on a different YouTube video. I was thinking "why do I hear a black soul singer?", and then when I glanced down at my phone, I realized, to my amazement, I had a David Bowie album playing. This was a fun little experiment for Bowie, but he's better off as a Blackstar, and rockstar named Ziggy. (My album yesterday turned 40 years old today, and this album turns 50 years old in two days; it's March Madness). Favorite Track: "Fame".

my least favorite David Bowie era - plastic for a reason...

Better than Coldplay

meh.

Very strong opener, very strong closer. The rest of it is completely forgettable saxophone noodling with a crap beatles cover.

Me ilusioné cuando vi que el álbum tiraba más al R&B y al soul porque es la música que más me gusta pero creo que sigue teniendo demasiada influencia del rock. No termina siendo de mi gusto aunque hay canciones bastante buenas

Ничем не отличается от предыдущих альбомов Bowie

2.5/5 While I do like David Bowie this is not my favorite by him. Although the song fame is a banger

Upon seeing all of Bowie's albums considered in this publication, this is by my count clearly the weakest. I would much rather have 'Scary Monsters' but as an album in the better half of the artist's discography it remains a really enjoyable record. 7/10 [DROP]

It might have been great at the time but seems flat now.

It's ok but not my taste

First time I’ve ever listened to Bowie. Wish it was more of what he was known for and not the very blue-eyed, plastic soul sound that this album has. “Fame” was alright, wasn’t feeling the rest of it.

To be completely honest, this was a pretty bland record. I only care for Somebody Up There Likes Me, and Who Can I Be Now?

I am not a David Bowie fan. I hope there aren’t anymore albums. I’ve had 3 so far. I’m tired.

bastante flojo, estilo ochentero melodico

Young Americans is a good star but this process has made me wary of Bowie album and the fact that the other recognisable track bookends the album is slightly concerning. Win lacks the punch or jollity of the opener and it feels like the momentum is sucked out the album. Fascination continues this trend despite a far more upbeat chorus. It just sounds very dated. Right applied a similar laid back sax laden approach. This is not the Bowie I want. Same with Somebody up there likes me. Christ! Across the Universe is my favourite Beatles track and Bowie’s version is a crime against humanity. Can you hear is equally disappointing, before we finally teach Fame. Fame is a great track and cements my increasing virw that save for a couple of exceptions Bowie was very much a singles artist. I guess in the age of cassette putting the only two good tracks first and ladt meant you could listen to the first one and the flip it over with minimal rewinding or forwarding.

I've had a surprisingly patchy record with Bowie albums so far, so I wasn't sure how Bowie no: 4 would go... I like the opening track (despite it repeating itself for what felt like ages) - the Sgt Pepper reference always seems extremely out of place though. I also liked the closing track, and other big hit, Fame because of its general funkiness. As for everything in the middle: it was just really dull? I am still taken aback at how little I like Bowie over full albums, when I'd absolutely eat up a greatest hits album. This is getting a 2, and that feels generous. 2/5

Bowie's worst album

I'm bored as hell, honestly. At least he has a nice voice, but this feels blank.

Not for me

Not my genree I expected more knowing it was Bowie

did not spark much in me

This album is obviously Bowie trying something new. The results are middling. But the album is bookeneded with radio hits that are pretty good.

he’s rlly talented but not my style!

not a david bowie fan sorry

Favorite song was across the universe and fame. Actually think I've heard across the universe, and have definitely heard fame. Probably not an album I'd listen to again but would listen to these 2 songs again

T1 this is a gospel song. Like the Beatles reference at 4:00. T5 lovely sax reprise T6 Speaking of Beatles references T7 the Luther vandross really makes this Bowie record into a Philly special soul album T8 we got a James brown sample to start off and I’ve been told that this was a collaborative composition with Lennon, not just a vocal feature.

groovy little start, but I was not particularly intrigued or stimulated by this album.

Ok... for a white guy taking and remaking black people music

It's not Bowie at his best, is it? It's fine, it's perfectly listenable but certainly not his best work. Bowie reinvented himself constantly, and for this particular album I don't think it worked. I'd rather listen to real soul music, or listen to good Bowie music. I don't need him doing a weak attempt at the genre. This album is just okay, there are a few good songs but nothing truly exciting. When we're trying to showcase the best or most important music ever made, this just isn't it.

Bowie's my guy, but I was not a big fan of his soul period. It's missing the intensity of the better soul artists of the period, and the musical execution just feels too generic to stand out. "Fame" is one of Bowie's emptiest hits and "Young Americans" is interesting more for it's lyrics than music. Everything else sounds like an overblown version of music Bowie was fascinated with at the time (including the cover of "Across the Universe," one of the worst things he ever recorded).

-1 for that across the universe cover

Fame did a lot of heavy lifting for this rating. I'm at the point where I think people are trolling me when they wax poetic about Bowie.

It gets kinda boring

Bestes Lied: Fame

Soulful, rock, i liked the instruments used, bouncy feel to it. What i imagine people in the 70’s were vibing to at a listening bar. I liked how the album started, but towards the end the sound/vibe changed a bit to more rock.

David Bowie - Young Americans 1. Young Americans - not really my thing, too “optimistic”. But the sound production, or what’s it called, is very versatile and interesting, you can clearly hear the saxophone, the drums, etc. - that’s cool. So I guess for me it’s like 3.5/10 2. Win - 3/10, the same about the production, but not my style at all 3. Fascination - the beginning really caught my attention, that percussion and guitar🤌🏻 But then in turned to the “too optimistic” level😔 3.5/10 4. Right - the beginning was quite calm and I liked that, but something happened after 1min and…☹️ 3/10 5. Somebody Up There Likes Me - the saxophone is perfect 🤩…. And unfortunately that’s all I can say🫩 3/10 6. Across the Universe - 2/10 7. Can You Hear Me - Boring🫩 3/10 8. Fame - I had hope at the beginning but… it’s a no for me 2/10 I’m sorry Bowie fans, but I guess it’s just not my type of music😔

Young Americans, Fame, who can I be now and Can you hear me now are the best tracks - I didn’t love the rest as much.

This is just a rough album to listen to. Bowie is clearly struggling to find his new voice, and he’s also clearly gakked out of his brain on cocaine. Somehow, at the peak of his heroin days, he was still more coherent than on this album. You can hear him transforming into his Berlin-era Martian chanteuse phase, but it’s too glam to be cabaret; too cabaret to be glam; and too coked out to be very good. A real bummer all told.

Don't think it was very good. Too repetitive and just made me think of the "doing your mom" meme. I guess the first song was better, and it was still al lekker 70s vibe. Just don't get the hype.

Young Americans has some kick, everything else forgettable.

A classic Bowie album that blends rock, funk, and R&B, as well as 80s pop sounds that would not be popular for another 5-10 years after this album released, all with Bowie's unique flair. It's hard to listen to some of these songs and not want to dance. Aside from Bowie himself, the background vocals and saxophone are the real heroes on the album. As with a lot of Bowie's work, some of the songs go on a bit too long, but in the case of songs like Young Americans, it's catchy enough you just don't care. Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here came out the same year, and the song Win definitely has some similar vibes with smooth R&B verses and a punchy 5/4 time chorus. Across the Universe also gives Pink Floyd vibes, but more Time than Money. Bits of the album drag a little bit, but the vocals always shine through. Fame was way ahead of it's time, in that music would not sound that bad again until the 80s, combined with the worst meandering 70s funk has to offer. Who Can I Be Now closes the album out nicely, with a ballad in the same vein as legendary songs like Heroes or Changes. This album is a classic for a reason, and other less talented artists would spend many years trying to achieve what Bowie does on this album.

Great backing music. Vocals at times are odd. Fame is the real saving grace. Solid 2.5.

Standouts win and fame. I’m trying to do this without pre conceived opinions( which is impossible for someone as ubiquitous as Bowie) the parts of this album I enjoyed were funky and weird and catchy. I found a lot of the middle boring. I kind of really hate the Beatles cover

I have mixed feelings about David Bowie. He's solid but good grief we're 150 albums into this and this is like Bowie album number five. I really like his Berlin period and that swan song was pretty phenomenal but, and I know this is sacrilegious, I find most of his stuff to be pretty underwhelming and boring and this doesn't prove to be an exception to that rule. Absolutely hideous cover of Across the Universe.

Not my favorite Bowie, it’s a little faux in the soul department. I like the cover, and there is some good material here, but it doesn’t shine like his glam rock.

"Young Americans" and "Fame" are standout tracks, but those two are the only ones that have any distinct sonic character. The rest of the tracks are generic soul and R&B backing tracks with not-particularly-interesting vocal melodies from Bowie. (The less said about the ill-advised cover of "Across The Universe" the better.)

More Bowie. I could never deny the craftsmanship of Bowie's music, but I'm just not that into him (I think mostly due to his singing style).

One of my least favourite Bowie albums. It always felt pedestrian. It’s still Bowie, so points for musicianship. Hate hate HATE the cover of Across the Universe. Gotta rate this a 2/5.

2.75

Sorry David. You're just not for me.

Overall not too bad. Don't care for his voice too much but I really like the experimentation with sounds and instrumentation. Especially the synth that is killer in a lot of the songs.

Not my favourite Bowie album. I don't mind the style, I just think the material is a little below par, apart from the singles. Decent in places, but not enough to match his best work - this is more "interesting" than "enjoyable" to be honest.

souly

Ugh, definitely not one of his finer works and certainly not a personal favourite of mine. There's a few highlights (Fame is obviously a great song) but overall it left me a little cold. If you want soul music there's better options. The cover of Across the Universe just felt tacked on. I can't give it a great score just because it's Bowie - it's probably a 2.5 at best.

everyone seems to love Bowie, and I definitely don't dislike his music, but this album...didn't have anything memorable on it :/

I can't get behind this Bowie hype. Each time I get one of his albums, I'm underwhelmed 2/3

This must be what Bowie sounds like to people who hate Bowie.

Real roller coaster ride there. Some good tracks that cannot overcome the boat anchor that is across the universe cover

Didn’t know what to expect. It was decent but really only one or two songs I enjoyed.

This is the first Bowie album I've listened to. I found Bowie's vocals unpleasantly chaotic and also very grating (which he attributed to his heavy cocaine use during this part of his career). His forced and limited vocal range does not lend itself well to Black soul, and this is especially clear when contrasted with Luther Vandross' sublime backup vocals. The accompaniment, especially Carlos Alomar's funky guitar, was great, but its ease contrasted with Bowie's apparent unease in this genre was too disorienting for this album to be any good. When Bowie leaned more into rock/funk I didn't mind it at all, and I did enjoy "Fame."

One or two good songs but the rest didn't really stand out. The "Across the universe" cover was terrible and unnecessary

Starts and ends strong. Everything in the middle is a hard pass.

I like the soul and funk elements of the music but feel as though the album overall misses the mark. Great messaging on several songs which I appreciate. Fame is the Hit and it’s last. Not a fan.

2:Bowie albums in a row and again this doesn't really hit for me with only the title track and "Fame" standing out

I don't really like it.

I get that it’s good but this one bored me such a lot.

Fun, theatrical, very 70s. Lotta sax. Not my favourite bowie period.

Wish I could give this two and a half stars - I respect the hell out of Bowie but as many times as I try, his stuff just isn't for me. Other than the well known songs, much of the albums just kinda falls into the background.

HOnestly not a huge fan of this one. Kinda a mess tonally, not really sure what's going on in it. Maybe just not my kind of music but really don't care for this, his voice doesnt work that well on this sorta backing track.

Totally a 70s “rock” album. Everything sounds like “Young American” or “Fame”. Meh.

Young Americans is a great song, rest of the album not so much.

Eh. Fame is the main reason to listen to this album. Other than that skip it.

David Bowie being a bit funky. A very boring album for me.

Bowie trying his best to push the boundaries and create a new type of sophistication w structures and layers. Not working for me.

Maybe I just don't like music

Couple good tracks. The rest, meh

Not my favourite Bowie record. Too much sax and back up singers. A few real solid jams though. Right is borderline ATJ territory for me.

Sounds very 80s for 75. Couple songs on there

Listenable but doesn't do much for me

I'm a fan of Bowie's. And I appreciate that some people really love his pseudo-soul period. I really don't. Besides his two mid-80s albums, this is the album out of his catalogue that could most easily do without. Including the rather unnecessary Across The Universe cover in which Bowie sounds like a parody of himself. The one redeeming song is the pleasantly funky Fame at the end.

Not my jam

Not my cup of tea. I love 80s music but this was a little too ballads-y for me.

I only made it two or three songs in. I appreciate that it was adventurous but it wasn’t for me

I thought Bowie was supposed to be good. This was awful.

Odd variety of vibes, not my style

Man, I did not mesh with this album much at all. From the dated sound to the backing choirs, to even Bowies exaggerated vocal style, Young Americans didn't really work for me. Conceptually, I get it, but in practice I don't love it. The album has a saxy, soulful vibe that I associate with seeing 70s sitcom reruns on TV Land at my grandparents house. It gives me an eerie uncanny feeling (I don't know why) but that's the vibe I had for my listen. Standouts were "Across the Universe" - didn't love the cover as a whole but had some good parts - and "Fame" This is my least favorite Bowie album so far. It's just kind of a snoozefest and I couldn't get really into. 2/5

Oj vilken besvikelse. Väldigt slätstruket. Tycker inte det finns nån låt som sticker ut..möjligen fame som är lite intressant. Men det är överlag en väldigt tråkig skiva. Zzz.

Smooth sax elevator music is not for me.

Wait, this was AFTER Aladdin Sane? What the actual fuck

Pretty forgettable. Not one of the big Bowie albums. I only knew the title track.

+2 for title track and fame

Some covers had grit near the start but a lot of this just felt unessesary.

I liked a song on here.

I like a lot of Bowie songs, but none of them are on this album. "Young Americans" is okay, but it's the best of the bunch.

I appreciate Bowie as one of the greats of all time, but I also found I didn't think much of this. Just didn't interest me, but not bad by any means.

Not my favorite Bowie album. I like some of the auxiliary instruments, some cool organs in the mix. But not my fav.

Fame was the only good song on this one. 2/5

Esquecível! Com tantos discos maravilhosos de Bowie, não vale a pena gastar tempo com este. Muito americanizado: guitarras funkeadas, backing vocals soul music e sax brega de David Sanborn.

I cared to listen to two songs.

Tässä bowiessa on soulia ja rnb elementtejä. Mielestäni parempaakin Bowieta on, tämänkin kuitenkin läpi kuunteli.

Another David Bowie album. While he has a unique voice this album didn't appeal to me.

Nowhere near his best

this is the wandering in the desert period of Bowie for me. listening to it again for the first time in quite some time it's got some good stuff on it, it's just not i want or expect from Bowie and that's more my problem than his

Not really sure why this exists or is on this list, I am not a David Bowie fan nor have I ever purposefully listened to a David Bowie song or album before, but I am certain he has better records. I really liked the first song and was really expecting the quality to keep up since the album was on the list of greatest albums ever but instead it got worse and worse until he did one of the world's worst Beatles covers. Progressively more and more atonal and annoying every song. The fuck is wrong with this guy? I'm getting pissed off just typing this. Also wasn't he a pedophile? Anyway I hope he dies soon *checks notes* oh goodie! Fav song: Young Americans (which I actually like for the record)

Soul music isn't really my thing, but definitely an innovative album

I don’t know. This isn’t even a top five album for him. As a huge Bowie fan, this isn’t one I’d even recommend.

Okay. It's fine. I liked Stations to Stations or whatever lots more. The only song I really enjoyed was Fame, but even that wasn't like "wow revolutionary." It was ok. Maybe a high 2.

Quirky soul beats, fancy vocals. Better than the glam Bowie

Bowie is way over represented on this list. To me he’s always been more flash than substance with his various eras/personas. I can get on board with “Fame” but the rest leaves me cold. “Across The Universe” was horrible.

I'm not going to repeat myself again, so I will refer the reader to my several previous entries regarding the music of David Bowie.

2,5

This man had the delivery of a rewound cassette.

5eme album de DB proposé par le générateur. Cet album est très décevant par rapport aux précédents ('Low', Aladdin Sane', 'Hunky Dory' et 'Ziggy Stardust'). L'esprit rock des albums plus anciens est complètement abandonné pour un R&B qui présente peu d’intérêt pour moi. Ou est passée sa créativité ? L'album n'est pas désagréable à écouter (sauf 'Somebody Up There Likes Me' interminable ...), mais je n'y ai rien trouvé à retenir. =>2/5

Not my favorite Bowie album.

Unlikely to ever listen to any of the songs ever again 2/5.

I don't know. It's ok. Not great by any means. There is some weird fascination with Bowie on this list, Do we really need to hear 9 different albums from him when we can't even get a single Sublime album? Fame is my favorite off this one and will be going on the 1001 playlist. ~ 2 Stars

Not sure what I was expecting here, but it definitely wasn't a head-on funk/soul effort with some songs I might hear on a disco floor. I'm guessing this album had a lot more impact when it was released and Bowie was still known for Ziggy Stardust-type productions than it does in out-of-context listening here. As it is, there are some solid tracks that show Bowie at his best. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of tracks that are rather unimpressive. I guess I have to give him credit for taking on a new genre and style, but I can also criticize that effort for its faults. I can't help but think 90% of the album would've been better had an actual soul singer been performing instead of Bowie. I'm sure the fact that it was Bowie is what made it popular, though. The strongest songs are the ones I've heard before- Young Americans and Fame. The rest ranged from fine to weak. And what was that Beatles cover? It wasn't awful, just weird. Overall: 2.5/5

It's a Soul album from Bowie! Mostly it's surprisingly Sax forward in a way that I don't think works entirely. I get the mixed reviews. Musically "Right" is pretty fun and funky, as-is "Fame" (best track on the album for me) and the title track is a single for sure; but while there's a cohesive vision, for me it ends up being a great artist producing a mediocre soul album. I take the point about its influence on white artists collaborating actively with Black musicians, but I don't think I'll listen to it again.