Song:Young Americans
Album:Nothing Has Changed
David Bowie was always known as a musical chameleon able to reinvent himself on a regular basis. The first time he did this was with the 1975 album Young Americans. Bowie's interpretation of soul was a big shock to fans who knew him as Ziggy Stardust. While Bowie was touring to promote the 1974 album Diamond Dogs, he moved to Los Angeles and made plans to record at Sigma Sound in Philadelphia, the home of Philly Soul. He wanted the music to be authentic so he wanted to work with real musicians. The key figure was guitarist Carlos Alomar. He plays the guitar solo in the video. Alomar was a session musician. At the time, he was touring with Roy Ayers and The Main Ingredient. He met Bowie for the first time at the Young Americans sessions. And he remained with Bowie's band for twenty years. Other musicians were Mike Garson on piano, David Sanborn on sax, Earl Slick on guitar, Willie Weeks on bass and Andy Newmark on drums. Luther Vandross led the backup singers and arranged the vocals. Only Slick was a member of Bowie's band. The rest were session musicians. Young Americans was a success. It was certified Gold. The single Young Americans reached #28 on the Billboard Hot 100. Fame topped the charts. For the 1976 album Station To Station, Bowie created The Thin White Duke and recorded soul. After that, he moved to Germany and created his Berlin phase. Though Bowie's soul phase was short lived, it set up fan acceptance for future changes. The 2014 comp Nothing Has Changed is available in 3CD or 2CD versions. The 2CD version is available as a budget CD. Here's David Bowie performing Young Americans on The Dick Cavett Show Dec. 4, 1974.
I love his song Fashion and a few others. He was awesome and I still watch his music video on YouTube regularly. He was a truly gifted musician and in my opinion a great actor. I miss his music a great deal. Thank-you very much Frank.
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