David Bowie's ninth studio album Young Americans was released in 1975. No longer experimenting with glam rock, Bowie returned to the studio interested in incorporating R&B and soul into his music. Additionally, Bowie had become friends with John Lennon at this time, which resulted in the Lennon-Bowie song "Fame" and in Bowie and Lennon singing "Across the Universe" together.
Although the foundation of the project--not the direction, which shows its full potential on the highlights, but simply the majority of the songs--is wobbly at best, Bowie nevertheless has turned out two excellent tracks: "Young Americans," which represents a return to the surreal lyricism he's best at, and "Fame," which turns Bowie's idiosyncrasies on their head. The rest of the album, nearly hidden by excellent saxophone and impressive production, lacks indelible songwriting and appealing melodies, which makes Bowie's rubbish cover of "Across the Universe" all the more confusing. B-
