1979 US Reissue With The AQL Prefix. "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." AMG Review By Stephen Thomas Erlewine.