Audio CD review:
David Bowie - Young Americans

David Bowie - Young Americans

Band: David Bowie Title: Young Americans Rating: Release Date: 05 June, 2007 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Young Americans (5.11) 2: Win (4.44) 3: Fascination (5.44) 4: Right (4.15) 5: Somebody Up There Likes Me (6.30) 6: Across The Universe (4.50) 7: Can You Hear Me (5.03) 8: Fame (4.15) 9: John, I'm Only Dancing (Again) (7.00) (Bonus Track) 10: Who Can I Be Now? (4.36) (Bonus Track) 11: It's Gonna Be Me (with strings) (6.26) (Bonus Track) 12: Young Americans (5.11) (5.1 mix) 13: Win (4.44)(5.1 mix) 14: Fascination (5.44)(5.1 mix) 15: Right (4.15) (5.1 mix) 16: Somebody Up There Likes Me (6.30) (5.1 mix) 17: Across The Universe (4.50)(5.1 mix) 18: Can You Hear Me (5.03) (5.1 mix) 19: Fame (4.15) (5.1 mix) 20: John, I'm Only Dancing (Again) (7.00) (Bonus Track) (5.1 mix) 21: Who Can I Be Now? (4.36) (Bonus Track) (5.1 mix) 22: It's Gonna Be Me (with strings) (6.26) (Bonus Track) (5.1 mix) 23: 1984 (live performance on Dick Cavett Show, 1974) 24: Young Americans (live performance on Dick Cavett Show, 1974) 25: Dick Cavett interviews David Bowie, 1974

Customer Reviews Amazing new 5.1 surround mix!! TV has worked his magic on the classic Young Americans album. Bowie's longtime producer Tony Visconti strikes again! After the wonderful DVD-Audio and CD re-releases of David Live and Stage, Mr. If you've never heard this album, it will rock your world. If you know this album well, the new version will rock your world even harder! I was simply amazed at how great the sound is, especially the surround effect in 5. 1. I heard instrumentation and vocal arrangements that got lost in the earlier stereo album mix. It was like hearing the album for the first time all over again! If you don't have surround sound yet, the included stereo CD is just as exciting. The mix is much brighter and more powerful than before, so you won't be disappointed. Also, the DVD includes the rare video of Mr. Bowie's completely coked-up appearance on the Dick Cavett show -- absolutely essential viewing for any Bowie fan!. No surround problems at all It doesn't jump out at you like others I've heard (particularly on some of the Depeche Mode Special Editions), but it's perfectly adequate without distracting too much from the straightforward soul, rock and dance/disco sounds that Bowie explores on this album. I'm not sure why anyone would have a problem with this surround mix. I completely disagree with what another reviewer wrote about the mix on Fame; that song is a real treat in surround. It's no drastic reinvention or alteration - just Fame nicely spread across all 5 speakers in your surround setup like any fan would expect, and like any great song, it makes me want to crank the volume as much as possible even if it means pissing off the neighbors. Thank god I'm not in an apartment. That being said, as everyone knows Young Americans finds Bowie comfortably entering his blue-eyed soul period. Back when it was released, this must have thrown everyone for a loop. But looking back, consider this a warmup for what eventually would become the perfect distillation of Bowie's unique sound with funk and soul: Station to Station. Young Americans isn't quite as good as that disc, but it certainly holds its own in the Bowie catalog. There are no weak tracks here, and besides the obvious hits, check out Bowie's wild, soulful take on Lennon's Across the Universe (way better than it should be), as well as the great bonus cut It's Gonna Be Me. The remastering does a nice job bringing out how tight the background singers and musicians were on all these tracks, which again shows new life in full suround on the bonus disc. In an age where honing music to perfection is the norm, it's nice to hear the raw skill of these musicians and singers behind Bowie's impassioned vocals. If anything, buy this set simply for the bonus videos. Besides two excellent live performances, Young Americans and 1984, from the Dick Cavett show, you get a full one-on-one session between Cavett and Bowie. Talk about intense - here's Bowie playing nervously with his cane, wiping his nose, and obviously a bit too young to take much of it too seriously. Besides the apparent side effects of coke, he's as amused at our reactions to him as we are to his ever-changing personnas. Frtunately, Cavett doesn't take him too seriously either, and the two strike a fun and easy rapport. This is priceless stuff - with the only thing missing being a reunion between the two to offer some commentary. Guess I can wish. Let's hope this special edition is just the start of the entire Bowie catalog being released in this format. I know Bowie fans have been inundated with rereleases and remasters, and it's gotten a bit ridiculous. But if surround-sound, videos and vintage interviews are part of the offering, I'll sell my set of Virgin remasters and come along for the ride. Lots of Bang for the Buck This time, in addition to a wonderfully remastered CD of "Young Americans" we get a DVD that contains the entire CD in a 5:1 mix (DTS is my favorite flavor), as well as two great videos from the Dick Cavett show and an interview that is interesting albeit painful to watch. This is the fourth Bowie CD to be repackaged as a double-disc Anniversay set, and in many respects is the best value of the bunch. While "Young Americans" is nowhere near the top of my list of Bowie CD's, the five stars goes for the quality and value of the package as presented. While some others have complained about the surround mix, I enjoy it immensely. If I want the original mix, it is on the CD in wonderful quality; if I want the surround mix, it is there as well. The surround mix is very active without feeling gimmicky. Frankly, I much prefer this mix to the SACD of Ziggy Stardust. The Dick Cavett footage is a great bonus, and includes live performances of "1984" and "Young Americans"(the latter appeared on the DVD Best of Bowie"). The interview segment was taped when Bowie was in the darkest hour of his well-publicized cocaine addiction, and as such is painful to watch but hard to turn off. Anyone who has seen Bowie in an interview since 1980, and is accustomed to listening to an exceptionally lucid, witty man, will be shocked by this segment. If you are a fan of Bowie's and are sitting on the fence about this release, I encourage you to try it out - it is a great package and well worth the purchase price. Now, if anyone out there is paying attention - please, please, please put together a special edition of Station to Station with the 1976 Nassau Coliseum concert as a bonus disc. . You can see a complete list of all David Bowie discography, or go back to the David Bowie tabs