Fame

Recorded on 30 January 1975 at Electric Lady Studios in New York during a session with John Lennon. David Bowie sang and played guitar with Lennon, Carlos Alomar, Earl Slick, Emir Ksasan, Dennis Davis and Ralph MacDonald, while Bowie and Harry Maslin produced. The song became Bowie's first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 and marked his commercial breakthrough in the United States. Its clipped guitar riff and cynical lyrics examined exploitation, celebrity and the music business. The track remains one of Bowie's defining singles and a major collaboration with John Lennon. Its riff influenced later recordings, including James Brown's Hot, and the song has been widely sampled and covered.