Fascinating and unique album that topped Pitchfork's list of the greatest albums of the 70's.  I don't rate it quite that highly, but it remains Bowie's masterpiece, even as marked a departure from the sound, texture, and attitude of much of his earlier work.  Bowie shows a largeness of spirit in his ability to work with and through Brian Eno, and Eno shows that he is comfortable in a supporting role; the album could not have been made without Eno, but the credit belongs to Bowie.  The vocal tracks are uniformly strong, and two of them, the shimmering "Sound and Vision" and the warped, disembodied "Always Crashing in the Same Car" are truly classic.  The four instrumentals that close the record are various shades of Eastern block grey, all interesting, and influential for the likes of Nine Inch Nails.  The standout from this part of the record is the spooky "Warszawa", but the best instrumental track is the first, the propusive, driven "Speed of Life." In "Always Crashing in the Same Car," Bowie manages to get his whole being into a single phrase, the way he enunciates "the hotel garage" ("I was going round the hotel garage/ must have been touching close to 94/ Oh, but I'm always crashing/ in the same car") encompasses an entire existence--boredom and satiation, routine and acceptance, passivity and fame.  Awesome, awesome song.