Back to Basics

Some great songs. All in all too long and very mediocre. And with an album called "back to basics" I wish Christina kept it basic.

Too long

I like it but she had no business adding a second disc

I'm not a big fan of pop music. I understand why this ended up on the list because of how popular it was. But really it doesn't do anything for me

modern R'n'B is not for me, this leaves me cold

This album tries to pay homage to a lot of genres, but the renditions of each don’t click with me. Aguilera has an amazing voice, but it’s not enough to get me to enjoy this album. 2/5

I remember when this came out, it was pretty hyped up. I listened to it (maybe not even all of it) exactly once and never again. My feelings 18 years later haven’t changed much. There are some good songs here but they’re weighed down by 40 minutes of bloat. By the time I heard something I liked, I was already pretty fatigued of this album’s repetitive shtick.

80-minute shopping simulator

God damn den var godt nok lige et helt album for lang. Startede træls ud med så meget knitren at jeg blev nødt til lige at tjekke at min jack-adapter ikke var gået i stykker... Lidt mere y-e-e-eah end jeg synes er okay på en plade. James Hetfield er misundelig..

Lo sentí extenso.

Great raspy vocals from inception.

Not a Christina Aguilera fan at all. This album contains a few Strongs songs though. Christina also shows she has a powerful soulful voice. Need to give her credit for that.

"My name's Nicholas Nada and I just want to say, Christina, that track you made with all those clips of your fans kissing your ass made me cringe so hard it gave me osteoporosis."

Woof. We didn't need two albums from Christina Aguilera (come to think of it, I don't think we needed one). This one's nearly 80 minutes long, and it's a loose concept album of her aiming for old-school jazz singers. It doesn't really work with her vocal style though - she's someone that sings with an emphasis on power, that's like her whole thing. Jazz singers go more for soul or some kind of atmosphere. I counted maybe two or three tracks on here where she scaled it back a bit but not enough. Also, the second half of the album explodes into this crazy circus type thing, reminded me of what I don't like about Tom Waits. That said, "Nasty Naughty Boy" was so funny, had me smiling the whole time, that gutteral modulated trumpet or whatever it is just kills me. Not really a good album, not really bad either. But we'll keep it moving. Favorite tracks: Still Dirrty, Save Me from Myself, Nasty Naughty Boy, Makes Me Wanna Pray. Album art: I've seen this before, it's just a shot of Christina laying down, very white-washed vibe. It's decent, pays homage to the old school album cover style too. 2.5/5

Üble Stimme, ab gut produziert. Trotzdem nix für mich.

Nah

Not a bad album. Just not my cup of tea.

around 3 good songs but they absolutely do not outweigh the fact that most were just alright or straight up bad (like understand.. what was that). a lot of the songs had this big release without ever earning it with a build-up. and this album is about half an hour too long.

She has a great voice, but this album can’t seem to decide which direction it wants to go. The stripped down songs are much better than the cheesy pop tunes. 2/5 Won’t listen again

There's a couple of decent songs in here (Ain't No Other Man and Hurt principally), but it's outweighed by the mess that's around it. It's an attempt at being more grown up and sophisticated (having already been pop princess and something a bit filthier at this point), but it doesn't really work. Her voice is just fab, but it works much better when she's doing her stuff, rather than the leaning into the classics bit that doesn't quite work. Bonus points for variety, but minus quite a lot for not really landing most of the variations. 2/5, probably would've had a 3 if it was a bit shorter.

I’m afraid this was never going to be a big favourite for me but she does have a fantastic voice and puts it to great use here. I appreciate that she leaned into the RnB and soul influence and her vocals work well in that oeuvre. It’s slick in its production and you can see why it sold so well and she was such a star. I didn’t mind it but it was definitely too long - two discs are really not necessary and while it’s all good fun pop, it’s not something I really need in my life.

Not terrible, but also nothing I'm all that interested in. I did find it interesting that Linda Perry produced and co-wrote the whole second disk. However, it's too long. The singles are pretty bangin, but it isn't enough to save this for me. 2.49/5

There’s a good EP in here for sure. I like some tracks on the first disc but the more stripped-back tunes on the second disc fall flat for me.

Was ok I liked the double album vibe and some of those tracks took me back to childhood in the great US of A where HOT 99.5 conquered the airwaves but at the same time it was also 1hr18mins of somebody over-singing which on the wrong day feels like purgatory to me.

Understand // Slow Down Baby //

I found this very difficult to listen to. It's well produced and professional- skilled in it's way but I'd rather not listen to it. I don't really see anything of great value in it.

Appreciate the throwbacks to old jazz and soul stuff but most of the songs didn't do much for me. Also it's way too long

The biggest issue is way, way too long with very pedestrian songs, sure she can sing but it's frankly boring as hell. It's close to a 2.5 for me.

Completely forgettable standard mid 2000s pop album. There's nothing here that's really good, the beats are boring (especially the first disc) and Aguilera's obviously good voice can't redeem anything there. The songs on the second disc are a little better, a little more interesting, and better use of her talents. Still not good or at least enjoyable to me, but a little better. I never got to the point of reaching for the skip button, but this is not good, and I didn't need to listen to it before I die.

Hef aldrei verið fan. Eitt lag þarna sem mér finnst verulega gott. Restin er... uppfylling.

Overproduced 00s pop/R'n'B album, the 30s, 40s and 50s vibe goes boring pretty quickly. Her talent is undeniable and this style suits her quite well after the teen years and Stripped era, but this alone isn't enough to call this a great album. It is way too long and bloated and it doesn't have coherency in it, it is just a bunch of songs thrown together on a double album. The lyrics are also just bad on many songs. I wanted to like this album a bit more and perhaps I'd give it a 3 if it was half as long as it is but all things considering it doesn't deserve more than 2.

I find pop records to be such a strange thing. The singles tend to be listenable and then you wonder why they bothered to record anything else. In this case I’m pretty baffled as to why this is 2 discs and well over an hour. There’s a procession of late 90s-early aughts female pop singers whose voices all sort of blur together for me - file Xtina in that bucket. Her voice is good but I would have a hard time pulling it out of a lineup. Anyways an hour plus of meh pop tunes isn’t for me.

They say you can't have too much of a good thing. But you can certainly have too much of this. Xtina has a set of pipes on her, no question. But this is not an album forme.

Way too long! Otherwise decent with nice production here and there. Christina Aguilera is a talented vocalist but her singing style is a bit much, and the faux swing sound is a bit kitsch

Maybe if this was two albums it wouldn't have been such an atrocious slog.

Pop mixed with more R&B than I expected, although it felt a little soulless for R&B and lacked any good pop hooks. The second half was better by virtue of having a personality, despite being egregiously slutty

She has a powerful voice but over an hour of running scales and sexy kitten purrs is a lot. It's polished and that's what's so wrong with it.

Qué extraña inclusión en este listado. Supongo que también hay que homenajear a una de las buenas voces del pop de la década de los 2000, pero hay otras que hicieron mucho mejores discos

I really try my damnedest to listen to all of these albums in their entirety, but I just couldn't get through this monster. She's a good singer. The songs are just very similar, seems like a one trick pony.

She was just whiny and whiny in her voice and then the same with her songs towards the end

Eh, I mean she can sing and has an incredible voice but WHY WITH THE DOUBLE ALBUM. I hate double albums don't understand the point of them. Anyways I also don't really understand why this album was on the list, there really wasn't anything super special about it beside's her voice. Her songwriting abilities are mid at best, the only reason this album doesn't get a lower score is because of her voice.

ugh. back to what basics? over-produced, over done, and overly long. her vocal flourishes on every track are not necessary. and the track to her fans?? nope, nope, nope. 1.5 stars

I really expected to hate this. And, while it’s not my taste, it wasn’t bad! It’s a solid pop album. But that’s all. It doesn’t have any hits. It’s nothing big or groundbreaking. It’s just a Christina Aguilera album. Are her more popular ones on the list too? Why was this here? Anyway, she’s got a great voice. Most songs would fit well as the closing credits of an early 2000’s rom com. Songs added to Spotify: 1

Kinda boring and basic pop album. She seems to use the same vocal flourishes throughout the whole album. Kind of a one trick pony. The voice sounds good but it’s not really enough to save the album.

Some beats are very cool. But not the fan of the vocals and overall feel. Again, was hoping that maybe there was a gem in the pop music of my youth that I missed, but it turned out it was not really to my taste

Gag - this is the second CA album I've got from this last, and to make matters even worse, it's a double album! I suffered through.

Thoughts before listening: Well, I never thought I'd sit down and listen to a full Christina Aguilera album, but here we are. These sorts of pop and r&b albums just aren't my thing, but I have found I can appreciate them more now than I would have at 25 when this was released. She certainly has a powerhouse voice, and I'm sure I'll recognize some of the hits on here, so perhaps this will be better than I think it will be. That being said, looks like this is 2 discs and well over an hour long, not sure I'll have it in me to listen to this whole thing. Review: Yeah, this is about what I'd expect from a Christina Aguilera album. Great singing on the R&B inspired pop bangers and even better singing on the ballads. This is split into 2 albums with disc 1 being the pop songs and disc 2 being more "jazz" inspired. A lot of the disc 1 production sounds super dated to 00s pop with things like record scratches and synthy fake horn blasts. Disc 2 is a little more organic sounding, but this is still very much a pop album. Maybe I just wasn't paying attention to pop music in 2006, but I don't recognize any of these songs. I feel like I could rattle off 5 - 10 Christina songs, but none of them are on this album. I can't say that any of these songs are really standing out to me despite having nice vocals throughout. I thought I would at least like the music on the "jazzy" disc, but it's still very much a pop sound. Mainly just feels like an attempt to cash in on her Lady Marmalade sound. This is a 2-star album.

It's telling that she has to tell us who inspired this album, rather than let our ears tell us. Also, an easy way to make this record twice as good would be to cut half the songs. I wonder how many people who bought this in CD actually played the second disc more than once.

the first disc was pretty good but the second half was boring as shitt and brings teh whole thing down

Back to basics? Not really.

2 at best

She can certainly sing, it's just not my style of music

Some interesting instrumentals but couldn’t even get through disc 1.

Christina Aguilera is unquestionably a talented singer with a fantastic voice. I can only begin to imagine how amazing it would be to hear her sing a good song.

Not my kind of music. Not terrible, but won't be listening to it again. Album way too long as well, absolute chore to get through this. ⭐️⭐️

Album 2 is better than album 1, however by the time I got there I was thoroughly sick of this. Aguilera has an impressive powerful voice, but she makes every song sound the same.

To be fair this music does not appeal to me..

Aguilera has a great voice and plenty of talent, but this feels awfully thin for such a thicc album. It's like she never found her personality in all of this. The 'I'm a dirty girl' thing feels forced. She's just not that person. She's not a Madonna tough lady, she's not a luminous Whitney Houston voice of the gods, she's not a Mariah-level diva or a Beyonce force of nature. She's got a great voice but she's been cast all wrong here. In the 90s she seemed like talented version of Britney Spears but not much more than that. And while all of these songs are working hard, none of them grabbed me.

To my mind, some of the best albums are those with an overarching concept. Not necessarily a story or anything quite as overt; more a uniformity of mood, feeling, emotion, moment or perspective. The opposite of this is Christina Aguilera's 2006 album 'Back to Basics', a dog's breakfast of a collection, its desperation signalled by its inauspicious title. Aguilera has a mighty instrument in her voice; over-mighty, at times, because it is apt to bulldoze everything in its wake. Only once does she shift down the gears; the rest of the time it's full-bore. Half the album is boring, half the album is bizarre; the circus stuff and cabaret muzak turns are baffling and bad. There's a track where Aguilera attempts a sexy 'come on', and sounds as alluring as congealed leftovers. Amazing that it's the same person behind 'Dirty'.

That’s a lot of Christina, actually that’s too much Christina. Too many background tracks of her own voice on many of the songs. The album certainly is diverse, but she sounds defensive throughout. What could save her from herself? Answer: Less is more. Shorter album, fewer crescendos. Overall (2.1*s)

Pop album with some blues and jazz elements. In the end, it’s Aguilera belting out her signature yell. It’s tired and old. Nothing to write home about.

This is among the better records when it comes to mid 2000s pop. There's something more interesting here compared to many of her peers at the time. It's just not for me personally though, it's not an album I can enjoy myself.

Great example of 90s-2000s bloated CD albums. Doesn’t push the boundaries in any way at all. Regardless of that, the songs are well produced. I like the piano on on our way but even the rest of the song takes away from it for me. Generic pop music post 2000 is my least favorite music and this falls squarely into that category. Surprised this is inspired by old school soul music because this album has no soul of its own. Rating: 2.0

Maybe this album a blessing if you’re a genuine fan of Aguilera but for those of us who aren’t so appreciative of her style, this drags on for far too long. Candyman was alright, but only out of familiarity and its likeness to Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. And what the hell is with Thank You (Dedication To Fans)? Such a load of narcissistic BS. Get outa here.

I had high hopes for this album because I really only know her hits and wanted to give her a fair shot. Much too long and did not dig the cabaret circus-vibe that showed up on a few. I was even more disappointed to find out this was mostly produced by DJ Premier. It's mediocre at best but she does have an impressive voice and is more talented than just a pop bop so I'll give her that. Nothing I'd go back and listen to.

Felt just kinda...well, basic. I appreciate the back to the roots approach but nothing great here. Not that I ever really like Aguilera other than some catchy pop songs. Thought she would have some better singing on this, like really belting it out. Meh...

It's not a bad album, but I don't think its a good album either. As soon as it ended I couldn't tell you anything about it. Nothing really stood out and it was basically just background music for more than an hour. First half of the album is marginally better than the second half though I did enjoy a few of the string arrangements near the end. Another example of an album that would have been better trimmed to a single release rather than a double album. I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between Christina Aguilera or any of the female pop/R&B stars from the 90s and 2000s. I don't suspect I'll ever listen to anything on this again. 1.61 stars

2.5

So lame

Can't deny she's got some real pipes, but she's not my diva.

Not a fan of her music but the girl can SING

Nuorena olisin kyllä halunnut pökkää Christinaa, mutta musiikista en ole oikein ikinä välittänyt. Ei se toimi edelleenkään muutamaa leiskautusta laskematta.

She belts them out but, boy, is there a lot of filler here. Why is this album so long again?

2/5 Repetitive and a bit lame.

Making it a double album was a bad choice. What's her legacy? That she had a better voice than Brittney?

i try to go into every album with an open mind. christina aguilera's music is not really in my wheelhouse - even when i was a teen in her hitmaking era and more interested in pop music, her music never quite did it for me. that being said, i was pleasantly surprised by the first disc. like i said, it's not really my type of pop music, but its sound is extremely nostalgic to me. some of these songs i heard on the radio or vh1 at the time, but also this is some of the music that dictated pop music's sound at the time. her voice is unquestionably great, the "throwback" production of the first side - i.e. sampling of retro instrumentals - is fun, albeit a bit dated sounding at this point. but the peaks of disc one are really fun. then we hit disc two. starting off with the circus song, it then becomes a hyper-sexualized throwback to old-fashioned cabarets. i can't say i really enjoyed this part. her voice is still great but this part of the album is just too over the top. she's moaning the whole time, saying stuff like "now spank me" - i don't even really care about sexual content in music, but this is so over the top, it almost feels like it is forced by an executive or something. or maybe it's the opposite - the executive forced the normal pop music while she really wanted the over-sexual burlesque schtick. quite simply, it's just really cringey. just very bizarre. also, because of the two disc format, this album is BLOATED AS HELL. had they split the two discs into their own albums, i think it would be ok. or even if they made a one disc combination of these two concepts, i think it could potentially work. honestly, the two of them together is a chore. i really think the album's length detracts from the overall quality. she really had me in the first half, not gonna lie.

not for me

She's got a great and powerful vocal talent but the throaty delivery with the growls, runs, and vocal improv fills wear on the ear pretty quickly. Unremarkable songs overall, way too long and just not my thing.

One great pop song is fun. A double length pop album is not fun. This was quite a bore as many of the songs were upbeat and exciting yet none really felt that great. There were songs about aguilera proving that she has helped so many other people. Yet I could not relate. Not terrible but just boring. 4.3/10

A bit too over processed and busy for my taste, even though her voice is great and she knows how to use it. Fav songs: Hurt, Welcome, a few others from disc 2

Good voice but just a bunch of pop shlop.

Holy cow there's two Aguilera albums on this list??? Why??

Not her best album

Gutsy move to call an 80 (eighty) minute album "Back to Basics", especially when you decide that 'the basics' are a range of throwback style tunes. I'm sure her voice is technically great, but apart from some fairly insipid ballads, she seems to be constantly just at full volume, and it's really grating.

Like a couple of tracks but Aguilera's soulful vocals are a bit overwhelming

While Christina has doubtless talent, the music here is mostly formulaic pop, that takes as many risks as a rat in a house full of underfed cats. So despite flashes of creativity, it's still way too predictable, generic and safe. 2 safety vests out of 5 🦺🦺

Was surprised to see dirty on the list even more shocked to see this album. Very different to dirty but more just a throwback to older music, remember the hits at the time but don’t think this has stood the test of time.

She's got pipes for sure but falls into the 'more performance than song in isolation' group. This album is long. Save Me from Myself is fairly unique from the rest of the album and it shows her singing well without showboating all over the place.

I can hear the influence of DJ Premier on here, but does nothing for me. Her voice is holllow for me most of the time. The track Hurt is the closest I got to feeling something. There didn't need to be this much on here. The whole album just makes me want to go listen to other artists like Etta James, Roberta Flack or Nina Simone.

OK stuff, but seems pretty generic

I'm surprised how much I wanted to like this, more than anything. I figured going into this it would be an easy one star, but I found myself enjoying many of the samples, and the production in general. What holds the album back for me is the vocals. While her voice is technically amazing, it hardly ever feels honest, instead feeling like a hollow recreation of the voices of the greats that came before her, and the constant references to said music doesn't help to draw away the comparisons. It is an amazing voice on the surface level, but it never moves me, and when an entire album feels as though it is built on that voice, it takes away a lot of the credibility. Still, I have to give this album credit, because it was far better than I had anticipated.

Supposedly this is an homage to the great R&B stars of old but it's deeply lacking in something that those greats understood. There are very few sing-along choruses and almost no hooks. Instead, "Back to Basics" is bloated with continual, unnecessary vocal runs and empty wailing. Otis or Billie or Etta would never release an album with so much fluff and so little substance. Their songs were memorable. They were earworms. People sang their songs in the kitchen or while waiting at the bus stop. They had hooks. The tracks on "Back to Basics", on the other hand, are largely forgettable due to their lack of any melody or repeated lyric to grab on to. The album is saved from a truly failing score only because the lyrics on the back half of the album start to unexpectedly get a lot more intimate and personal. Unusually personal for a pop album. Unfortunately, there are SO MANY writers credited ("Slow Down Baby" has a whopping 11 writers) that it's impossible to know how much of the lyrical content of this album is real and how much is manufactured for effect.

No

This is not to my taste. I can appreciate that she has an amazing voice but I played the whole record and can't recall any song at all. 2 stars for her vocal abilities but would never listen to this again.

Wow, I forgot what an amazing voice Christina Aguilera has. It’s powerful. And some of these vocals runs are insane. I like the hip-hop-leaning production on Disc 1. Even when the songs aren’t that memorable, the production is appealing and Aguilera sounds awesome. Disc 2 gets cheesy for my taste and the production choices are frequently annoying. The producer tries too hard to style the music so that it sounds like old jazz and soul. And I think those choices hold the songs back. “Save Me from Myself” is nice though. I never hear her sing in a hushed voice like this. 2.5

Yeah nah. Too many bells and whistles, distractions from just getting on with the song. And.... once you've heard enough other people do impersonations of the "Christina Aguilera" ooooh yeeeeah you hear nothing but that in her tunes.

I mean, everyone should hear her talented beautiful voice. But I don't know if this double album is really the one to make us get through, unless we like pop. Disc 2 was much more enjoyable; it was a little less formulaic although still a lot more belting than necessary. Hurt was very good and a keeper for me. The Right Man is somehow very evocative of Hopelessly Devoted To You from Grease. Must be the chords or the melody outline or something.

Love candy man, but overall not my thing

Not really my sort of music. Pure pop, with no real substance. She looks great, but it's the music we're hear to listen to and review, not her looks. A reasonable 2, which means it's 'listenable', but more than likely forgettable and not for my top 1,001 albums

I don't dig this, but it sounds well made.

The vibes between the two albums in this double album set were so different. I didn't connect with the first album at all. The second album was a wild tone shift and while I found it more interesting than the first, I was repulsed by the many food metaphors for sex, the Candyman song, and to wrap it up with a ballad about marriage ... it lost me hard.

did not realize christina aguilera was making christiany pop albums a couple of these songs felt kinda.... pandery? weird vibe. i like the risk taking with the sound though, it's not exactly what you expect from christina a song full of voice mails from fans is a CHOICE.

This album is a lot, stylistically, production, and length. No one ever tell Christina Aguilera that less is more. It's honestly pretty bonkers and feels very bloated. It was a wild ride, and one I don't expect to take again.

same song 22 times

Disappointing and too long. And 2 Aguilera albums in one week are going to ruin my Discover Weekly ffs

This is a tough one. There's great production on both discs of this double album - DJ Premier on disc 1 was a pleasant surprise - but it's overall too long, and the two discs don't really feel connected. I much preferred the second disc to the first with its jazz club style. If this were two separate albums I'd probably actually dig this a lot more.

A full throated, fully derivative album of supremely average songs. It’s a nice sound, it’s a good production and it doesn’t have a single stand out track. Background music for terrible bars who would play it too loudly.

Big swing Far far too long. Has absolutely no need to be as long as it is. The more modern sounding stuff is better than the second cd which Is quite dull 2/5

I could be fine with this if it was shorter but it wasn’t!!!!

I like the idea of working with Dj premier - although when I'm listening to his beats I'm just thinking wow jayz would sound amazing on this. I like the idea of this album - have it on cd somewhere - but her voice is too overpowering for me it just dominates everything. I'm still team Britney

Poppy RnB combining fairly traditional 60s motown-style instrumentation and arrangements (lots of good horns) with 2000s elements: hip hop pop beats, chorus-heavy song structures, rap verses, turntables, and self-aware sampling of her own hits. This album is leaning into the gospel diva thing and all the songs function as platforms for big vocal perfomances. She has some pipes and isn't afraid to use them. She's an undeniable talent, terrifying range, astonishing control, surprising tonal variety and this is a virtuoso performance in an style that's not usually my thing, but I liked this more than I expected. The first half is hard to distinguish this from the rest of the generic pop radio landscape of this period and it blurs into the morass of post-boy band American Idol bubblegum. The second half, where she escapes the 2006 hit factory to campily mess around with woozy blues and horny jazz stuff is fucking great (the ballads & orchestral less so though). Why is her dedication to the fans 4 minutes of voicemails of people praising her? Favorites: Nasty Naughty Boy, I got Trouble, Mercy on Me

Can she sing extremely well? Yes Is she very talented? Yes Can she do runs? Most definitely! Way too much in my opinion (which means nothing). Do I like her music? Not really.

Can't do Christina's throaty growly voice. Not my bag. I like smoother singers. Production is fine. Didn't listen to all of it because it's an 80-MINUTE DOUBLE ALBUM, which is completely unnecessary. This challenge is starting to suck. Maybe 5 out of 15 albums have been good. How is this album past her prime essential in any way?

Beaucoup de vocalises mais ça me laisse assez froid, c'est très autosimilaire.

Some beautiful soulful songs, but after a while, her great voice tends to grate on the ears.

Het zou kunnen dat mijn oordeel wat vertekend is. Want er wordt meegezongen in huis. Na een paar nummers heb ik het wel gehoord. En dan moet ik nog anderhalve cd.

Way to many genres trying to be stuffed into this to be anywhere near enjoyable. Her voice is sick obviously but the production is a big no from me

I've already reviewed Stripped and my complaints are more the same. Here you have a generic pop singer whose primary appeal is her expressive voice. She has her hits, and this record is no exception, but most of it is filler trash. The appeal is this record is that the first half is dominated by minimal funky beats and gospel back vocals, while the second side reflects a musical with cabaret style and stage effects. And for it's coherency, it does make for a slightly interesting concept album experience, but the songs don't live up to the expectations.

ain't no other man is a great song. The rest not so much

Je suis un peu partagé, la qualité de l'album n'est pas mauvaise en soit, la musique se tient et la production est bonne, mais c'est tellement trop radio friendly, facile à écouter et la voix de Christina Aguilera ne tombe toujours pas dans mes goûts. Ça veut trop faire et ça n'accompli pas grand chose. C'est impressionnant sans être agréable. 4/10

She’s got a fabulous voice but this album doesn’t feel sincere and got quite dull quite quickly.

Good voice, not my thing.

I was always curious about this album. Christina has some guilty pleasure songs that I enjoy from my youth and a powerful voice but I'm generally not into her songs too much. So on paper this all seemed good. Going "old school" would surely make the most of her talent, right? Well consider me underwhelmed. I guess the idea was to not go TOO old school so it still sounds modern enough. I guess most people like that, but I don't. If she had an album full of big band tunes and Ella Fitzgerald covers I'd probably be pretty happy. This just sounds like a pop record with a little bit of a gimmick. It's not too terrible, but it should've been much better. This woman can sing the hell out of a song but the songs she's singing just aren't particularly good or interesting. What a shame. Too damn long too.

Safan un par de temas pero en otros es un pop muy básico y superficial. Not my tipe.

Not my cup of tea. Well Produced.

Too much production I’m not sitting through 22 songs.

Ik kan haar zangtalent wel waarderen en ik kon bepaalde videoclips van deze mevrouw nog veel meer waarderen, maar qua muziek vind ik dit helemaal niks. Ik voel me altijd onprettig bij dat schreeuwerige uithalen wat zij en Mariah Carey heel graag doen. En continu hard zingen. Zelfs in de rustigere nummers moet de zang minimaal uit de tenen geperst worden en moet het niveau brandalarm toch een paar keer aangetikt worden. Alsof je een gesprek hebt met iemand die bij het minste en geringste vol in de verdediging schiet. Doe nou eens rustig. CD 2 is een boudoir circus theater. Ik ben daar na 2 tracks mentaal eigenlijk volledig afgehaakt. Leuk dat de lijst af en toe wordt geüpdatet maar dit album had er voor mij niet bij hoeven komen.

She has a nice voice and the tunes bounce along nicely. It's very "warbly" style which I personally don't like, she's certainly putting a hello f a lot effort into singing though. 2.3

Realistically a 3 star album for me but loses one because it's far too long. Did not need to be a double CD

In not a fan of her vocal acrobatics and this double album seem to throw everything at the wall to see what sticks...There is too much to take in really and I guess her centre stage voice holds it together (a bit). Not for me

I would not chose to listen to Christina Aguilera on my own, but here I am listening to the second album recommended to me on this list. ¿Why did this recommendation have to be a double album? In general, the music verged on okay. I just don't have time for the drama from Aguilera. I prefer listening to fewer love songs, and particularly when Aguilera is doing her version of "look how daring I am to be raunchy". I'm not sure about the character she's trying to play in her music. This album gets two stars because it went on WAY TOO LONG. Now I have to purge my YouTube history, so that I don't get suggestions for having listed to way too much Aguilera.

The length of this album significantly diminishes what otherwise might be a decent album - especially as, midway through, we start getting jerked around by fan voicemails and whatever the hell "Enter the Circus" was. The first half was pretty solid, the second half went off the rails for me.

There are 2 Christina albums on this list?! "Stripped" at least seemed authentic. This one seems a bit forced.

yet another double album that should have been a single album

Just not my type of music but were a couple of songs that were suprisingly pleasant

Another album that's not my thing. This rating is not reflective of the quality of this album, just not something I'd listen to.

Dat ze wel kan zingen wist ik al wel, maar het is zo jammer dat het allemaal van die theatrale bagger is, die ze maakt.

Madam kan heel aardig zingen, en het is ook behoorlijk catchy. Maar tegelijkertijd ook wel heel behoorlijk gedateerd. Zou allemaal wat spannender mogen.

This album begins with the explicit statement that Christina Aguilera is trying to be old school. This too on the nose statement is followed by the name dropping of various jazz greats before dropping into a first half typified by the melding of classic soul and R&B with hip hop motifs and samples. The second half starts with uncomfortably sexually charged songs dripping in bad innuendo before ending with a mea culpa of sorts. The transition is very jarring. This album should have been pared down to maintain some musical cohesion. When it’s good, the music is enjoyable though Aguilera’s trademark over singing does overshadow the album. She’s clearly an extraordinarily talented singer, but completely loses the plot and is mired in over technical vocal delivery.

Surprise entry. Doesn’t offend but definitely doesn’t inspire

basic

Back to acids, huh? What about that idea? The lack of artistry is made up for by technical polish. It’s like rubbing your face all over a freshly polished red classic convertible from the fifties, but in sound form. Feels like what would play in the trailer for an Ice Age film. The occasional song has a genuinely interesting sound, like “Without You”. It’s cool. Sounds like a shittier version of Kiss from a Rose. The second half of the album has done interesting moments, too. The whole experience feels too much like processed cheese, however. I can’t bring myself to give this anything approaching a 3, most likely because of my superego’s association of itself with high culture and it’s inability to concede to guilty pleasures.

This album was certainly better than the last C Ag album 1001 threw at us. The funky and gospel infused music that were the first few songs was easier to handle than the pop from the other album. After the first few songs the album unfortunately reverted to pure unadulterated pop. I couldn’t get past the first half dozen or so songs.

2 Christina albums?? Ok, Dimery had the hots for her for sure. Björk for his "I'm an intellectual" moments, Christina when he just wants something skanky... but gotta say, she's obviously dialled that back a bit since 2002. Album art is atrocious. Font and colour scheme straight from some bedroom DIY new age album called something hilariously cheesy like "Aquarius Dreaming". aaaand it's garbage pop music same as the other one. Pretends to be some kind of retro jazz thing, but adding fake pop/fizz samples to 2000s R&B doesn't add class or make it anything but 2000s R&B. She does that wailing idol singer thing well, but... eh? This is just too much. 2/5. Update: HAHA someone else had the exact same thought as me. High five!

Undoubtedly a good vocalist. Just not for me.

Not for me.

MORE? There's TWO Christina Aguilera albums on this list? She's not going to fuck you, my guy. This is apparently the better one though, so whatever. It's more R&B. As always, way too damn long. Nobody should be listening to R&B for over an hour at a time. That's the musical equivalent of overdosing on sugar. Disc 1 is an actual Tartarus punishment. I think I could get married and have 6 children by the time that slogfest wraps up. Disc 2 is where Christina remembers that there's more to music than crooning ChatGPT prompt-ass lyrics over beats that are about as deep as a metronome. It opens with a weird circus song that reminded me I'm listening to a music album and not white noise, and then had a diverse streak of some nice songs. I really liked "Welcome" and "Hurt" especially. 0/5 for disc 1, 3/5 for disc 2. Over all a 2/5 experience that I will never return to in the 378 more years I plan to live on this Earth. (Also this is my 600th album! I bitch and whine a lot, but it's been a fantastic journey so far. I'll miss this a lot when I'm done.)

Doesn’t do it for me.

Not my thing. 1/5

Like regular Christina Aguilera wasn't bad enough, we get...an affected, persona-driven, 'throwback' version? Cool.

SUCH a long album. She’s absolutely phenomenal, incredibly talented, but her music just isn’t my vibe. Fav song is ‘Back in the Day’.

Im not sure a double album by Christina Aguilera was on my to do list, today.

Do I have to?

fav songs: NONE bloated, exhausting, vanity-project 05/100

While listening to this rubbish I got to thinking about us homo sapiens and the things we've created to get by. The systems, the structures, the belief nonsense and the violence. Pretty much the music thing is the only one that makes sense, heart beating rhythm and all that? And the way we put words to music in all our Sapien cultures. Yes this stuff did set me off. Why do I love Bob Seger's Still the Same? It makes no sense, I'm not a fan and yet I fucking love it. There's something that hits us in our DNA and we just can't fight it. "You always said, the cards would never do you wrong."

A pure pop album, it's over-hyped, over-exposed, over-produced. It's too much

80 minutes of this are we serious. 40 minutes of loud overproduced oversung pop would be questionable enough.

I hated this. Even DJ Premier could not save this. 78 minutes of her incessant whining. How does she have two albums on this list and neither of them are the album with Genie In A Bottle on it?

Oh man, so viel zu entpacken. Also dies ist ein Konzeptalbum, aufgenommen zum Höhepunkt von Retro Soul mit den Protagonisten von Retro Soul, um den Ursprung des modernen Pop, nämlich Soul zu huldigen. Damit ist das kein Cash Grab, sondern ernsthafte Back to Basics Musik. Klar. Aguilera hat auch ungefähr die beste Stimme der Welt, darf - back to basics - aber offenbar nicht mit einer Band aufnehmen oder spielen. Klingt daher alles zusammen gesetzt, weil es das auch ist. Bezeichnend auch, dass das einzige Feature mit Steve Winwood ist, der nicht nur weiß und Britisch, sondern auch für schreckliche 70er und 80er Synth Pop verantwortlich ist - genau was man also braucht auf einem Retro Soul Album. Doch dann, Disc 2: Inception! Ein Konzeptalbum im Konzeptalbum, diesmal mit 4nonBlondes Linda Perry, und jetzt geht es um Zirkus, zumindest für 3-4 Tracks, weil... Warum nicht? Es ist ja sowieso alles egal. Viele Songs klingen dann irgendwie wie ein Hilferuf. Ob für die Künstlerin, für die Hörenden oder Musik insgesamt, bleibt unklar.

Her voice is fine for one or two songs, but a double album of this is just way too much. Absolutely no reason an album like this should be this long.

Not for me 1/5

Can’t believe this in a double album. And can’t believe this is on this list. And can’t believe this one doesn’t hav genie in a bottle.

No modern pop album has any right to be that long.

It's not my style.

Nope. Can't stand her.

Opening thought an unexpected hip-hop inspired album with potential. But then the songs started and I wish it was more just clean vocals without trying to play with beats because whatever this is does not work for me. The fan song was embarrassing that it was only compliments saying how great she is on her own album. Can't wait to review this as my least favorite album so far

In the intro we're told "this how music should sound" then we get lifeless, over production, caterwauling and the choice of two backing tracks, mid tempo with fake vinyl crackle and computer generated "scratching" or down tempo and lacking emotion. Not sure if this project is an ego out of control, a blatant cash grab, or both but it's embarrassing to have to listen to this as an album that must be heard

YGTBFKMWTS 1

I like a bit of power pop, especially when I'm running. Modern pop is surprisingly clever and self-aware, not to mention full of banging production. So I tried to be open minded about this but Christina Aguilera is none of those things. These tracks are flaccid, boring drones accompanied by witless, saccharin lyrics and neither hold any originality or interest. Putting out an entire double album of this weaksauce is borderline insulting.

Nah … she’s got some pipes on her though …

No thanks

You’re testing my patience here

Too long to keep my attention for something so mediocre

I listened with an open mind but I really didn't like this. Not hip-hop, not pop, not funk, not R&B but somehow a weird mix of not the best bits of those things? She's got an incredible voice but it's also a bit annoying. Oh also I only ever listen to the first disc, I'm not doing 2.

Bloated. Dull. Far too long. Overloaded with glitzy production, and thin pastiches on the second disc. Not loaded in any way with melodies, or songs with any heart to them.

After Disc 1, I was ready to go to 2 stars on this, but Disc 2 and its collection of old timey pop styles drove me crazy. It was at that point that I started questioning why I spent an hour and 18 minutes with this album. Way too long.

Geweldige zangeres, maar ik kan echt helemaal niets met deze stijl. Een soort mengelmoes van bigband doo wop-bende en moderne pop. Zelfs DJ Premier op de productie kan de boel niet redden. Vermoeiende listen.

Great voice. I wonder what she would sound like if she sang songs where she actually felt something. There's no emotion in her voice. This did not need to be a double album. She had nothing to say.

There is a special place in hell for whoever thought I needed to listen to Christina aguilera wail her vibrato for an hour and a half.

I made it half way through and had enough. The circus song did me in. 1 star

This seems like an odd choice…

A familiar basic celebrity name that I could never attach to any human face or voice, and while the former is completely forgettable, her ear-grating, overconfidently milquetoast performing will be ingrained in my mind as the one album I couldn’t stand while doing work. If I’m working, I can listen to goddamn ANYTHING. Not this. Pissed me off too much and I had to finish it in portions. Just so annoying.

First thought: Fucking hell, a double album from Christina Aguilera? Why is this on the list? Final thought: Fucking hell, a double album from Christina Aguilera? Why is this on the list? Best Tracks: Makes Me Wanna Pray (feat. Steve Winwood); Ain't No Other Man; Candyman

Awful! Why is this on here!

This is crap. It was seemingly made up of a sound board which was composed of a farty trumpet, her saying the word dirty and various versions of singing ‘yeah’ with more and more syllables. 1 star.

Didn't enjoy it. It's not my thing. Not mad about her voice. The album is way too long. It's not varied enough to be that long. I was bored by about the third track. I understand why Kelly Osbourne hated her.

pretty awful, just moans and groans with asthma I turned it off as couldnt face over an hour of it.

i fear i never got the xtina hype and i never will. saved: n/a.

No thanks I’ll pass

This is just unmemorable crap. There’s nothing in this album at all. I cheered when it ended. ITS SO BLOODY LONG and you feel every fucking second of it.

Nothing good came out of the late 90's pop music scene... and all those who were apart of the Mickey Mouse Club.

Better than i expected at first, but Aguilera could use her voice a bit less rollercoaster like. Now her voice is going up and down and around the bend all the time that it makes me feel sick. Few songs of this would have been enough, full album is way too much for my stomach to handle.

Too long

Nein

My God, this is not essential in the slightest. It's basically just a bunch of vapid pop pap with nothing actually worth hearing. Hell, there's literally a "song" that's mostly just random answering machine messages being played back from her fans. It does nothing well, and it's very much a product of its time. It's just way too long and boring, like every lousy album on this list so far.

I don’t need an 80 minute album to tell me I don’t care about Christina Aguilera. Didn’t even listen.

I hate this album so much that I will no longer use Christians Aguilera voice on Waze

Bullshit

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111111111111111111111111111111

Keep Miles Davis' name out of your fucking mouth. {Slaps the two dozen people it took to make this record}

Christina Aguilera suffers from the Adele problem of having an incredible voice but making the most mediocre, bland, derivative soul-pop imaginable. (Maybe it’s the other way around?) Now, I gave Adele the benefit of the doubt because I grew up with her music and I have a lot of nostalgia associated with her sophomore record, but Aguilera doesn’t have that bias within me and as such I feel like I can see it for what it is. Not even to mention that this is a DOUBLE RECORD???? I admire the passion, but this does not have the uniqueness or staying power to last that long. I got the vibe of this album after 4 songs, lol. 1.5 stars, rounded to 1 for disappointment.

It’s really bad. Dominated by her screeching vocals and a jumbled mess of songs. Can’t believe we have been exposed to 2 of her awful albums.

80 minutes of the worst generic pop slop you can imagine. Back to basics? Yeah it was basic, bland as all hell. And what was up with the over the top sexual stuff. Nasty naught boy? Still dirty? Gross. Almost unbearable to listen to in it’s entirety.

a walrus bellows the blues

this was not as bad as beyonce

Unerträgliches Geschrei, Gequietsche, Gestotter und Gejammer. Eine Sammlung all dessen, was bei mir zu Ohrenschmerzen führt.

2 unremarkable albums by xtina on this list already? I hope that means that there will be at least as many albums represented by Janet Jackson, Madonna, Whitney Houston, Britney Spears, Beyonce and Mariah Carey, too. Christina is no doubt a vocal powerful, but she isn’t that interesting as an artist and this album is ridiculously long and teeming with filler and cliched, over-sung pop R&B songs. That being said “Ain’t No Other Man” and “Candyman” both rip.

Basic math: (Appalling x 2)/78 Minutes = Egregious

This album was way too long and it gave me nothing in return. 3/10

Pop pap.

Too long. Too much of the same vocalizations. Yes she’s talented but I wasn’t feeling this.

Pfffff!!!

Honestly did not listen. Expecting me to listen to an entire double album of Christina Aguilera’s more recent work is just crazy.

Hopelessly undercooked instrumentals and unbearably overcooked vocals. The musical equivalent of a burnt fish finger.

Think she had one album I'd listen to. The one in between being an inane popstar and a nauseating pompous diva. This is not it.

Why is this on here

Didn't like this at all.

Wow this has two discs.

An ordeal.

the second half of this STINKS!!!

Holy hell, a 1h 20 min pop album? Well, it's a bold statement, how does it hold up? Well, having listened, it did not need to be this long. I would have been happy with a standard-length album. Also, I am sure her singing is technically impressive, but all I hear is mmmmhhhmmmm, wooooaarrgghhwooooaaoooahhhh. And the title. Back to Basics? This is very overproduced. The songs are dull pop, but credit to her for apparently writing them all herself, although they're not much good to my ears. Back in the Day is really on the nose, it's literally just "here's some old musicians, they were good, weren't they?" The instrumentation in no way supports the meaning of the song, not that it could, but invoking their names for an insubstantial pop song is really strange and unwise. Oh Mother as well is a weirdly literal song. No subtext, all text about an abusive relationship, a strange subject for a pop song. Thank You is a nice idea, saying thank you to her fans, but it's more than a bit self-aggrandising including so many clips of her fans telling her how great she is. Some of the things they say, like, "you are a true artist", "you are able to stand on your feet no matter what", "your music inspired me to keep living": Have these people heard, I don't know, other music? It just goes to show that people have different tastes and can get a lot out of an artist and art which I think, frankly, is disposable trash. I won't deny her deserving her place on the list, but this is an album which earns it based on popularity and ubiquity as opposed to musical talent. Another endurance test album, which the absurd runtime did no favours for.

Meh

Don’t be ridiculous

Could have made it through life without listening to this. Wasn't even particularly catchy.

Gave it a go and it is not good

Garbage

Very bland r&b that lacks in substance. The second side of this album is possibly one of the most annoying pieces of music ive ever had to sit through 3/10 Favourite: None Least Favourite: Enter the Circus

My rating reflects the purpose of the exercise which is to hear 1001 albums before I die. I already had to listen to 'Stripped' two days ago via the generator. She can sing very well. Great. I get it. Why did I have to hear literally 3 hours of it across 2 double albums before I died? This isn't any different to me than having to hear 3 hours of someone who is 'very good at saxophone' doing saxophone solos to uninspiring backing tracks

For me, Aguilera starts and ends with Moulin Rouge. Don't like this mix of pop-jazz and hip-hop. Too shallow and simple.

Why does this album have 40,000 songs on it?

Oh by Jingo how boring. This gives me absolutely nothing.

I would give zero stars if that was an option. How is this an essential album?

Trash. Poor attempt at Stevie Wonder.

Seriously? C’mon.

Sorry, but no thank you

Jedinica iz principa. // Bila bi dvica zbog Candyman, ostalo je grozno i narcisoidno.

I don't need to listen to Christina Aguilera before I die. And multiple albums on this list? That's actual insanity.

I try to find one song from every album that stands out as the reason the album made the list. I have no idea what song that would be on this album. We're any of these hits in 2006? Did music die in 2006? I can't say I'm a fan of Christina but I know her hits and I was disappointed to not recognize having heard any of these songs. It's almost like this album just appeared on Earth today. Anyway, I didn't find anything here worth ever listening to again. Some of the hip hop beats were decent on the first disc, but I can't help feeling like Christina's entire repertoire has existed as a rip off of music created by black artists. C'est la vie though when that has been the case for a very long time. White artists exploit and steal the sounds created by black artists. What if Christina had collabed with Throbbing Gristle? Wouldn't that have been something? And if anyone knows where I can hear a song Christina sang about oral sex which was supposedly drunkenly recorded for this album and titled "Fuck You, Suck You," I would love to hear that so I can add that song to my playlist as the standout track from this album.

DNF. Not my thing. Sure she’s talented, but I find vocalists in this style to distract from the music.

Part 2 was better than Part 1. Christina has a powerful voice but the songs were not good. That whole “Thank You” section was just really cringe worthy. Also, it was way overproduced witch goes against the idea of this album.

To be honest, I was ready to give it one star from what I knew from her. Starting to listen the album, it's actually not that bad: she can sing, the background music is pretty diverse (don't get me wrong, it's 100% pop music, but still). So I was ready to give it more stars than that. And then, the album never finishes. I started to be lost in this; double albums are really something great when you're a fan of the artist; when it's not the case, it's a never ending story and it's really hard to stay in a good disposition. Sorry, Christina.

Sappy, not zappy. Budget Beyonce.

Refused to listen.

OK, so it wasn't exactly as I'd expected, it had an old time feel to it and it was professionally done. But professional crap is still crap. Not for me. I feel I should give it a 2 as I didn't actually hate it, but I'd be making the same mistake I made with u2, as every other 2 I've given is leagues above them.

I don't mind a bit of Christina, but 78 minutes continuously? No. It was all too much for me. I can cope with in 10 minute bites, but no more.

Amazing voice but it’s just not my kinda music

I feel like it's not a problem if we forget this exists.

er was eens een hond die elke dag in mijn tuin kwam kakken... maanden aan een stuk... ik liet dit eens door de luidsprekers schallen en hij is nooit teruggekomen...ik heb horen zeggen dat hij in een zak is gekropen en de beek ingesprongen

Ehhhh…. I mean, is it all that? It falls into the trap of “this quadruple album contains some of the best music by this particular artist sandwiched in between some garbage”. I’m not likely to listen again.

Nope

Not my cup of tea. I also don't love when an album is too much directly about its influences. But maybe it's over my head. Obviously she is an amazing singer and if you enjoy nonstop vocal runs, go for it!

Very early on in this process I unfairly dismissed out of hand an album on this list by Britney Spears. As time has gone on and perhaps because of this list broadening my horizons I am prepared to give anything (apart from gangster rap) a chance. For example I have opened my ears to Taylor Swift and now really rate her. I have a long standing love of female artists who naturally appeal to my musical tastes. So I did try with Christina and can see why she does appeal to so many. Unfortunately this album could not cut through to me at all. She has a strong voice but the style of music she produces here is totally disposable. 1/5 22/1/25

Generic pop crap... Eww

Ow that really hurt

Tuplalevy eli yksi levy ja täytettä. Myönnän, että alussa on kuultavissa jonkinlaista poljentoa, mutta sanoitusten banaalius hätkähdyttää: en minä edes tarvitsisi hyviä! 1,5

What’s with the marathon length of this? I struggled to get through more than 30 seconds of each song on this album...

Had low expectations - but even these were breached. I find her vocal flexings so fucking annoying and they dominate and make every track sound the same. Sonically the production sounds shallow and fake and forgettable. I'm usually partial to a cheesy pop banger - but this was very poor.

Your joking. Ok its not that bad but her voice is annoying Ok now its getting repetitive… only a few good-ish songs… Would prolly give this a 2 if it wasn't so long

Just noise and not the good kind

Really hated this album, while I found an earlier album of hers not too bad this was dire

Pop with bombastic horns is a fair bit better, when it doesn't become circus jazz. I was worried I'd have to give this two stars. Saved by: - it's too long for its few ideas - "Y'all remember back in the day, you dig Ray Charles, Nat King Cole, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald" with this album cover. really. - thanks Christina I'd be nothing without my parasocial relationship to a pop star - Enter the Circus - "blue-eyed soul" not even DJ Premier can save it. ton of talent run through a blender to make mush. music: hated. (⌐■_■)

Not as psychically excruciating to as the Spears, or as sonically excruciating as the Carey. But some other thing, that I can’t quite put my finger on. I liked it distinctly more than those, but not enough to give it two stars. Rough time for too 40 chanteuses.

Effing horrible. Basic moaning.

Why?

Ridiculously long and completely dull, combined with misplaced arrogance trying to draw parallels with classic jazz artists for some reason. The song where she'd cut her fans praising her into it was notably terrible, though I liked how some snippet of a fan was followed by a line about people don't tell the truth about her. Unintentionally correct. The whole album was insufferable.

Meant to be a fusion of jazz and soul, ended up lengthy, repetitive, boring, and misjudged. Ain't No Other Man is fun, but 1 out of 22 songs being decent is not enough.

From a 2 hour live Motorhead album into an hour and a half of Christina Aguilera! She has a good voice and likes doing her distinctive woahs so that's something. First disk was quite different and more tolerable, kinda believed her. The final track with the fans on was awful though. Then the second disk was outright shite. "Taste of the sugar below my waist" made me cringe. Too diiiirrrty for me apparently. Sorry Xtina, you had your day in the sun though

i dunno i dont even have anything to say really just wanted to switch it off 90% of the time tbh NNN

Bland, generic pop. A few bluesier and funkier songs which were a bit different, but just as bland and forgettable.

Why is an ultra generic pop album on a list of 1001 albums to hear before you die?

"You inspire me to keep on living ... " surely the funniest track on any album. Ever. Dear lord. "It's not so easy loving me ..." Correct. The fake crackles kind of sum this album up: trying to be authentic and getting it all wrong. Shakespeare; WB Yeats; Sylvia Plath ... now you know I am an excellent writer, right? So funny. Love her voice, though ... NOT!!

Horrible singing, horrible wailing. Just horrible. Name checking greats from the past in an effort to somehow relate this is laughable.

What a weird album. Never seen anyone commit a whole track to their fans praising them as if they’re the second coming of christ before. The immediate tone shift from “Christina Aguilera saved me from killing myself” to “Nasty Naughty Boy” was really something to behold. Radiohead did dramatic left turns between albums. Christina Aguilera clearly does them within albums.. I have also never found a so called ‘tribute to those that inspire me’ so artificial seeming. The random backing vocals shouting names of soul singers really baffled me. “Otis Redding!”… like ok? 😂 I have to say, Candyman is a throwback from the radio when we were younger, however I’m pretty sure the radio version wasn’t quite so explicit - or at least we didn’t realise it 😂

Piss poor. ‘Thank You’ was the most self-absorbed piece of music I’ve ever heard

Side 1 is listenable if forgettable r and p pop from the noughties, churned out by Christina, Britney and many others. Side 2 though. The lady is not a vamp. This is ersatz vocal jazz of the worst kind. Think Madonna's Dick Tracey soundtrack as bad as that. DNF more than 30 secs of each track.

Meh. A double album and most of it sounded like the same song.

Pareceu-me exagerada a tentativa de demonstrar seriedade com disco duplo. Não consegui lembrar de hits dela, apenas da parceria de Lady Marmalade.

Oh this is so painful. TWO DISCS. Back in the Day hurt so bad. Like she starts naming some of music's greats and reading them off-- as if she even a toe inside the pantheon with Otis Redding, James Brown, Louis Armstrong, Coltrane.. Marvin Gaye FFS. At that point I tried to enter into a fugue state so that it wouldn't consolidate as a memory in my brain infecting my inner library. You never gonna get it from me..You can't touch. Blech. Get me some gasoline so I can pour it down my earholes and exorcise the demons with fire. Oh Mother explains a lot, if true. F.U.S.S. seems to talk about how the person who wrote a lot of her music walked away from her. That explains a lot. Still Dirrty gross. Keep that nasty freak side right up under a rock. Enter the Circus seems like it should be her genre, a big nasty drama circus. Seriously, there's never a good time for circus music. Nasty Naughty Boy with the tired old voulez-vous couchez avec moi line. Again, gross, keep your funky sharpened press on nails and your fake everything away from me. The disgusting saccharine sop of a song called Hurt. Just awful. I'm begging for mercy at this point in this album. It's like having your ass caught in a bear trap that just keeps tightening. And the next song, is of course, Mercy on Me. I'm out of favors with the gods now. I'm in the middle of the Gobi pounding my fists at the sky and begging for rain. Overall, this rates as sub-1 star. Horrible vocals, horrible lyrics, deplorable instrumentation throughout. Not one redeeming track. Hope to never hear any of this again in my life.

I'm sure her voice is very good but, boy, do I find it all so very exhausting.

In a nutshell: sounds less like Christina and more like Mariah. I shouldn't compare Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey, but it's difficult not to. The Midas touch of Mark Ronson et al made this album a hit. In retrospect, it's a typical Christina outing: tries to be fun with pop and R&B, repetition, plain backbeats and too much vocal acrobatics (eg the Mariah flutter). Overall: 2/10

Five stars to me for actually listening to this. Well done mate!

I thought christina was pop, but whatever this is it's not me

Some good production is held back by repetitive vocals and the "throw shit at the wall and hope it sticks" method of crafting an album. It doesn't feel very cohesive at all, despite having some good tracks scattered throughout. Unfortunately, there is more bad standing out here than there is good, the second side in particular has some real stinkers. I can only take so much of this vocal style before it begins to grate, HARD. It's seriously baffling someone signed off on 80 minutes of this, why wasn't this split into 2 separate releases??? (To be honest just don't release the second side at all, thanks).

Hmm no

trash

extremely unpleasant listen and the worst album ive sat through in my entire life. the production isnt bad and shes a decent vocalist but all of these songs suck. the bluesy songs are so much worse than the blues i enjoy that they actively make me angry to listen to. also candyman is absolutely terrible and nasty naughty boy is disgusting. this would have earned a low 3/10 (which would already be the lowest score ive ever given out) but since its a double album i decided to drop it down to a 2/10. horrendous

I couldn't finish this album, which is rare. I always try to give the albums on this list a proper listen. Her style of singing, however, annoyed me to no end. It's too similar, and while technically good, it feels too insincere. I don't know if the latter is actually true, but that's how it came across I couldnt get through with it and all this supposed homage to the classics evoked in me was the feeling to shut this shit off and listen to the actual classics this album was dedicated to.

It wasn't a 1 in the sense that I found it hard to listen to... but it was pretty awful.

Я честно не знаю. Вот эти подъебки под Монро - это прямо кринж. Что в этом альбоме такого, из-за чего его обязательно слушать перед смертью? Лучшая песня - Hurt.

Hard to see why this is on the list. The shouty vocals are not for me but, apart from that I cannot hear why these songs (and there are many of them) are special.

Nope

It all just blurs together. Maybe a single would be enjoyable in small doses, but 80 minute of this is a kind of punishment.

Not sure how many days it took me to get through this one, it was a slog. There's probably a way that you could cut this down to one disc and I would give it 2 stars, though.

Not my thing.

Some beats are actually decent on the first disc, but they're sadly wasted by Christina's agonizing voice acrobatics. Second disc is useless.

You know the feeling when you're just trying too hard to prove you can do something, but everyone knows you can do it, they just doesn't care. This album embodies this feeling perfectly.

"Enter The Circus" and "Nasty Naughty Boy" are the most cringy things I've ever heard. This was a DOUBLE CRAPPY program, oh my God. Can't believe it exists.

LOL, are you kidding me with this one? No one needs to listen to this in their lifetime, trust me, you will get by just fine.

A childhood friend (who I just Googled to learn he is dead) was her drum tech for a bit. He once told me the road crew got 2 days off out of every 10 so she could have her hair repaired. https://www.unionfh.com/obituaries/John-Patrick-Chismar?obId=3311793

Jesus fucking christ. This album is so fucking long for no reason. A self-indulgent five minute track of fan voicemails? Check. A pop singer who lost popularity claiming a return to their roots throwing in some gospel influenced tracks? Check. She can definitely sing, but they overproduce her voice on every single track. This is nothing special.