- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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It may be all about style, it may be a little crass and self-centered, but it's also catchy, exciting, and unique.
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Aguilera doesn't have the gravitas of her heroes, and her forays into bluesy torch singing and '40s-style swing are stiff and mannered. But she needn't genuflect before the past -- she can make her own glorious kind of 21st-century noise.
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Ultimately, Aguilera's the only one of her peers with the vocal prowess to pull it off.
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No doubt the album of her career.
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She's found herself artistically.
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UncutPsychedelically strange and outrageously entertaining. [Oct 2006, p.99]
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A truly soulful pop album, at least for one disc, Back to Basics is one of 2006’s best when Linda Perry’s fingerprints aren’t present.
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Good taste in collaborators and a voice that has the capability to head heaven-bound all combine to make this an inconsistent, but ultimately rewarding listen.
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It's too much.
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The first disc contains all the major American radio hits, but at no small price. It's all craft and very little heart. Disc two, then, comes as welcome respite.
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Rolling StoneAt one disc, this would have been nothing short of masterful. [24 Aug 2006, p.96]
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Labored production isn’t the only problem.
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Paste MagazineThe album carries a slight-but-distinct theatrical odor. [Apr 2007, p.56]
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Contains a roughly even number of great songs and lousy ones.
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Q MagazineSadly, CD2 is a disastrously misjudged, cartoon homage to juke-joint jazz. It is awful. [Oct 2006, p.122]
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Beyond the retro instrumentation, however, it's unclear what Aguilera has really learned from her idols.
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This rather bloated record should be regarded as a disappointment - an interesting one, but a disappointment none the less.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 584 out of 651
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Mixed: 15 out of 651
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Negative: 52 out of 651
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Nov 21, 2011
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Jun 13, 2011
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Jul 17, 2013