Back To Basics
by Christina Aguilera
  • Record Label: RCA
  • Release Date: Aug 15, 2006
User Score
8.8

Universal acclaim- based on 651 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 584 out of 651
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 651
  3. Negative: 52 out of 651

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  1. Infalandy
    Jul 28, 2023
    10
    Amé como Xtina usó sonidos de los 40' (no recuerdo bien de qué tiempos) y mezclarlos con sonidos de esa época, tiene letras bastante buenas en cuanto a cada canción, la producción también fue bastante buena.
  2. Zarash
    Apr 27, 2023
    10
    all the songs on the album follow the vintage theme (which is very difficult to do) the vocals are exceptional and there are some songs with very strong lyrics and about the artist's past like "oh mother", hurt is also a beautiful ballad, can not be about the artist but it continues to bring a very strong message
  3. PEDROMFR
    Feb 28, 2023
    3
    BORING.
    Here's what I think. Christina was so worried with being compared to big music legends that she ended up releasing music for the critics, rather than for her pop fans. The problem is that not even the critics liked it.
  4. 0987
    Oct 25, 2022
    10
    Mercy on me is the biggest highlight and the biggest discover on this album.

    I like how the first disc is all bright, mid to upbeat and fun with highlights being Understand, Still Dirrty and her dedication to fams where she even samples her own songs. Also that diss track FUSS was funny to me. And then in the second disc, the album becomes darker and turns from mid to slow tempo (with    Mercy on me is the biggest highlight and the biggest discover on this album.

    I like how the first disc is all bright, mid to upbeat and fun with highlights being Understand, Still Dirrty and her dedication to fams where she even samples her own songs. Also that diss track FUSS was funny to me. And then in the second disc, the album becomes darker and turns from mid to slow tempo (with excemptions being Candyman and Nasty Naughty Boy). Mercy On Me is, as I already said, the biggest highlight from this album. Too bad she neved performed this song live.    … Expand
  5. mariamedia
    Jun 21, 2022
    10
    In my opinion this is the greatest album a female pop star ever made. Only Aguilera could produce such a fine balance between old scoold and modern pop with powerhouse vocals, emotion and narrative singing. This album and era is just genious at every aspect
  6. RestuSandika
    May 22, 2022
    10
    Aguilera at its FINEST FINESSE. This album is like everything check: production ✅ vocals ✅ lyrics ✅ emotiveness ✅ visuals ✅ vibe ✅ . The production on disc 1 is exceptionally unbelievable. It's unbeliavable how she can build an entirely new & fresh-sounding songs on obscure beats.
  7. idroJ2-2
    Mar 18, 2022
    10
    An album that combines perfectly retro sounds with contemporary ones like Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black".
  8. eabickd
    Mar 13, 2022
    10
    Este álbum es otra de las joyas de Xtina! Demostrando su versatilidad musical, pasando de su imagen rebelde en Stripped a su lado más elegante en B2B! ✨
  9. Panboy1995
    Nov 11, 2021
    10
    Una obra maestra, un viaje en el tiempo, la voz de Christina se adapta muy bien a este género musical. Uno de mis discos favoritos de todos los tiempos. Mis fav son slow down baby, hurt, mercy on me.
  10. JimK
    Nov 5, 2021
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. One of the best pop albums of all time. So ahead of the time it was released. Great lyrics… Expand
  11. LunaDawson
    Oct 23, 2021
    10
    I honestly don't know in which state a human being has to be to not find atleast one song from this album great. This album is not "over-done" it's simply out of this world
  12. bionicdoctor
    Mar 20, 2021
    10
    any popstar could do an album like this one at 25, this record proves the talent Miss Aguilera possess and her soaring voice is everything, it should've won the aoty
  13. Lopesito27
    Jan 23, 2021
    8
    Honestly Aguilera came across a sound with lots of potential she can easily pull off with her charisma at full flow... Sadly, some compositions don't impress nearly as much as I feel like they should for such a voice and such a style. It's not until that extra 2nd part of the album that the style is perfectioned, even if it switches to going full vintage instead of building 2000s R&B fromHonestly Aguilera came across a sound with lots of potential she can easily pull off with her charisma at full flow... Sadly, some compositions don't impress nearly as much as I feel like they should for such a voice and such a style. It's not until that extra 2nd part of the album that the style is perfectioned, even if it switches to going full vintage instead of building 2000s R&B from those vintage sounds.… Expand
  14. Haandy
    Dec 16, 2020
    10
    O segundo pilar da carreira da Xtina, album q mostra toda sua inspirações em verdadeiras divas do jazz, pisou no Chuca To Chuca da Lady covid.
  15. Nicolasaguilera
    Sep 25, 2020
    10
    Christina Aguilera
  16. TheAxl
    Aug 28, 2020
    10
    Omg, a great album! The good vocalist who is cristina with this genre suits her very well !, all the songs are beautiful, Hurt a beautiful ballad, and Candyman !! omG !, everyone to dance!
  17. JeremySpears
    Aug 12, 2020
    10
    "Back to Basics" came out 14 years ago this month. With this album, Christina reinvented herself yet again after the incredible success and artistic liberation that "Stripped" was four years prior. For this album, Christina said goodbye to Xtina and adopted a new alter ego "Baby Jane", which was inspired by classic Hollywood actresses such as Marylin Monroe. The album itself pays tribute"Back to Basics" came out 14 years ago this month. With this album, Christina reinvented herself yet again after the incredible success and artistic liberation that "Stripped" was four years prior. For this album, Christina said goodbye to Xtina and adopted a new alter ego "Baby Jane", which was inspired by classic Hollywood actresses such as Marylin Monroe. The album itself pays tribute to and is inspired by Christina's idols from the 1920's-1950's. Its first half has a more urban sound that is still inspired by that time, while the second half sounds like it's straight from that time. Its lyrics deal with her relationship to her then husband, her love for music and her idols and her difficult childhood. The album kicks off with the Intro that basically explains the concept of the album and celebrates a certain era of music and her idols such as Aretha Franklin, Etta James, James Brown or Otis Redding. Its third track "Back In the Day" is basically the same thing, just longer and more uptempo. It’s a great song. The album's second song "Makes Me Wanna Pray" is already a highlight. A fun, uplifting gospel song that gets you moving and in a good mood every time you listen to it. "Slow Down Baby" is one of the best songs in Xtina's discography. It blends R&B with Hip-Hop and soul and is a powerful, fun, danceable and sassy feminist anthem. "Still Dirrty" is pretty similar and another amazing song. It references her legendary 2002 hit "Dirrty". "Oh Mother" is one of Christina's most personal songs and is just a beautiful and sad ballad. Just like "I'm OK" from "Stripped" it talks about her abusive father but this time focuses more on her mum's story. The album's iconic second single "Hurt" is another extremely sad but beautiful ballad that talks about death I think. One of my favorite songs of hers. The other two singles "Ain't No Other Man" and "Candyman" are iconic bops and I don’t think I need to say more about them. "Here To Stay" is an upbeat empowering anthem. I love Christina's confidence in that track. The interlude "F.U.S.S." is basically a diss track about Scott Storch, who had worked with her on "Stripped". I don’t know what happened between them but I like the interlude. "Thank You" is a thank you to the Fighters, her fans, and even includes messages from some fans. Not the best song on the album but it’s a nice gesture for sure. It closes the first half of the album. The second half of the album opens with "Enter the Circus". An epic interlude and the transition to "Welcome", another epic song, is just perfect. The second half also features two of the iconic singles ("Hurt" & "Candyman"). "Nasty Naughty Boy" is an incredibly sexy song that incorporates elements of jazz and blues. It was later used in her movie "Burlesque" and I totally understand why. "I Got Trouble", while not my favorite song, captures the concept of the album perfectly. It sounds like a very old song from the 1920s and Christina's vocals are just perfect. "Save Me from Myself" is very different from the rest of the album. Xtina doesn’t belt as she usually does and sings in a very nice, soft tone. The song itself is a simple acoustic song. On the album's final song "The Right Man", Xtina expresses that she has found "the right man" for her imagined daughter as she hopes that the child would not have to experience an abusive childhood like her. Sad yet powerful and beautiful.

    "Back to Basics" is Xtina's best album in my opinion. In a time where Hip-Hop and Dance Pop were dominating the charts Christina took a risk and released music inspired by her idols but it still had a modern twist. And even though it sounded so different from anything else on the charts, it was still an extremely successful era. The album is so cohesive, has great themes and even though it has 22 tracks it never seems too long and it never gets boring. Christina is the Princess of reinvention and this album proves how perfectly and authentically she can pull off such a reinvention. "Back to Basics" is a timeless masterpiece and one of my favorite albums ever. Favorites: Hurt, Slow Down Baby, Makes Me Wanna Pray, Oh Mother & Still Dirrty    … Expand
  18. Yfiory
    Jun 22, 2020
    10
    Um álbum completo do início ao fim. Trabalhado em cima de duas temáticas principais os anos 40/50/60 e o circo. Trás em cada letra mensagens pessoais para levar como lições na vida.
  19. PabloRivie
    May 14, 2020
    9
    1.- INTRO.- Aun no me da el aire que expresa el arte o el título del album. Me suena mas a una transición entre Stripped y este album
    2.- MAKES ME WANNA PRAY.- Me encanta el sonido bastante soul y el aire a coro de iglesia que usa Christina en sus canciones desde Stripped. GRAN VOZ como siempre. Gran pieza de principio a fin. Debería ser single. TOP
    3.- BACK IN THE DAY.- El principio    1.- INTRO.- Aun no me da el aire que expresa el arte o el título del album. Me suena mas a una transición entre Stripped y este album
    2.- MAKES ME WANNA PRAY.- Me encanta el sonido bastante soul y el aire a coro de iglesia que usa Christina en sus canciones desde Stripped. GRAN VOZ como siempre. Gran pieza de principio a fin. Debería ser single. TOP
    3.- BACK IN THE DAY.- El principio suena batante intersante, al llegar al coro se vuelve un poco mas decepcionante sin embargo nunca puedes aburrirte del todo con la voz de Christina. Yo habría puesto a esta cancion como introducción del disco. No es mala pero no la escucharía de nuevo
    4.- AIN'T NO OTHER MAN.- Excelente primer single, una propuesta muy creativa para introducir la temática del disco al mercado. La mezcla perfecta de Jazz y Pop para el 2006. TOP
    5.- UNDERSTAND.- Una mezcla entre balada y Soul, muy bien ejecutada, no es muy profunda ni recordable pero logra cautivar. Tal ves la ejecución del bridge intermedio me sabe un poco raro pero en general una buena canción.
    6.- SLOW DOWN BABY.- Muy buen aporte al album, mezcla de pop y soul muy bien ejecutada. Tiene potencial para single. TOP
    7.- OH MOTHER.- De las canciones mas personales de Christina. Sónicamente sale un poco del sonido soul/ jazz sin embargo no desentona. La letra me gusta mucho sin embargo la melodía pienso que pudo haber sido mejor trabajada. No es de mi favoritas.
    8.- F.U.S.S..- Excelente melodía, letra, lo más RnB del album, un sonido bastante a lo Stripped sin embargo no muy recordable
    9.- ON OUR WAY.- Excelente producción musical, sigue la linea RnB del anterior track. No es una mala canción pero tampoco es de mis favoritas.
    10.- WITHOUT YOU.- Continua la linea RnB. No es mala pero definitivamente no es de mis favoritas. NEXT
    11.- STILL DIRRTY.- Retorna al sonido Soul antiguo. Para mi esta es la mezcla perfecta entre Stripped y B2B, volviendo a tocar el tema de la sexualidad pero con un sonido mas soul. Podría haber sido un interesante single. No es para nada mala pero no la pondría en mi Playlist
    12.- HERE TO STAY.- La pista suena bastante oldie. Buena mezcla entre pop y Soul/Jazz. Como canción no es mala pero escuchándola fuera del disco no sobresaldría.
    13.- THANK YOU.- Al principio suena un poco a un Genie In A Bottle parte 2. Como dedicatoria a los fans me parece bastante creativa en cuanto a producción. Como canción me deja bastante que desear. Definitivamente algo que los fans apreciarían mucho más que una persona regular. Talves podriía haber sido un poco mas corta.
    14.- ENTER THE CIRCUS.- Excelentemente ejecutada como introducción pero me da aire a una Sub- temática dentro de otra temática. Podría haber sido un album por separado o una parte dos pero separada y no así un doble disco. TOP
    15.- WELCOME.- Me gusta mucho. Deja un poco el sonido Jazz y nos trae un track muy Pop Soul. Excelente transición con la introducción
    16.- CANDYMAN.- ME ENCANTA. Vuelve al Jazz de la manera más divertida posible. Fresco, divertido, mezcla perfecta de un 40s y un 2006. OBRA MAESTRA. Mi favorita del album hasta ahora. TOP
    17.- NASTY NAUGHTY BOY.- Excelente sonido de cabaret. Muy Showgirl. Le da un giro al album pero sin salirse para nada de la linea musical. De nuevo me suena a la mezcla perfecta de Stripped y B2B. De mis favoritas del album. TOP
    18.- I GOT TROUBLE.- Lo más soul puro del album. El toque perfecto que necesitaba. No la pondría en mi PL pero dentro del álbum suena genial
    19.- HURT.- De las mejores baladas que tiene Aguilera. Gran voz, producción, letra. Excelente 2do single. Definitivamente de mis favoritas del álbum. TOP
    20.- MERCY ON ME.- Para mí las mejores fórmulas que tiene Christina es la mezcla de Soul con coros de iglesia y Pop. Esta no es la excepción. De nuevo suena un poco a mezcla entre Stripped y B2B pero no es para nada malo. De hecho es de mis favoritas del disco. TOP
    21.- SAVE ME FROM MYSELF.- Una balada acústica perfecta. Todo lo que necesitaba esta 2da parte para ser PERFECTA.ME ENCANTA. TOP
    22.- THE RIGHT MAN.- Suena bastante similar a Hurt pero eso no es para nada negativo. Sale un poco del sonido jazz/soul pero vale totalmente la pena. EXCELENTE BALADA. TOP

    EN GENERAL: Si bien hay un sonido bastante comun entre ambos lados del disco el segundo en mi opinión introduce como una pequeña sub temática que podría haber sido mejor utilizada siendo lanzada por separado o como una parte 2 de B2B. En general el sonido es bastante cohesivo, trae bastante sustancia de Stripped pero lo mimetiza perfectamente a este nuevo sonido. En general me encanta el sonido y el concepto del album. Algunas canciones pudieron ser deshechadas pero como esta tampoco me molestan. EXCELENTE TRABAJO. De hecho me molesta un poco que no sacara mas singles.    … Expand
  20. Rodkrieg
    Apr 3, 2020
    10
    What the? C’mon people, it’s her best album, powerful vocals, fresh style, and what a great production, sounds very 50’s, not like female singers nowadays.
  21. Michael1814
    Aug 24, 2019
    10
    Christina has always been ahead of her time and Back to Basic sounds like no album before it.
  22. ewertonmm
    Jun 15, 2019
    10
    This is a masterpiece that only Christina Aguilera could pull off. I can listen to this all day long on repeat without skipping a single track. The only problem of this whole LP is that it ends.
  23. pcaiquex
    Jul 10, 2018
    10
    Uma Christina madura e que mostrou pro mundo quem é a dona da voz. Só por conter Ain't no other man e Hurt já merece a nota máxima.
  24. deenoaizu
    Jul 5, 2018
    10
    Xtina is the best!! Best Album of the decade..sonically..vocally and lyrically beyond amazing.. LOVE FROM MALAYSIA
  25. Mozart88
    Jul 4, 2018
    10
    Unique work from this living legend! Only Christina Aguilera combined a diverse mix of gospel, R&B, hip-hop, pop, brass instruments and lot of strings in 2006.

    Includes several best songs of Christina's career so far. Sonically especially Disc 2's strings and violins moved me and the vocals are one of the best I've ever heard from any artist. Storytelling is also beautiful, and    Unique work from this living legend! Only Christina Aguilera combined a diverse mix of gospel, R&B, hip-hop, pop, brass instruments and lot of strings in 2006.

    Includes several best songs of Christina's career so far. Sonically especially Disc 2's strings and violins moved me and the vocals are one of the best I've ever heard from any artist. Storytelling is also beautiful, and Christina Aguilera deserves more credit as a songwriter. Disc 1's samples work well.

    Highlights: Makes Me Wanna Pray, Ain't No Other Man, Mercy On Me, Hurt, Candyman, Welcome, The Right Man, Save Me From Myself, Back In The Day and Intro (Back to Basics).    … Expand
  26. evildevil17
    Jul 3, 2018
    10
    An ambitious throwback to old Hollywood glam, Back to Basics won the hearts of music lovers around the world, and not without a reason. The album is funky, yet soulful; catchy as hell but not commercialized. On "Save Me from Myself" and "Mercy on Me" Aguilera proves - quite effortlessly, actually - that she's the best singer of her generation.
  27. RAFA903
    Jun 26, 2018
    10
    um doa melhores álbuns da Christina Aguilera como sempre ela inovando em todos os sentidos ,um belíssimo trabalho ,parabéns Aguilera
  28. pauldiam
    Jun 19, 2018
    10
    Christina Aguilera is a one in a million artist, through her debut album she crafted a very old-school bubblegum pop mood which i didn't perticularly find interesting enough for me to become a fan, however Stripped was an entirely different album and altogether was a far more deeper and rythemetic album which reflected blues and RnB as her influence which eternally expressed Xtina'sChristina Aguilera is a one in a million artist, through her debut album she crafted a very old-school bubblegum pop mood which i didn't perticularly find interesting enough for me to become a fan, however Stripped was an entirely different album and altogether was a far more deeper and rythemetic album which reflected blues and RnB as her influence which eternally expressed Xtina's creativity with lyrics and balanced some incredibly deep and moving songs.
    Chritina made the right move to pull a new dynamic out of the bag with this stunning album...to go back to her musical roots and establish her fetish for 20's and 30's style music and the result is very exceptional indeed .    … Expand
  29. Adrianorsini
    Jun 16, 2018
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. new album is amazing, a work of art
    Christina Aguilera has the gift to reinvent herself in music whenever she takes the initiative of her albums, she continues being the greatest inspiration of generations for music, for her talent, love of music and of course her voice that is the best in the industry musical, simply deserves Grammy of the album of the year. the song "maria", "pipe" and "fall in line" are the great highlights of the album and that no matter what musical style she sings, she simply does with love, so it is wonderful. success.    … Expand
  30. Mikecael
    Jun 16, 2018
    10
    magnificent album , so soul and jazz . Baby Jane rich of glamour . Xoxo X-tina
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Awards & Rankings

8
#8 Most Discussed Album of 2006
8
#8 Most Shared Album of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. The Guardian
    40
    Beyond the retro instrumentation, however, it's unclear what Aguilera has really learned from her idols.
    Read full review
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    83
    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.
    Read full review
  3. musicOMH.com
    40
    This rather bloated record should be regarded as a disappointment - an interesting one, but a disappointment none the less.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »