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Back to Basics, Oh Yes Please!

The year is 2006, and Christina Aguilera is back with a brand new album 'Back to Basics', and this is yet another change of direction for Miss Aguilera. No more Miss Bubble Gum Pop or the pretence of being Dirrty, but a more mature Christina Aguilera hits us with this album. It is as if there is a Barbara Streisand mixed with Bette Midler insider waiting to break out and belt out those big songs to a massive audience.

The album is a great mixture of Blues and Jazz, with a modern slant on it, showing the new maturity in Christina Aguilera's collaborations, with the production on disc one being done by DJ Premier and on disc two by Linda Perry. There is something on this album for everyone, from up tempo tracks to very soulful numbers, all brought about with the wonderfully powerful voice that Christina Aguilera has.

I could sit here and go through each track on the album, but I am sure I would bore people to tears, so I will try and mention some of the stand out tracks on the album, but there are a lot of those too. 'Makes Me Wanna Pray' is a very bluesy gospel track with plenty of power in it, and with a guest appearance from Steve Winwood on piano. Which then eases in to 'Back In The Day', when she namechecks people that have inspired her such as Otis Redding, which is ultimately a very smooth R'n'B song.

Disc two on the album is very much the 'concept' 'experimental' disc, but features some fantastic music. Starting with 'Enter The Circus' which merges into 'Welcome', while being great tracks are very much a commentary the behind the scenes of the music industry, and the tricks that happen in the industry.

With 'Still Dirrty' appearing on disc one to remind us of Christina in chaps (oh the wonderful warm memories that gives), well 'Nasty Naughty Boy' is 'Dirrty' gone full circle and become very much a over the top burlesque number, and I love it! In fact with the jazz introduction you could just imagine Christina Aguilera dressed to kill with a feather boa singing and strutting on the stage of a 30's or 40's Jazz Club.

This album has been worth the wait, this shows the growing maturity in Christina Aguilera's music, each album getting better than the last, while not forgetting where she came from. From all that so-called pop rivalry, set up by the media, between Christina and Brittney Spears. Well one blonde has come out on top, using her experiences and influences to guide her music while the other, Britney, proves that you can take a girl out of Louisiana, you just can't take Louisiana out of the girl, however much you try.

Better than John Major's Conservative government's "Back To Basics", no judging pikeys here unless you are Britney! Christina Aguilera and 'Back to Basics' is nothing more than a pure class act, worth the wait and the money.