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Stripped
Availability:
In Stock
Price:
$9.99
$6.78*
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| Part No: | B00006CXXU |
| Manufacturer: | RCA |
| MFG Part: | |
| Customer Rating: | 4.5 / 5.0 |
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Stripped is the second English studio album by American pop singer Christina Aguilera, released in 2002. With this album, Aguilera took creative control over a project for the first time, being influenced by many different subjects and music styles, including rhythm and blues, gospel, soul, pop rock, and hip hop. She co-wrote fourteen songs was involved in the production of the record, which was mainly produced by Scott Storch and Linda Perry.
Underneath all Christine Aguilera's coy affectations and vocal gymnastics lurks a rare talent. With her second album, Aguilera allows it to flower by abandoning all pretense at courting the teenage market. Stripped is a seemingly effortless move into weightier adult territory. Using her extraordinary voice as a much subtler instrument, Aguilera sings movingly and with grit and anger about the disintegration of a relationship; she's ultimately stronger for the pain. But that's not her whole agenda. Aguilera also extols the power of women on "Can't Hold Us Down," which features Lil' Kim. Other guests include Dave Navarro, Redman, and Alicia Keys. Aguilera cowrote most of the songs on the disc and produced one cut. She also partnered with former 4 Non Blondes leader and Pink collaborator Linda Perry on four songs, which gives Aguilera a rock edge that she has never before displayed. --Jaan Uhelszki
| Christina Aguilera's Soul Literally Stripped. | 2010-08-10 | 5 / 5 |
| | Ok, this album, from the first track to the last, is autobiographical, literally, and I adore that. Her voice in these songs is incredible and as always she hits notes that I've never heard before. She puts so much passion into each song that it sounds like she's crying throughout each and every song. I thank Christina for releasing an album like this and letting us into her life, letting us know what she's been through. The songs that I identify with are "Can't Hold Us Down" because I hate society's double standards when it comes to the sexuality of men and women, "Stripped Intro" (Not part 2!!!) "Fighter", because I've been stabbed in the back several times by several people, "Beautiful", "Make Over", "Cruz", "Soar", "The Voice Within" and "Keep On Singin' My Song". Actually, every time I listen to "Beautiful", "The Voice Within", "Soar" and "Keep on Singing My Song", and I am down or crying, these songs instantly lift me up, and when I feel ok, they make me feel so much better about myself. I love this album. The songs I didn't mention, I don't identify with at all because they don't have anything to do with my life, but they are great songs and I still listen to them. Every song is 10/10 and every aspect of this album is incredible. Christina only gives her fans the best she has, and that is why I love her. |
| Christina's BEST!! | 2010-06-04 | 5 / 5 |
| Dirty has been out FOREVER but I had to write a review. I LOVE this album!! Vocals, song arrangement, producers, EVERYTHING!! HAUTE!!
Every song, every beat, every video caught my attention. What a great sophmore album by one of the best vocalist in music!!
If you love R&B mixed with Pop with a sprinkle of Hip Hop .. this album is a must buy!! |
| | My sister turned me on to this cd years ago, when it first came out. I didn't even know who Christinia was. She stole my heart. And till this day, I still pull this cd out and listen to it. What great talent, a treasure. |
| I've had this cd during the year it came out but I noticed the link for it while browsing and thought to myself "Hey, I have that album, I wanna express how great it is" I love writing reviews.
"Stripped" is Christina's best album to date, And also one of my all-time favorites. She took chances on with this album but didn't go overboard and it's not extreme. She did just enough. It shows how dedicated she was with this album, it's (20) tracks long and each and every song is QUALITY material.
I love how so much is jam-packed into this ONE album, The different influences in most of the songs, The well rounded song writing. There's inspirational songs like "The Voice Within" "Beautiful" & "Fighter". There's attitude in songs like "Can't Hold Us Down" "Dirrty" "Get Mine, Get Yours". There's SOUL on "Underappreciated" "Impossible" & Neo-soul "loving Me 4 Me"
She's worked with (2) favorites of mine (Linda Perry) and (Alicia Keys). Again, all Quality material. One of the tracks composed & produced by 'Perry is "Make Over", Which took me by surprise, the track has that Luscious Jackson-90's-girlrock appeal to it. It's a definite standout. The (Alicia Keys) number is "impossible" another above average song, (Alicia Keys & Linda Perry) have EXACTLY what works for Christina, She should work with them again in the future. All completely talented artist in their own right.
As you can see, Christina can alter the sound of the music she's singing over as many times as she wants, but one thing that doesn't change is the fact that she's SINGING, Which brings this album together in so many ways.
While the entire album is the best, I still have my favorite songs of the bunch. "Cruz" "Soar" "Impossible" "Beautiful" "Loving Me 4 Me" "The Voice Within" & "Underappreciated". the entire album is a something Christina will always look back on and be proud of. I also love the artwork, it reminds me of a 90's GAP ad. |
| Sometimes Less is More (4.5 Stars) | 2009-12-31 | 4 / 5 |
| For many artists, the pressure surrounding their sophomore album is considerably greater than for their debut. While many have worked on material for their debut for much of their life, the second album tends to be put out rather quickly to capitalize on the success of the first. Or, if the debut was poorly received, a second effort may be released to give an artist a second chance to start their career. Some combination of the two of these is often true of younger artists, like Christina Aguilera, whose debut was well-received, but not reflective of the kind of music the singer wanted. As such, her sophomore album seemed more experimental as Christina gained creative control and had a much bigger hand in crafting the material. The album shocked many fans, as it seemed to be a significant departure from her earlier work, but has come to be widely acknowledged as her best album to date.
"Stripped, Part I" opens the album with a part-spoken, part-sung interlude featuring Christina talking about how the album is about getting to know her better. Unlike most album intros, this one actually serves a purpose by introducing the theme of the album. It doesn't add much to the album necessarily, but is a nice touch. "Can't Hold Us Down" is a definite female anthem, discussing double standards and calling women together to fight them. It's an excellent message and one that definitely needed to be said. The only real problem with the track is the annoying background chanting, which is not that noticeable at first, but hard to ignore once you hear it. "Walk Away" brings about an album highlight very early on, easily showing Christina in top form. It's a slow, melancholy, and very soulful track about being in a bad relationship that one can't leave. The lyrics are some of the strongest Christina has written, and her vocals are emotive and passionate. "Fighter" is another highlight, showcasing an angry Christina actually thanking a man for hurting her. The message here is that by hurting her, he's only made her stronger. This track sounds just as fresh today as it did when the album came out. The bridge is especially stunning. The song as a whole is another anthem, and another that showcases an excellent message.
"Primer Amor Interlude" has Christina speaking in Spanish over a guitar, describing her first love. It's a beautiful interlude, and the Spanish sounds nice, although it's safe to say many fans won't really understand what she's saying. It does, however, transition smoothly into "Infatuation", a Latin-tinged track about Christina's real-life former boyfriend. This is another well-written track, capturing the mood impeccably. Here, she describes being caught between her mother's advice not to rush and her own feelings. "Love's Embrace Interlude" is somewhat evocative of Mariah Carey, with its airy sound. It really did not need to be a separate track, as it is very short and blends right into "Loving Me for Me". This track has Christina sing in a more subdued manner, about how what she loves most about her man is how he loves her for who she is. For many, this song makes a nice change from the way Christina "screams" most tracks, yet the power of her voice is always evident. The bridge once again is a highlight.
"Impossible" is another highlight, featuring Alicia Keys. This song has more of a jazzy sound to it, and contains some of the best lyrics the album has to offer. Christina's voice is showed to full effect here, powerful and passionate, yet never quite falling into the trap of oversinging. "Underappreciated" again explores Christina's relationship that had been mentioned in "Infatuation", this time from the other end of the scale. Christina here describes the problems with the relationship, as the man no longer seems to put in any effort. It's a rather common topic for songs, yet Christina manages to keep it sounding fresh and different. "Beautiful" is another track with an excellent message (although after seven years, the effects of it being overplayed have not quite dissipated). It is one of Christina's most successful songs, and with good reason. The lyrics are rather simple yet evocative, and the vocal delivery is simply stunning, building toward an empowering finale. "Make Over" is one of the few weaker points on the album, largely because it sounds out of place. There was some controversy about this song ripping off a track by the Sugababes, although the resemblance seems marginal at best. Christina's voice is a little too grating on the chorus, although the verses are good.
"Cruz" makes up for it, however, showcasing Christina's voice against a fairly sparse background. This is certainly one of the albums hidden gems, as a track that is generally overlooked until one listens to the album again. However, with that said, it does not quite measure up with the best the album has to offer. "Soar" is a rather inspirational song, with some gospel-sounding elements. Compared to other tracks here, it is a little on the forgettable side. It may be filler, but it is definitely filler at its finest. The bridge especially demonstrates this. It is quite a meaningful track, but gets lost among some of the other material. "Get Mine, Get Yours" on the other hand is a (rather controversial) highlight. This track has Christina singing about casual sex, but doing so in a very engaging way. This track goes along with her theme of female empowerment, showing how women can be confident and assertive about what they want. If we take image out of the equation and look at the song for what it is, it easily stands out as one of the most interesting tracks the album has to offer. "Dirrty" is another track in the same vein, although not quite as strong. The song is famous for launching Christina's new image, as the first single off this album. It's an extremely addictive song, which, like the previous track showcases Christina as a woman in control.
"Stripped Part 2" is another solid interlude, and continuation from the album opener. Here, Christina apologizes, albeit sarcastically, for not being what people expect of her. It is arguably unnecessary, but is a nice addition nonetheless. "The Voice Within" is another inspirational track about trusting oneself. This track shows off Christina's vocals incredibly, both in terms of their power and emotion. Like "Cruz", the instrumentation here is minimal, allowing the vocals and lyrics to shine. The build-up toward the rather climax is also handled nicely. "I'm OK" is easily the most personal track the album has to offer, where Christina recounts the abuse she witnessed and experienced in her childhood. According to interviews, she recorded this track while lying on her back in the studio. The track is quite haunting, with Christina sounding rather lost. This track may be keeping the theme of empowerment, depending on how its interpreted, as Christina sings "every morning when I wake, I look back at yesterday, and I'm OK". However, she sings these lines with such vulnerability that it's evident that she may not be that okay after all. Finally, "Keep On Singing My Song" attempts to bring the album back to a more positive level, with mixed results. While the song is certainly empowering, it is at least a minute too long, causing it to drag. With the abundance of inspirational material already on the album, there were several stronger prospects to close off the album. Nonetheless, it is a solid track and makes for a nice album closer.
Overall Mark: 4.5/5
Although many were shocked with Christina's image during this album's era, it really is not such a far cry from her debut. The lyrics to a handful of tracks on her debut album were a little more racy than other pop singers, so it is not all that surprising that she shed the innocent image. Reputation aside, Christina had grown up in the years between albums, so it makes sense that her sound matured with her. A little too experimental at times, Stripped showed Christina as a woman in control, both in the material and in crafting the album (she was involved in writing and composing all but two songs). The length of the album was both strength and its greatest downfall. Despite there being several outstanding tracks, the runtime also caused the album to drag in places. As such, the frequent changes in song style were welcome more often than not, as it prevented the material from becoming too repetitive. It also helped that production was generally kept to a minimum, allowing Christina plenty of room to shine, and keeping with the idea of being "stripped." Although the vast majority of tracks addressed female empowerment, most did so in different and/or interesting ways, thus keeping attention. With Christina's talent both for singing and for songwriting, it is little wonder that the album came out so well.
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