Christina Aguilera - Too Beautiful For Words (2006)

Christina Aguilera's recording career began in 1997, when she moved to Japan from the US, and recorded a duet with Japanese singer Keizo Nakanishi, with whom she performed in concert shows around the country. Their song, 'All I Wanna Do', was released as a single but failed to have any commercial success, and so in June 1997 she went on to Romania to represent the United States in a singers contest during the Golden Stag Festival, although she failed to win over the audience. On her return to the US she recorded numerous demo tapes, sending them to record labels such as Walt Disney Records, and they chose her to record 'Reflection', the theme song from the animated 1998 film 'Mulan'. Following the attention she received for this, she caught the ear of Ron Fair, the A&R executive from RCA Records, who consequently signed her to the label. In late 1998 she began to record her debut studio album, into which the label reportedly invested over $1 million worth of writers, producers and vocal lessons. It was around this time that her first solo recording was released, with 'I Come Undone' appearing on the 'The Scene Compilation – So. Cal Edition 3' various artists album. In May 1999, Aguilera released 'Genie In A Bottle', the lead single from her long-awaited debut album, and it topped the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks, and became the second best-selling single of 1999. The song became an international success, increasing Aguilera's popularity worldwide, and from this point on her career was assured. Her self-titled debut album, 'Christina Aguilera', was released on 24 August 1999 to critical praise, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200, and it was promoted by the release of a non-album promo singe, 'Dreamy Eyes'. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she tended not to add non-album songs to the b-sides of her singles, and so most of her rare recordings are songs recorded exclusively for film soundtracks, or are collaborations with other artists, and so I've collected the best of them here, including a couple of b-sides, a track from a joint EP with Justin Timberlake, an exclusive recording for a Mercedes Benz promotional campaign, and some guest appearances with Ricky Martin, Herbie Hancock, and P. Diddy. 

Track listing

01 All I Wanna Do (single featuring Keizo Nakanishi 1997)
02 I Come Undone (from 'The Scene Compilation – So. Cal Edition 3' 1998)
03 Dreamy Eyes (promo single to promote 'Christine Aguilera' 1999)
04 We're A Miracle (from the film 'Pokemon: The First Movie' 1999)
05 Don't Make Me Love You ('Til I'm Ready) (from the film 'The Next Big Thing' 1999)
06 Too Beautiful For Words (b-side of the German edition of 'What A Girl Wants' 1999)
07 Nobody Wants To Be Lonely (feat. Ricky Martin) (from 'Sound Loaded' by Ricky Martin 2000)
08 Lady Marmalade (with Lil' Kim, Mýa and P!nk) (from the film 'Moulin Rouge' 2001)
09 I Will Be (b-side of 'Dirrty' 2002)
10 That's What Love Can Do (from the 'Justin & Christina' EP 2003
11 Car Wash (feat. Missy Elliott) (from the film 'Shark Tale' 2004)
12 Hello (exclusive recording for the Mercedes Benz Promotional Campaign 2004)
13 A Song For You (feat. Herbie Hancock) (from 'Possibilities' by Herbie Hancock 2005)
14 Tell Me (feat. P. Diddy) (from 'Press Play' by P. Diddy 2006)