Album Retrospective: "Corinne Bailey Rae" by Corinne Bailey Rae

"Corinne Bailey Rae" by Corinne Bailey Rae album cover
The next album retrospective is "Corinne Bailey Rae" by Corinne Bailey Rae.

On Tuesday 24th February 2026, this album turned twenty (20) years old.

Corinne Bailey Rae is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae, released on 24 February 2006 by EMI. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified triple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Four singles were released from the album: "Like a Star", "Put Your Records On", "Trouble Sleeping" and "I'd Like To". Corinne Bailey Rae has sold over four million copies worldwide.

Corinne Bailey Rae received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 69, based on 13 reviews. While some critics perceived filler as a weakness of the album, Bailey Rae earned positive comparisons to female recording artists such as Billie Holiday, Norah Jones, Erykah Badu, Minnie Riperton, and Macy Gray. David Jeffries of AllMusic called it "pleasingly homegrown, warm, and poignant in parts". Los Angeles Times writer Natalie Nichols compared Bailey Rae's music to that of Sade and Stevie Wonder. Michael Endelman of Entertainment Weekly called it "extremely agreeable, a bit predictable, and occasionally irresistible". MusicOMH writer Michael Hubbard called the debut "exceptional in every way" and "a breath of fresh air" Preston Jones of Slant Magazine was more lukewarm, saying "Rae’s amiable competence marks her as a talent worth keeping tabs on, but the strength of Corinne Bailey Rae is fleeting, a triumph of mood over tangible substance." In contrast, Neil Spencer of The Observer gave the album a scathing review, saying "Beyond her calling card single, 'Like a Star', however, she shows a lack of ambition. The arrangements are generic (Al Green's leftovers, mostly), the cooing backing singers bland, and the lyrics pedestrian. Paste listed the album as the 41st best of 2006. Excerpt taken from Corinne Bailey Rae (album)

Here's my review of each track on the album!

1. Like a Star 🌟🌟🌟🌟

2. Enchantment 🌟🌟🌟🌟

3. Put Your Records On 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 / ❤️‍🔥

4. 'Till It Happens To You 🌟🌟🌟

5. Trouble Sleeping 🌟🌟🌟🌟

6. Call Me When You Get This 🌟🌟🌟

7. Choux Pastry Heart 🌟🌟🌟

8. Breathless 🌟🌟🌟

9. I'd Like To 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 / 🔥

10. Butterfly 🌟🌟🌟🌟

11. Seasons Change 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Album Rating: 7️⃣▪️ 5️⃣ / 🔟



What are your overall thoughts on the album? What are your favourite songs from the album? Let me know in the comments section!



Listen to the album here:

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