Aguilera’s makeover proves successful

CHRISTINA Aguilera has the No. 1 album in the country this week with “Back to Basics,” her fifth album and latest style reinvention.

On the double album, which sold 342,000 copies during its first week in stores, the 25-year-old singer channels vintage soul, blues and jazz, and some songs feature strings, choirs and horns. Aguilera has cited Billie Holiday, Otis Redding and Ella Fitzgerald as some of her compass points for the album.

Lyfe Jennings, the Ohio R&B; singer, has the No. 2 album with “The Phoenix.”

The title’s connotations of fire and rebirth are appropriate for Jennings -- the singer has said that his music was shaped by his 10-year prison sentence on arson charges.

His new CD sold 136,000 copies its first week in stores, according to Nielsen SoundScan figures released Wednesday.

Country star Trace Adkins is back on the charts with the blue-collar sensibilities and honky-tonk spirit of “Dangerous Man,” which opens this week at No. 3 with sales of 115,000 copies. The singer’s eighth album features the single “Swing,” which has become popular not only at country radio but also in baseball parks.

At No. 4 is “Unappreciated,” from the R&B; quartet Cherish. The sister act from Atlanta (they are Farrah, Neosha and twins Felisha and Fallon) has a hit with the single “Do It to It,” which features Sean Paul.

The batch of new releases at the top of the chart is rounded out at No. 5 by “Cheetah Girls 2,” the soundtrack to the Disney Channel movie. The pop quartet plays Sunday at Disneyland and at Gibson Amphitheatre on Sept. 21.