Sometimes when you are in the midst of going down the road, recording songs, releasing records, you don’t take time to stop and see the milestones along the way. This one snuck up on me. Thirty three number ones! That is a milestone, not just for me but for all the great writers and producers and players I got to work with along the way. It’s a milestone for all the POLYGRAM/MERCURY & MCA staff who worked these records and all the radio stations who played them. It’s also a milestone for my wonderful fans who have supported me and these songs all along the way. So, I say congratulations to all of you and thank you!
Thanks to Mama and Daddy who were always supportive and interested in everything us kids got into.
Thanks to Narvel, who always believed that this and so much more is possible.
To Shelby, you are my greatest achievement of all.
Love,
Reba
Album Liner Notes
Produced by Reba McEntire and Buddy Cannon
Album Mastered by Hank Williams at MasterMix (Nashville, TN)
“You’re Gonna Be”: Musicians - Jimmy Nichols - Piano; Jerry McPherson and Kenny Greenberg - Electric Guitar; Jim Kimball - Acoustic Guitar; Tommy Harden - Drums; Bruce Bouton - Steel Guitar; Doug Sisemore - Keyboard; Spady Brannan and Larry Paxton - Bass; Eric Darken - Percussion; Jenifer Wrinkle and Jimmy Nichols - Background Vocals
Recorded and Mixed by Derek Bason at Starstruck Studios (Nashville, TN)
Additional Engineers: Chris Ashburn and Aaron Kasdorf
Production Coordinator: Shannon Scott
“Love Needs A Holiday”: Musicians - Jimmy Nichols - Piano; Jerry McPherson and Kenny Greenberg - Electric Guitar; Jim Kimball - Acoustic Guitar; Tommy Harden and Greg Morrow - Drums; Bruce Bouton - Steel Guitar; Doug Sisemore - Keyboard; Spady Brannan and Larry Paxton - Bass; Tammy Rogers King - Fiddle; Eric Darken - Percussion; Jimmy Nichols and Perry Coleman - Background Vocals
Recorded and Mixed by Derek Bason at Starstruck Studios (Nashville, TN)
Additional Engineers: Chris Ashburn and Aaron Kasdorf
Production Coordinator: Shannon Scott
Tracks Cut By Cut
You’re Gonna Be - This is the song I wish I had written for my son, Shelby. It says everything a parent wants to say to their child and so beautifully illustrates all of the emotions a parent goes through.
Can’t Even Get the Blues - This one is really special to me because it was my very first #1 record. It was the early 80’s and I was meeting with Jerry Kennedy, who was my producer at the time. He was playing me some songs he was about to play for Jacky Ward to record, and I asked him why he never played songs like that for me. He said, ‘You mean you like songs like that?’ I had been recording pretty much ballads and waltzes up to that point. I said, ‘Sure I do. I’m playing in all these clubs and honky tonks, and that’s the kind of music they want to hear.’
I can remember the exact circumstances surrounding the moment I found out it was my first #1 record. I was at a bus barn in DeSoto , Texas , the left front wheel of our bus was about to fall off. This was in the days before cell phones, so I got on the phone there in the bus barn and called Don Williams, who was my manager at the time. He said, ‘Reba, I’ve got some news.’ He told me the song had gone #1. There I was screaming in this greasy, old bus barn, but I didn’t care. That’s a feeling you’ll never forget. Mama was the first person I called.
You’re the First Time I’ve Thought About Leaving - I have always loved waltzes, and this is just a wonderful song. I absolutely fell in love with it the first time I heard it. Jerry Kennedy called me “The Queen of Waltzes.”
How Blue - Harold Shedd, my producer at the time, found this song and I was really tired by the time he played it for me at the end of the day. I told him I didn’t like it and he suggested that we continue the next day. When I came back the next morning and listened to it again, I agreed it was a great song. I sure was glad he hung in there for the song. It goes to show that you should quit working when you’re tired!!!! I love songs that have the opportunity for great harmony vocalizing and this is definitely one of those songs.
Somebody Should Leave - Bill Carter was my manager during this time. He had arranged for me to meet with Harlan Howard and have him play me some of his songs. He played the first one and I was a little let down with it. So I said, ‘No, that’s not for me.’ Then he played a second song and it was the same thing. Man, here I thought I was going to Harlan Howard’s and I was going to hit the mother lode with a monster hit, but I didn’t like anything he was playing for me! Then he grinned really big and said he wanted to play me another song - it was “Somebody Should Leave.” I remember sitting in his leather, wing back chair with tears welling up in my eyes and chills all over me. I said, ‘Can I have that one?’ He said, ‘Yeah you can’….and told me he wasn’t even going to play it for me if I had taken either of the first two songs. He said he didn’t want to waste a good song on someone who didn’t know a good song when they heard it. So I passed the test and got one of Harlan’s great songs. That was another lesson for me…go with your gut feeling!
Whoever’s In New England - Jimmy Bowen had told me if I wanted to cut my kind of country songs, I needed to go find those songs myself. He sent Don “Dirt” Lanier, who was his right hand song man, along with me to help me learn the process. We made the rounds of the publishing companies together and I remember the day we heard this one. “Dirt” always wore a baseball cap and when we listened to this song, his eyebrows just completely disappeared up under that cap, and once again, I got goose bumps.
To me, this song was one of those where you actually feel like you’re moving up to the next level in your career. We went all the way with it. I shot my first music video in Boston . We’d heard the naysayers telling us people in New England didn’t care for country music. Well, they do care and this song was proof. It was as big a hit in Boston as it was in Tulsa .
One afternoon during our tour after the video was out, I was in a Holiday Inn watching movies on HBO. In between movies, they were showing videos. They aired an Aretha Franklin video and right after that they showed “Whoever’s in New England ”!!!!!! I almost DIED!!!!! Right behind Aretha Franklin!!!!! On HBO!!!!!! The redhead from Oklahoma had finally hit the big time.
Little Rock - Gerry House, big time radio guy and my good buddy, co - wrote this song with Pat McManus and Bob DiPiero . I love the up-tempo feel of it and it’s still a song I do in my concerts. And of course I figured if I cut one of Gerry’s songs, I‘d get even more airplay out of him!
What Am I Gonna Do About You - This is such a wonderful song and can be interpreted in several different ways. My take on it was the woman had lost her husband and just couldn’t seem to get past the sadness of that to move forward in her life. It was a great video to get to make, and I really appreciate David Keith taking the time to be a part of the video. He had been in Europe promoting a movie and flew back to be on hand to begin filming first thing the next morning. He made the video even more special!
One Promise Too Late - I think this is a song many people can relate to. Where were you when I could have fallen in love with you? Why didn’t we meet then? And now here you are, but I’ve already made a vow. It’s a really beautiful melody and great lyrics.
The Last One To Know - I call that my divorce song. I remember we were shooting the music video in Dallas , and at that point, my first marriage was pretty much over. It was a very hard and sad time in my life with everything going wrong in my marriage. I don’t like to hurt people and that divorce was very hurtful. That song represents a really sad time in my life.
Love Will Find Its Way To You - This one is just hands down a really great and fun song to perform live.
I Know How He Feels - I always look for a great melody and this one has it. It was also significant to me because this was the first music video that Narvel produced. We shot it at Starwood Amphitheatre in Nashville .
New Fool At An Old Game - This is one of those songs that men and women can both relate to. They might have been hurt before and they want to move really slow getting back into the game of love. They enter the relationship with optimism, hoping this time it’ll be different.
Cathy’s Clown - I have always loved the Everly Brothers. I remember Pake, Alice and me singing their song “Wake Up Little Susie” to our baby sister, Susie. I always thought “Cathy’s Clown” would be a great song to do from a different perspective. And for me, shooting the music video was a lot of fun because I got to play the part of Miss Kitty, just like the old western TV show. Bruce Boxlightner played Sheriff Matt Dillon and some of the cowboy stars I loved as a child were the cowboys in the saloon. Red Steagall, who gave me my start in the music business, produced the video. We had a great time shooting it on the Warner Brother’s lot in Los Angeles . Jim Hammon, who we lost in the 1991 plane crash, played the bartender so this video will always be the most special and the most treasured.
Walk On - This song says it all. If something bad happens to you, just pick yourself up and move on ahead. You can’t believe the letters I’ve received from people saying how much this song has helped them in their everyday life. Music is so healing.
You Lie - Vocally, this is one of the most challenging songs I have ever recorded, but I couldn’t resist trying it. Trisha Yearwood did a great job of singing it at the ACM’s a few years ago during a tribute segment to me the awards show produced. Thanks, Trisha! The video was fun to shoot. It brought back a lot of great memories because I got to ride a beautiful horse across the pasture, just like old times back in Oklahoma !
Rumor Has It - This song has it all. It’s one of those gut wrenching country songs that I love so much. Lyrically, it’s very intriguing because the woman in the song knows something’s going on behind her back, but it’s based on rumor - which can many times be worse than actually knowing. It’s the not knowing for sure that causes the pain.
Love Needs A Holiday - This is one hot country song with fiddles and a great up-tempo feel to it. And every married couple with kids can relate to the lyric - sometimes life just gets too crazy with everyone going in a million different directions, so you have to take time for the marriage every now and then. It was funny hearing the band say, “Hey! That’s my song!”
For My Broken Heart - It’s still a little difficult for me to sing this song because of the circumstances surrounding me when I was working on this CD. We had all suffered a great loss - seven of my band members, my tour manager and two pilots were killed in a plane crash outside San Diego . When I heard this song, it pretty much summed up what we were going through.
Is There Life Out There - This is another song I felt a lot of people could relate to; I knew I could. I have often found myself asking the questions - is there more out there I could be doing, helping more people? I feel that no matter where people are in their lives, they’ll have that question asked of them.
The Greatest Man I Never Knew - The one thing that made me hesitate recording this song was the fact that in the song, the father is dead, and thankfully, that is not the case with me. But it’s a great song and I knew that the theme was something many people had experienced. My dad is from the old school where he didn’t always tell us that he loved us but we always knew that he did. So in a way, the theme did reflect my own childhood. I love watching Dads and their children listen to this song. You can see the love between them with them holding hands or their arms around each other.
It’s Your Call - I fell in love with this song as soon as I heard it. Liz Hengber co-wrote it with Shawna Harrington-Burkhart and Bruce Burch. At the time, Liz was one of my writers at our publishing company - Starstruck Writers Group. Liz has written some great songs and we used to tease her because she wrote her best stuff when she was going through a difficult period in her love life. Good for the artists because they got great songs from her—but not so great for Liz!
The Heart Won’t Lie - Originally Kenny Rogers and I were looking at doing this song as a duet but we could never get it to sound just right because of the different ranges of our voices. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work out. Later when I was working on a new CD, I remembered that song and called Kenny to see if he was recording it and if not, could I have it and he passed it along to me. We asked Vince Gill to sing the background harmonies on the song. Tony Brown, who was co-producing the CD with me, suggested letting Vince do more than just sing harmony on the song, so he took a couple of verses, and we decided to turn it into a duet.
It worked out well in the end for everyone - except, I think, Vince. He doesn’t really care for videos and this one turned into a four-day shoot. It was great to spend time with Vince and get to watch him do what he called his Gomer Pyle imitation for his character. But I had to promise him that if he ever does another song with me, he will never have to suffer through a four-day video shoot again!
Does He Love You - I knew as soon as I heard this song who I wanted to sing it with - Linda Davis. Linda and I have been friends for a long time and at the time I found this song, she had been on the road with me as my background vocalist. She’s got a powerful, beautiful voice and I knew in my gut that we could do this song justice. We even got a Grammy for it! It has been a crowd pleaser from the first time we sang it live on stage. Even the gasp from the CMA audience when I started singing the song was proof that it was a hit! At least I thought it was the song they were gasping at….turned out that my red dress was so low in front that my Daddy thought I had it on backwards!!!!!
‘Till You Love Me - OK, I’ll admit it - I love waltzes. And this song is a great one to dance to. Turn the lights down low, get your sweetheart and let the waltzing begin!
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter - A great guitar line opens this song. Musically, it’s one of the most rocking songs I have done, and it’s a consistent crowd favorite live. And I love the title because it’s so true - another song that is a great play on words.
And Still - Another great Liz Hengber co-written song. For this song, we shot what I call an epic music video in Guatemala . It’s one of the most spectacular places I have ever seen. I loved the experience and the people there. I have always been very proud of this song and music video. Jack Cole, who directed the video, loved Guatemala so much that we almost didn’t have enough film to shoot the last scene of the video because he had filmed so much of the town and countryside! That trip would take another two pages to tell.
Ring On Her Finger, Time On Her Hands - Obviously this song is a very clever play on words and that sort of well done lyric always appeals to me. Lee Greenwood recorded this song a few years back and I’ve always been a big fan of it. That’s why I wanted to put it on my album entitled Starting Over . It is a CD of my favorite songs that I wished I had recorded first.
The Fear Of Being Alone - This is a great up-tempo number that tells about two people trying to decide whether or not to dive into a relationship. They don’t want to get hurt again but they also don’t want to be left alone. So they go ahead and take the gamble because of the “Fear of Being Alone.”
How Was I To Know - You know, I think it’s pretty clear by now I like the songs about love gone bad and the woman coming out on the other side being even stronger - discovering she has what she needs to get her through any situation.
If You See Him/If You See Her - I love finding a song that I can sing as a duet with my friends and this one was perfect for me to sing with Brooks & Dunn. We were touring together and we thought it would be great to have a song for our encore performance. It’s a beautiful ballad. Thanks, Ronnie and Kix!
Forever Love - Another beautiful ballad and love song that expresses how powerful the emotion of love is and how it can live forever.
What Do You Say - Three stories woven into one and one of the most powerful music videos I have ever done. We were able to take the emotion in this song and translate it into a beautiful and sad story for the music video. But even without the video, the feelings this song taps into are very strong.
I’m A Survivor - This is another one of those songs I think everyone can relate to. Whether they’re a cancer survivor or surviving a bad marriage - they’ll do whatever it takes to get through it and come out on the other end even stronger. It was also a perfect theme song for our TV show called REBA. Reba Hart, my character on the TV show is a lot like Reba McEntire, we’re both survivors.
Somebody - I recorded this song after taking a little break from the music business. I had done “Annie Get Your Gun” on Broadway and started the TV show that fall, so I came back into the recoding process with a clear mind, free of the pressures and politics that I had been feeling prior to the break. I came back to sing for the love of music and what a great time I had! “Somebody” was a result of that freedom and it went to #1….22 years after “Can’t Even Get The Blues” had hit the same number.
Album Chart Numbers
Billboard Top 200 - #12
Billboard Top Country Albums - #3
Billboard Top Internet Albums - #12
Track Listing
1. You’re Gonna Be Written By: Danny Orton, Dennis Matkosky
Disc 2 // 1. Love Needs A Holiday Written By: Tim Mensy; Tony Haselden
