With a contract to Mercury Records (1975), McEntire began her professional career singing heavily pop-influenced ballads, a far cry from the neotraditionalist movement she would help lead a few years later.
"I Don't Want To Be A One Night Stand" became her first charting single in 1976. Her first Top 10 hit "(You Lift Me) Up to Heaven" followed four years later, and in 1982 she scored her first #1 hit with "Can't Even Get The Blues."
Frustrated at her limited commercial success, McEntire left Mercury and signed with MCA Records in 1984. 1984's "Just A Little Love" wasn't much different form her Mercury material and was only moderately successful. However, another album followed later that same year, titled "My Kind of Country." This was a return-to-roots record, complete with fiddles and steel. It was comprised largely of covers of classic country songs, as well as original songs such as "How Blue" and the Harlan Howard-penned "Somebody Should Leave", both of which reached #1 on the Billboard country singles chart.
In the early 1990s McEntire expanded her audience by adopting a softer, more pop-oriented sound. She became one of the best-selling country artists of all time, releasing three volumes of greatest hits collections.
Since that first #1 hit in 1982, she's forked out 21 more chartbusters, which are all recapped on "Reba #1s" released on November 22nd, 2005. The 2-disc compilation features all 22 number one singles (according to Billboard magazine) in chronological order, including two new tracks "You're Gonna Be" and "Love Needs A Holiday." "Reba #1s" also contains 11 singles that reached the #1 spot in publications other than Billboard.
She won the Female Vocalist of the Year award from the Country Music Association four times in a row (a record she holds with Martina McBride), and had dozens of Top Ten hits during the 80s. For her contribution to the recording industry, Reba McEntire has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Blvd. In 1995, she was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
She is one of only six solo women (others include Shania Twain, Barbara Mandrell, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Taylor Swift), to win the Country Music Association's highest honor, "Entertainer Of The Year". McEntire continued to hit the charts through the 2000s, as well as appearing in television and film, most notably Tremors, a cult horror movie series, Forever Love, and One Night at McCool's. She also starred as Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun on Broadway, receiving critical acclaim.
From 2001 to 2007, Reba starred in the hit WB television show, Reba (with Texan actor Christopher Rich as her philandering ex-husband), even getting a visit from fellow country star Dolly Parton who played Reba's character's supervisor at a real estate firm.
Five Hundred Miles Away From Home
Reba McEntire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When I read the things she wrote
She said, we miss you girl
We love you come on home
Well I didn't have to pack
I had it all right on my back
Now I'm five hundred miles away from home
Cold and tired and all alone
Yes, I'm five hundred miles away from home
It's hard to tell the state I'm in
Where I'm going, where I've been
But there's a dream I've been following so long
If mama knew the things I've done
She'd forgive them everyone
But I'm still five hundred miles away from home
Away from home, away from home
Cold and tired and all alone
Yes, I'm five hundred miles away from home
Can't remember when I ate
it's just thumb and walk and wait
And I'm still five hundred miles away from home
If my luck had been just right
I'd be with them all tonight
But I'm still five hundred miles away from home
Away from home, away from home
Cold and tired and all alone
Yes, I'm five hundred miles away from home
Lord, I'm still five hundred miles away from home
The lyrics of Reba McEntire's song Five Hundred Miles Away From Home tell the heart-wrenching story of a girl who is far from her family and struggling to survive. It is a song that captures the pain of being separated from loved ones and the longing to be reunited with them.
The first verse of the song reveals that the singer has received a letter from her mother, where she expresses how much they miss her and love her, urging her to come back home. However, the girl has nothing left but the clothes on her back and is already 500 miles away from home. She feels cold, tired and alone. The second verse speaks of her lost state, unsure of where she is going and where she has been. Nonetheless, she has a dream that she has been pursuing for so long.
The last stanza reveals that the girl is in dire straits, having gone for a while without food, just walking and waiting for someone to help her. She acknowledges that if she were lucky, she would be with her family at that moment. The song opens up the reality of life, the struggle of being separated from family, and the pain it brings. It is a message that relates to how we experience either doing something new or even leaving our homes and going abroad to start a new life.
Line by Line Meaning
Tear drops fell on mama's note
I received a note from my mama with teardrops on it
When I read the things she wrote
I read the contents of the note my mama wrote
She said, we miss you girl
My mama expressed how much she and others miss me
We love you come on home
My mama wants me to come back home because they love me
Well I didn't have to pack
I did not need to pack anything to leave
I had it all right on my back
I had everything I need to survive on my back
Now I'm five hundred miles away from home
I am currently 500 miles away from home
Away from home, away from home
I am away from home
Cold and tired and all alone
I am cold, tired, and lonely
Yes, I'm five hundred miles away from home
I am still 500 miles away from home
It's hard to tell the state I'm in
It is difficult to describe my condition
Where I'm going, where I've been
I am unsure of my current and past locations
But there's a dream I've been following so long
I have been pursuing a dream for a long time
If mama knew the things I've done
If my mama knew what I have been doing
She'd forgive them everyone
My mama would forgive all of my actions
But I'm still five hundred miles away from home
Nevertheless, I am still 500 miles away from home
Can't remember when I ate
I cannot recall the last time I ate
it's just thumb and walk and wait
I am hitchhiking, walking, and waiting to get where I need to go
And I'm still five hundred miles away from home
Unfortunately, I am still far from my destination
If my luck had been just right
If I had just the right amount of luck
I'd be with them all tonight
I would be able to spend the night with my loved ones
But I'm still five hundred miles away from home
Sadly, I am still 500 miles away from home
Lord, I'm still five hundred miles away from home
I pray to the Lord that I will eventually make it home, but currently, I am still very far away
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: HEDY WEST
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind