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.
Runaway Heart
Reba McEntire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm rolling I'm tumbling, I'm falling apart
Cause I'll never, no I'll never find love
In his runaway heart
He's a fast rushing river I can't get across
Like an ocean of sadness, o'er which I am tossed
He never slows down, he's always ready to fly
Hello and goodbye
[Chorus]
No rope can hold down
He's not fit to be tied
Like the wildest of horses
Nobody can ride
Freedom's his distance
And the means to his end
So I'm giving up trying
Cause I'm just chasing, chasing the wind
[Chorus]
In his runaway heart
In Reba McEntire's song Runaway Heart, the singer expresses her frustration, confusion and ultimate acceptance over a man who is impossible to pin down. She compares him to a fast rushing river that she can't cross, and an ocean of sadness that she is constantly tossed over. No matter how hard she tries, she'll never find love in his runaway heart. He's always ready to fly and never slows down, leaving her feeling rejected and always saying hello and goodbye. She describes him as a wild horse that nobody can ride and his freedom is the means to his end. The singer ultimately gives up trying to hold on to him because she realizes that she's just chasing the wind.
The lyrics are a representation of the struggle of trying to find love with someone who is not ready to commit. The singer tries to hold on to him and make things work, but ultimately realizes that it's not worth the effort if the other person does not want the same thing. The comparison of the man to a wild horse and a river emphasizes the difficulty of the situation, and the metaphor of chasing the wind highlights the futility of trying to make things work when the other person is not willing.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm rolling I'm tumbling, I'm falling apart
I feel like my whole world is crumbling down because of the man with the runaway heart.
Cause I'll never, no I'll never find love
I know I won't find true love from him because he's too wild and unpredictable.
In his runaway heart
The cause of my heartbreak is the guy's reckless and impulsive heart.
He's a fast rushing river I can't get across
He's like a quick and powerful river that I can't seem to overcome or cross over.
Like an ocean of sadness, o'er which I am tossed
I feel lost and directionless like being lost at sea, thanks to his heartbreak.
He never slows down, he's always ready to fly
He never takes a break and is always ready to move on to the next thing, even though it means hurting others.
And when I get next to you it's just hello
The moments with him are fleeting and never meaningful because he's always on the go.
Hello and goodbye
It seems like every time we interact it's just a brief hello and eventual goodbye.
No rope can hold down
There's no restraining him or tying him down to commit to anything.
He's not fit to be tied
He's not suitable for a committed relationship because he's too wild and unpredictable.
Like the wildest of horses
He's like a wild horse that nobody can control, always doing what he wants to do despite the consequences.
Nobody can ride
Nobody can control or tame him since he's too independent and unrestrained.
Freedom's his distance
He values his freedom over anything else and will run away or avoid anything that tries to hinder it.
And the means to his end
His ultimate goal is to maintain his freedom, and he'll do anything to achieve it.
So I'm giving up trying
I've given up on trying to change him or win his love since it's a lost cause.
Cause I'm just chasing, chasing the wind
My efforts to catch him are futile and pointless, like trying to catch the wind.
In his runaway heart
Once again, my heartbreak is due to the guy's reckless and impulsive heart.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PAUL HARRISON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind