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.
The Stairs
Reba McEntire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She hears his car as he pulls in the drive.
Dinner's still waiting from hours before.
She knows he's been drinking when he walks through the door.
In anger he strikes out and she starts to cry.
How much more can she take, how much more can
She lie.
But it hasn't happened since she don't know when.
Was it in spring when she packed up the kids, or
Maybe in winter with his job on the skids.
Oh but just like before she'll have to
Pretend that she fell down the stairs again.
A short time ago, she started
A job, serving chicken fried steak and corn on the cob.
She started out shy, but she ended up sure,
That a ticket to anywhere could be the cure.
But he couldn't handle her change for the better.
She tried to leave him , but he wouldn't let her.
He says he's sorry, he'd never mean it.
He swears it won't happen again. But she's so confused,
She wants to believe it. She just wants this nightmare to end.
And she fell down the stair again.
But it hasn't happened since she don't know when.
Was it in spring when she packed up the kids, or
Maybe in winter with his job on the skids.
Oh but just like before she'll have to pretend
That she fell down the stairs again.
"The Stairs" is a haunting country ballad by Reba McEntire that addresses the issue of domestic violence. The singer of the song is a woman who is repeatedly physically abused by her partner, who returns home drunk and angry. The first stanza sets the scene, with the woman waiting for her partner to come home, only to be met with violence. The lyrics "How much more can she take, how much more can she lie" reveal her desperation and the fact that she is not telling her friends and family what is going on.
The second stanza talks about how the woman has fallen down the stairs again, possibly as a result of her partner's drunken violence. The song suggests that this has happened before, but each time she is forced to pretend it was an accident. The repetitive nature of this is particularly poignant as it highlights the cyclical nature of domestic violence.
The final stanza of the song reveals that the woman has started a new job, and has hopes of a better life. However, her partner becomes jealous and cannot handle her newfound confidence. He refuses to let her leave him and apologises for the violence, but the woman is unsure whether to believe him. The song ends with her falling down the stairs again, and the suggestion that the cycle will just continue.
Overall, "The Stairs" is a powerful song that highlights the issue of domestic violence and the toll it takes on individuals. It communicates a sense of helplessness and resignation, but also hints at the possibility of hope and escape.
Line by Line Meaning
She looks at the clock, it's a quarter past nine.
The woman checks the time and sees that it's already 9:15.
She hears his car as he pulls in the drive.
The woman hears the sound of her partner's car as he arrives home.
Dinner's still waiting from hours before.
The dinner that the woman cooked earlier is still uneaten as nobody has come home to eat it yet.
She knows he's been drinking when he walks through the door.
The woman can tell that her partner has been drinking because of the way he walks through the door.
In anger he strikes out and she starts to cry.
The man reacts aggressively and hits the woman, causing her to cry.
How much more can she take, how much more can she lie.
The woman is questioning how much longer she can endure the situation and continue to lie about her injuries.
And she fell down the stairs again.
The woman has fallen down the stairs due to the abuse she is suffering from her partner.
But it hasn't happened since she don't know when.
The woman is uncertain about when the last time she fell down the stairs was.
Was it in spring when she packed up the kids, or maybe in winter with his job on the skids.
The woman remembers some potentially significant events that could have led to her falling down the stairs, such as moving out with her children or her partner losing his job.
Oh but just like before she'll have to pretend that she fell down the stairs again.
The woman is forced to lie and pretend that she fell down the stairs again, just like she has done before to cover up the abuse she has suffered.
A short time ago, she started a job, serving chicken fried steak and corn on the cob.
Recently, the woman started working at a restaurant and was serving food such as chicken fried steak and corn on the cob.
She started out shy, but she ended up sure, that a ticket to anywhere could be the cure.
At first, the woman lacked confidence but eventually realized that a way out of her abusive situation could be to leave town.
But he couldn't handle her change for the better.
The man could not accept the woman's positive changes in her personality and work life.
She tried to leave him, but he wouldn't let her.
The woman attempted to leave her abusive partner, but he did not allow her to.
He says he's sorry, he'd never mean it.
The abuser apologizes and claims that he did not intend to hurt her.
He swears it won't happen again. But she's so confused, she wants to believe it. She just wants this nightmare to end.
Despite her confusion, the woman wants to believe her partner's promises that the abuse will not happen again because she just wants to escape the nightmare she is living in.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DAVE ROBERTS, PAMELA HAYES BROWN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind