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.
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Reba McEntire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it may never end
So cry no more on the shore, a dream
Will take us out to sea
Forever more, forever more
Close your eyes and dream
And you can be with me
Long forgotten now
We're all alone, we're all alone
Close the window, calm the light
And it will be all right
No need to bother now
Let it out, let it all begin
And learn how to pretend
Repetido ya, lo antiguo pasará
Fue amor, amantes y dolor
Con el viento al volar
Abrázame, oh, abrázame
Sin mirar vuelve a vivir
Ambos soñando así
Sin importarnos más
Deja ya, regresa a vivir
Empieza a disfrutar
Solo yo, sola tú
Close the window, calm the light
Ambos soñando así
Sin importarnos más
Let it out, let it all begin
Empieza a disfrutar, amor
Oh-oh, my dear
All's forgotten now, my love
Oh, solo tú
Y yo
In Reba McEntire's song, "Why Do We Want What We Know We Can't Have," the lyrics explore a common human experience of desiring the things that are just out of reach. The song begins by discussing the reasons why people attend social functions, such as dances or parties, and how sometimes one can become distracted by someone who is not their original intended partner. The lyrics suggest that people like to look and touch things that they can't have, which often leads to people becoming too close to things that can harm them, like flames.
The lyrics then shift to a story about a woman named Susie, who is driving a new corvette but becomes distracted by a Rolls Royce, causing her to rear-end a semi. This story serves as a metaphor for the behavior described earlier in the song. Despite Susie having something new and shiny, her desire for the Rolls Royce caused her to overlook what was already in her possession, leading to her getting into an accident. The chorus then repeats the question, "Why do we want what we know we can't have?"
Overall, the song explores the human tendency to constantly pursue things that are out of reach, despite the potential consequences. The lyrics suggest that it is important to focus on what we have in the present moment rather than constantly reaching for something that may not be attainable.
Line by Line Meaning
Some come for the music
People attend events for different reasons
Some for romance
Some people come to find love
You gotta be with the boy that brought you to the dance
Be loyal to the person who brought you here
Then across the room comes a casual glance
But sometimes someone else catches your eye
And you be making some dime even half the chance
And you might consider taking a chance on them
Now some like to look
Some people prefer to look from afar
And some like to touch
While others prefer to get up close and personal
All the things that they can't have
But they desire things they know they can't possess
Way too much
They want it all, and it's excessive
Some like to get real close to the flame
Some people like to live dangerously
Once you feel the heat
When they experience the dangerous situation
You know they're never the same
They change and are never quite the same again
Why do we want
Why do we desire
What we know we can't have
Things that we are aware we cannot obtain
Why don't we want
Why don't we desire
What's in the palm of our hands
The things that are readily available to us
Why we always looking
Why are we always searching for
At what's just out of our grasp
Things that are just beyond our reach
Well Susie was out driving her new corvette
An example of how desire can be dangerous or distracting
She hadn't made that second payment yet
A detail to emphasize the newness and cost of the car
She rear ended a Semi
A consequence of being distracted
But not by choice
She didn't intentionally crash or cause the accident
She was rubbernecking a new Rolls Royce
She was looking at a fancy car that was out of her reach or budget
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: William R. Royce Scaggs
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
munchkin land
I would have waited forever
If I'd known that you'd be here
We could have shared our lives together
And held each other close all through the years
But I've met someone before you
And my heart just couldn't wait
So no matter how much I adore you
I've got to stand behind the promise that I made
Where were you
When I could have loved you
Where were you
When I gave my heart away
All my life I've been dreaming of you
You came along one promise too late
You came along one promise too late
I won't say that I'm sorry that I met you
I can't have you but I never will forget you
Where were you
When I could have loved you
Where were you
When I gave my heart away
All my life I've been dreaming of you
You came along one promise too late
You came along one promise too late
Where were you
When I could have loved you
Where were you
When I gave my heart away
All my life I've been dreaming of you
You came along one promise too late
You came along one promise too late
Debra Beasley
In 1986, I was living this song. It is still one of my favorites.
Mark L.
1988 for me
Boxer Boxer
Love reba
Issac Ovu
Hello debra .. how are you doing
Natalie Scanlon
Ten yrs ago it was my life song, ten yrs later, still feel the same
eula beaver
She has a voice like no other!
Troy Dixson
Diff
Troy Dixson
So
peasblossom1973
This song always brings tears to my eyes. Reba is the greatest.
Cats&Company
I know what you mean! I had one of these, long ago but still in my mind! Never to forget!