Reba Nell McEntire (born on March 28, 1955 - Kiowa, Oklahoma, USA) is a Gra… Read Full Bio ↴Reba Nell McEntire (born on March 28, 1955 - Kiowa, Oklahoma, USA) is a Grammy Award-winning singer and one of the best-selling country music performers of all time, known for her pop-tinged ballads that include 24 #1 hits. She has issued 28 studio albums and 13 compilations, with more than 50 million records sold as of 2007.

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.

Why Do We Want
Reba McEntire Lyrics

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Some come for the music
Some for romance
You gotta be with the boy that brought you to the dance
Then across the room comes a casual glance
And you be making some dime even half the chance

Now some like to look
And some like to touch

All the things that they can't have
Way too much
Some like to get real close to the flame
Once you feel the heat
You know they're never the same

Why do we want
What we know we can't have
Why don't we want
What's in the palm of our hands
Why we always looking
At what's just out of our grasp
Why do we want
What we know we can't have

Well Susie was out driving her new corvette
She hadn't made that second payment yet
She rear ended a Semi
But not by choice
She was a rubbernecking a new Rolls Royce

Why do we want
What we know we can't have
Why don't we want
What's in the palm of our hands
Why we always looking
At what's just out of our grasp
Why do we want
What we know we can't have

Why do we want
What we know we can't have
Why don't we want
What's in the palm of our hands
Why we always looking
At what's just out of our grasp

Why do we want
What we know we can't have

Overall Meaning

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