Since 1977, Reba McEntire has released more than 60 albums. While it’s hard to keep track of all of them, these are three of the most important records the country music superstar has ever released.
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‘Unlimited’
Unlimited is McEntire’s fifth studio album, but it is also one of her most significant. Out in 1982, Unlimited includes “Can’t Even Get The Blues“, McEntire’s first single to reach the top of the charts. The follow-up single, “You’re The First Time I’ve Thought About Leaving”, also hit No. 1.
Ironically, Jerry Kennedy, who produced Unlimited, did not want McEntire to record “Can’t Even Get The Blues”. She fought for the song, which is the last one she recorded for the project.
‘Rumor Has It’
Her 16th album, McEntire’s Rumor Has It came out in 1990. Her longevity already surpassing many of her peers, Rumor Has It shows that, in many ways, McEntire was just getting started. The best-selling album of her career at the time, McEntire co-produced Rumor Has It with Tony Brown.
Although none of the songs on Rumor Has It hit No. 1, the record does include “Fancy“, which is without question her most popular song.
“I always wanted to record it,” McEntire tells Country Living. “Then Tony Brown said, ‘What’s a song you’d like to do a remake of?’ And I said, ‘Fancy.’ He said, ‘That’s one of my favorite songs, too.’ And so we recorded it.”
Written by Bobbie Gentry, McEntire still closes all of her concerts by performing “Fancy”.
‘Whoever’s In New England’
In 1986, McEntire released Whoever’s In New England. Her tenth studio album, the record is also the first one to reach No. 1 on the albums chart. The title track also unintentionally launched an entirely new career for McEntire. It was while filming the video for “Whoever’s In New England”, her first, that she discovered her love of acting.
McEntire only released two singles from Whoever’s In New England, but they are both significant. In addition to the title track, McEntire also released “Little Rock”. Both songs became No. 1 hits for McEntire.
Although “Whoever’s In New England” became the start of an exciting new chapter for McEntire, she almost passed on the song entirely, thinking the song was “too pop” for her, per The Boot. Still, she relented, recording “Whoever’s In New England” in just 30 minutes.
“Everybody was knocked out,” her producer, Jimmy Bowen, remembers.
McEntire received her first Grammy nomination and her first win for “Whoever’s In New England”.
Photo by James Crump/WireImage
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