| Room To Breathe - Reba McEntire | |
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Reviewed by Matt Bjorke
It's been four plus years since Reba McEntire has released a complete album (2001 saw the release of her Greatest Hits Vol 3). While Reba may have been gone from the country charts with her songs, she has been anything buy stagnant. Taking time away from her music career, Reba joined the Broadway production of Annie Get Your Gun and starred in Reba, the TV series on the WB Network that is now in its third season. All along, Reba still planned on returning "home" to country music. With the release of Room To Breathe, Reba not only returns home, she triumphantly does so. With 12 songs, Room To Breathe is a competent collection of well written, fun and emotional tunes. In essence, it's a return to form for Reba and should prove to be a critical and commercial success.
"Secret" is the lead off track to this eclectic collection of songs and what a good one it is. Written by Lisa Brokop, Cyril Rawson and Ron Hardin, this song is about a woman who decides to put her baby boy up for adoption because she's too young to care for him only to regret that "secret" the rest of her live.
Written by DreamWorks Records Roxie Dean, Curb's Amy Dalley and Donnie Baker, "My Sister" is a song about adult sisters who, although they're grown up, still tell each other their personal details and share a sisterly bond that is much more than the average friendship.
"Moving Oleta" is a heart-wrenching song that deals with the strain that Alzheimer's disease puts on a marriage. It has a similar theme to Tim Rushlow's "She Misses Him" but this time it's about how the husband deals with the disease. The man in the song is brittle and old but still loves his wife like it was the first time he met her, the only problem is she doesn't even know who he is; "Moving Oleta was the hardest thing he had ever done" sings Reba at the end of the song.
Anyone that's lost their husband or wife will certainly relate to "He Gets That From Me." Written by Steven Dale Jones ("One More Day") and Philip White ("I'm Moving On"), this moving song loving refers to the way a son reminds the mother of both herself and her lost husband. With a memorable melody and a great vocal delivery by Reba, this track is a likely candidate to be a future single.
The first single from the album, "I'm Gonna Take That Mountain," is already a Top 15 hit for Reba and it has the distinction of being the "most added song at radio by a female country artist" in 2003. With its rootsy sound, the song has won praises from both traditional and modern country music fans alike. The song is an anthem that talks about overcoming struggles that come along in life, be it heartache or anything else.
The title track, "Room To Breathe," is written by D. Vincent Williams (the co-writer for "I'm Movin' On") and Vicky McGehee. It's a beautiful ballad (as most of D. Vincent's songs are) that finds Reba singing about feeling suffocated in a relationship. So in order to sort things out she asks her boyfriend for some "Room to breathe, a little time to think, to make sure I don't lose me, I need room to breathe." This is another song that sounds like a hit.
Previously recorded by Mark Wills on his overlooked Loving Every Minute CD, "Somebody" is one of those songs that seems to be nothing special on the surface but when you listen to it again, its message gets inside you. It's a song that finds a waitress and patron talking about how they're both looking for "somebody" to love and eventually realize that the somebody they're looking for is staring at them.
Perhaps the most special song on Room To Breathe is the heart-breaking duet with Vince Gill called "It Just Has To Be This Way." Written by hit makers Liz Hengber, James Dean Hicks and Mercury Nashville recording artist Anthony Smith, the song tells a story about a couple that decides the best way to go on from their break-up is to ignore each other and move on. This sounds like a huge hit that will be winning a ton of awards should it get released to radio. It reminds me of their similar "The Heart Won't Lie" single from years ago.
When you add up the performances throughout the duration of Room To Breathe, Reba has created her best and most self-assured album yet. With truly something for every country fan, the album is sure to become a big hit with old and new fans alike.
Song List:
Album cover used with permission of MCA Nashville.
Sound clips courtesy of Reba's official website.
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