Starting Over (Reba McEntire album)

Starting Over is the twentieth studio album by American country music artist Reba McEntire on October 3, 1995. It was a tribute to her roots and influences, featuring cover versions of songs by artists whom she admired growing up. Among the artists being covered were Dolly Parton, Donna Summer, Linda Ronstadt, The Supremes, Lee Greenwood, Crystal Gayle and Patti LaBelle.

Starting Over
Studio album by Reba McEntire
Released	October 3, 1995
Genre	Country
Length	41:10
Label	MCA
Producer	Tony Brown, Reba McEntire, Michael Omartian (exec.)
Reba McEntire chronology
Oklahoma Girl (1994) Starting Over (1995) What If It's You (1996)
Singles from Starting Over
"On My Own" Released: August 1995 "Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands" Released: November 1995 "Starting Over Again" Released: March 1996 "You Keep Me Hangin' On" Released: April 1996

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Los Angeles Times	[2]
The Guardian	[3]

McEntire called on Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride and Linda Davis to join her for "On My Own", the album's first single. Additionally, a CBS television special entitled Reba: Celebrating 20 Years featured McEntire performing songs from the album in concert interspersed with footage of her returning home to her family in Oklahoma. The special was eventually released separately on video. The album peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard country albums chart and at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. It was certified Platinum by the RIAA three months after its release.^[4]

The album featured only one Top 10 single, "Ring On Her Finger, Time On Her Hands", which had been previously a Top Ten country hit for Greenwood in the mid-1980s; McEntire's rendition was a Top Ten hit as well upon its 1996 release, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The third single, "Starting Over Again" was composed by Summer and her husband Bruce Sudano, and had originally been a number one hit for Parton in 1980; McEntire's version reached the top-twenty. The fourth and final single, a cover of the Supremes' hit "You Keep Me Hangin' On", was not released to country radio, but did reach number 2 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart.

Love to Infinity produced remixes of the track "You Keep Me Hangin' On" that were released to dance clubs in the US. As a result, this song spent two weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, McEntire's only hit on this survey.^[5]

The debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart for the week of October 21, 1995, selling 101,000 copies. It stayed at No. 1 for two consecutive weeks and remained in the Top Ten for 19 weeks. It debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart for the week of October 21, 1995, and remained in the Top Ten for two weeks.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Talking in Your Sleep"	Roger Cook, Bobby Wood	4:20
2.	"Please Come to Boston"	Dave Loggins	4:37
3.	"On My Own" (with Linda Davis, Martina McBride and Trisha Yearwood)	Carole Bayer Sager, Burt Bacharach	4:31
4.	"I Won't Mention It Again"	Cameron L. Mullins, Carolyn Jean Yates	4:11
5.	"You're No Good"	Clint Ballard Jr.	3:30
6.	"Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands"	Don Goodman, Pam Rose, Mary Ann Kennedy	4:10
7.	"Five Hundred Miles Away From Home"	Bobby Bare, Charlie Williams, Hedy West	4:21
8.	"Starting Over Again"	Bruce Sudano, Donna Summer	4:07
9.	"You Keep Me Hangin' On"	Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Edward Holland Jr.	3:22
10.	"By The Time I Get to Phoenix"	Jimmy Webb	3:59

Personnel

• Reba McEntire – lead vocals

Musicians

• Steve Nathan – keyboards, synthesizers, Wurlitzer electric piano
• Michael Omartian – acoustic piano, keyboards, arrangements, string arrangements
• Larry Byrom – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
• Dann Huff – electric guitar
• Mac McAnally – acoustic guitar
• Terry Crisp – steel guitar
• Leland Sklar – bass guitar
• Carlos Vega – drums
• Tom Roady – percussion
• Rob Hajacos – fiddle
• Chris Hicks – saxophone
• The Nashville String Machine – strings

Backing vocalists

• Bob Bailey
• Karla Bonoff
• Lisa Cochran
• Linda Davis
• Vicki Hampton
• Martina McBride
• Michael Mellett
• Kim Richey
• Chris Rodriguez
• Wendy Waldman
• Trisha Yearwood

Production

• Tony Brown – producer
• Reba McEntire – producer
• Michael Omartian – associate producer
• Terry Christian – engineer (1, 4, 5–8, 10), overdub recording
• Steve Tillisch – engineer (2, 3, 9)
• Grant Greene – assistant engineer (1, 4, 5–8, 10), overdub recording
• Pete Martinez – assistant engineer (2, 3, 9)
• King Williams – overdub assistant
• John Guess – mixing
• Derek Bason – mix assistant
• Marty Williams – mastering
• Cindy Owen – art direction, design
• Mark Tucker – photography
• Narvel Blackstock – management

Studios

• Recorded at Emerald Sound Studios, Sixteenth Avenue Sound and Javelina Recording Studios (Nashville, Tennessee).
• Mixed and Mastered at The Work Station (Nashville, Tennessee).

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1995) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[6] 134 Canadian Albums (RPM)[7] 34 Canadian Country Albums (RPM)[8] 1 US Billboard 200[9] 5 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[10] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1995) Position US Billboard 200[11] 160 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[12] 27 Chart (1996) Position US Billboard 200[13] 68 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[14] 11

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions
		US Country [15]	US Dance [16]	CAN Country
1995	"On My Own"	20	—	22[17]
	"Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands"	9	—	14[18]
1996	"Starting Over Again"	19	—	26[19]
	"You Keep Me Hangin' On"	—	2	—

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[4]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Starting Over at AllMusic
2. Lewis, Randy (October 1, 1995). "In Brief". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
3. Glaister, Dan (October 20, 1995). "Pop Releases". The Guardian.
4. "American album certifications – Reba Mc Entire – Starting Over". Recording Industry Association of America.
5. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco 1974–2003, (Record Research Inc.), page 172.
6. "Reba McEntire ARIA Chart history (complete) (1988 to 2024)". ARIA. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
7. "RPM Top Albums for October 30, 1995". RPM. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
8. "RPM Country Albums for November 6, 1995". RPM. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
9. "Reba McEntire Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
10. "Reba McEntire Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
11. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
12. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
13. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
14. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
15. "Reba McEntire Album & Song Chart History: Country Songs". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
16. "Reba McEntire Album & Song Chart History: Dance/Club Play Songs". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
17. "RPM Country Tracks for October 30, 1995". RPM. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
18. "RPM Country Tracks for February 5, 1996". RPM. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
19. "RPM Country Tracks for June 3, 1996". RPM. Retrieved February 9, 2011.