All the Women I Am is the twenty-eighth studio album by American country music singer Reba McEntire. It was released November 9, 2010, through the Valory Music Group, a division of Big Machine Records. Its first single is "Turn On the Radio", which was released in July and debuted at #54 and peaked at #1 in January 2011. The second single "If I Were a Boy" and was released in January 2011 and re-entered the Billboard Country Charts at #60, peaking at #22 in April 2011. The third single, "When Love Gets a Hold of You", was released on April 11, 2011, peaking at #40 in six weeks. McEntire's fourth single from the album was "Somebody's Chelsea," which peaked at #44.Wyland, Sarah (July 20, 2011). "Reba Worries About Kids' Work Ethic". GAC News & Notes. Scripps Networks. The album was produced by Dann Huff. As of 2012 it is her 1st studio album since 1984's Just a Little Love not to be certified.

Background The title of the album relates to the many roles that McEntire plays in her life. Asked once in an interview for a ranking, McEntire responded, "Mother first, wife second, and the rest just follow."Darden, Beville (September 4, 2009). "Reba Returns to Her Prime Passion". The Boot. Aol Music. The album features a cover of American recording artist Beyoncé's single "If I Were a Boy". McEntire's version became a viral video when she first performed the song on CMT's Unplugged earlier in 2010."Reba Reveals 'All The Women I Am' Album Artwork" . September 9, 2010. CountryMusicIsLove.com. Reba's next album was supposed to be a Christmas album but the song 'If I Were a Boy' changed McEntire's mind.

Critical reception

Upon its release, All the Women I Am received generally positive reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 74, based on 5 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".

Michael McCall with the Associated Press gave it a mixed review, saying "at age 55, McEntire remains a powerhouse who tends to err by trying harder than necessary to show her range". Jessica Phillips of Country Weekly gave the album four star rating, calling the release "[an] emotionally charged set of songs" and commended her cover of "If I Were A Boy", calling it a "soulful, countrified look at love from a male perspective".

Giving the release a 3½ star rating, Matt Bjorke of Roughstock, saying "All The Woman I Am had the potential to be a missed-opportunity after the first two tracks on the record but the album is saved by a meaty collection of songs that hopefully will find Reba retaining her current resurgence at radio". Allison Stewart with The Washington Post' compared the album to its predecessor, Keep On Loving You, saying that the album "tries harder, with worse results; McEntire and her collaborators aim for Carrie Underwood and too often wind up with warmed-over Shania Twain". On a positive note, she called her version of "If I Were a Boy" "fantastic". Thom Jurek with Allmusic gave the release a 2½ rating, saying "Everything, from songs and arrangements to production tries hard to sound on the contemporary edge, but comes off as underscoring that Underwood has the corner on this sound [...] ultimately, All the Women I Am falls flat; it feels awkward in its stylistic mimicry, and has no center".

Steve Morse with The Boston Globe called it "one of her best effort", saying "It blends hard-edged, modern country-rock with some profoundly tender ballad singing". Blake Boldt with "Engine 145" gave it a 3½ star rating, saying "Women is a crash course in dealing with emotional hurdles. There’s a great deal of value when McEntire sings about volatile emotions, and she builds a rapport with female listeners by admitting her own frailties".

Commercial performance The album debuted at number seven on the U.S. Billboard 200, and at number three on the Top Country Albums chart, selling 64,174 copies in its first week of release. The album has sold 347,000 copies in the US as of April 2015.

Track listing

Personnel Adapted from the album's liner notes.

Musicians Reba McEntire – lead vocals Charlie Judge – keyboards, synthesizers, strings, horns, Rhodes electric piano, clavinet, Hammond B3 organ, loop programming Gordon Mote – acoustic piano Steve Nathan – acoustic piano, Hammond B3 organ Jimmy Nichols – acoustic piano, Wurlitzer electric piano Tom Bukovac – electric guitar J.T. Corenflos – electric guitar Dann Huff – electric guitar, acoustic guitar, banjo Jerry McPherson – acoustic guitar, electric guitar Ilya Toshinsky – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, banjo, mandolin Bruce Bouton – steel guitar Paul Franklin – steel guitar, dobro Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass Shannon Forrest – drums Scott Williamson – drums David Huff – percussion, programming Eric Darken – percussion Mark Douthit – saxophone Stuart Duncan – fiddle Jonathan Yudkin – fiddle Vicki Hampton – backing vocals Joanna Janét – backing vocals Cherie Oakley – backing vocals Angela Primm – backing vocals Russell Terrell – backing vocals Jenifer Wrinkle – backing vocalsThe Nashville String Machine (Tracks 8 & 10)' Charlie Judge – string arrangements and conductor Carl Gorodetzky – string contractor Anthony LaMarchina and Carole Rabinowitz – cello Jim Grosjean, Betty Lamb and Kristin Wilkinson – viola Janet Darnall, Conni Ellisor, Stefan Petrescu, Pamela Sixfin, Alan Umstead, Cathy Umstead and Karen Winklemann – violin

Production Allison Jones – A&R Velvet Reid – A&R Dann Huff – producer Brent King – recording Steve Marcantonio – recording, mixing (3–10) Justin Niebank – recording, mixing (1, 2) Mark Hagen – additional recording Seth Morton – additional recording Drew Bollman – recording assistant, mix assistant (1, 2) Tristan Brock-Jones – recording assistant Steve Blackmon – mix assistant (3–10) David Huff – digital editing Christopher Rowe – digital editing Adam Ayan – mastering (1) at Gateway Mastering (Portland, Maine) Hank Williams – mastering (2–10) at MasterMix (Nashville, Tennessee) Mike "Frog" Griffith – production coordinator Whitney Sutton – copy coordinator Austin Hale – package design Aaron Rayburn – package design Josh Shearon – package design Russ Harrington – photography Justin Nolan Key – photography Brett Freedman – hair stylist, make-up Terry Gordon – wardrobe stylist

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2010) Peakposition

Year-end charts Chart (2010) Position US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 72 Chart (2011) Position US Billboard 200 167 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 31

Singles Year Single Peak chart positions US Country US CAN 2010 "Turn On the Radio" 1 53 67 2011 "If I Were a Boy" 22 123 — "When Love Gets a Hold of You" 40 — — "Somebody's Chelsea" 44 — — "—" denotes releases that did not chart

Release history Country Date United StatesNovember 9, 2010 CanadaNovember 9, 2010 AustraliaNovember 12, 2010"All The Women I Am (McEntire, Reba): music4me: play4me.com.au" . play4me.com.au. Retrieved September 20, 2011."Doubleday - All The Women I Am, Reba McEntire, Music in Australia" . Doubleday Australia. Retrieved September 20, 2011. United KingdomFebruary 20, 2012

References