Ahhh, the early 90's, when Reba's popularity reached a fever pitch. These years bring us her most popular and well known videos...11 of them. This is the golden era. If you watch Reba videos from any time period, this should probably be it.
Order: 7
Title: "You Lie"
Album: Rumor Has It (1990)
Song Premise: A woman knows her lover is continuing their relationship to not upset his girlfriend even though he is truly unhappy.
Video Premise: Reba sings in a barn...in black and white.
Comments: Okay, I couldn't actually find this video online, but I know I've seen it before and if I recall correctly, it's very much like the video for "The Last One to Know", so in other words, nothing special or memorable.
Order: 8Title: "Rumor Has It"
Album: Rumor Has It (1990)
Song Premise: According to the rumors in a small town, a woman's husband is having an affair.
Video Premise: Reba sings in a warehouse with a random piano.
Comments: For one of the sparse videos, I actually liked this one. It did a lot of interesting things with shadows, angles, and dissolves. Still, it gets boring after awhile.
Order: 9
Title: "Fancy"
Album: Rumor Has It (1990)
Song Premise: A destitute mother pushes her young daughter into prostitution, a life in which she flourishes.
Video Premise: It begins with a cabbie driving Fancy Rae Baker (played by Reba, of course) and praising her film and music career. He drops her off a rundown shack where she begins flashing back to her eighteenth summer when her mother pushed her into prostitution. There is then a literal translation of the lyrics as Fancy is made over with make up and a satin dancing dress. Her mother hands her a locket, but Fancy resents her mother's plan and drops the locket on the ground before getting into the car of an unknown man. Present Fancy then finds the locket left in a drawer and places it on her mother's grave. As she drives away, the camera pans back onto a sign that states the house will be turned into a home for runaways.
Comments: Here we go. This is the video that really started it all. It's complex and clocks in at just over six minutes, so it's Reba's first official mini movie. It seems like one I would love, but eh, it's just not...something. Gritty enough, maybe? I mean, all you see is Fancy's mom putting make up on her and pushing her out the door. Then....nothing. I just think there could be more to it.
Order: 10Title: "For My Broken Heart"
Album: For My Broken Heart (1991)
Song Premise: A woman mourns after her lover moves out of the house.
Video Premise: Reba and three other women sing the lyrics of the song while alone. The next day, the four women cross paths, unknowing of each other's pain.
Comments: I really like this video. It's for the same reasons I like Miley Cyrus's "7 Things" video. It shows multiple people sharing the meaning of the song. Not just Reba is feeling it. Everybody can.
Order: 11
Title: "Is There Life Out There"
Album: For My Broken Heart (1991)
Song Premise: A woman who married at 20 wants more out of life then being a wife and mother.
Video Premise: Reba is a waitress going through a quasi midlife crisis. She's attending college classes and working towards her degree while struggling to be good wife and mother. However, through determination she graduates.
Comments: I know this is one Reba is known for, but I hate it. It feels like a movie of the week. In fact, I'm not so sure it wasn't a movie of the week. Hmmm...I like Huey Lewis though.
Order: 12Title: "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia"
Album: For My Broken Heart (1991)
Song Premise: An epic tale of a young woman who’s brother is convicted of murdering his unfaithful wife even though it’s his sister who is the murderer.
Video Premise: An aged woman (played by Reba) tells details of the Brody murder trial to a reporter. Her brother, Raymond, was married to a tramp who began fooling around with Reba's fiancee, so she killed them both and her brother took the fall. Through flashbacks and headlines, she confesses to the murders.
Comments: Another one of Reba's epics. Again, I say meh. Though this is better than "Fancy".
Order: 13
Title: "If I Had Only Known"
Album: For My Broken Heart (1991)
Song Premise: A woman thinks about how she would change things if she had known she would lose the person she loved.
Video Premise: Reba sings on a farm while nearby children play and the footage is intercut with terminally ill children.
Comments: Okay, I get it. You can stop. I'm always disappointed when I associate a song with romantic love and the video shows me children. That's just my narrow minded preference.
Order: 14Title: "Take it Back"
Album: It's Your Call (1992)
Song Premise: A woman is angry at a man's deceiving ways.
Video Premise: In a courtroom, a man is on trial (for being an asshole, I guess). Reba enters and begins berating him as the jurors and other folk join in. Then there's actual choreography...ugh.
Comments: So far, Reba hasn't done many videos to fast songs, but after the saccharine shit that was "If I Had Only Known", I need this fluff and I imagine others did as well. However, I feel my IQ has dropped after watching it.
Order: 15
Title: "The Heart Won't Lie" (with Vince Gill)
Album: It's Your Call (1992)
Song Premise: Two people realize they still love each other, despite their public denial.
Video Premise: So, if An Officer and a Gentleman was music video, this would be it. Reba joins the Navy, and immediately, Vince Gill, (who plays her commanding officer) is attracted to her. But to hide his attraction, he is particularly rough on her during the training montages. Despite all that, they begin dating but force themselves to part after graduation.
Comments: I've never really cared for this song, but the video is very entertaining. I'm pretty sure it's inaccurate in every way possible. And I love the inappropriateness. Sometimes you get the perfect dose of cheese in a video, and this is one that delivers.
Order: 16Title: "It's Your Call
Album: It's Your Call (1992)
Song Premise: A wife answers a phone call from her husband's mistress and forces him to make a choice.
Video Premise: Reba sings on a stage...with those damn track lights.
Comments: Another nothing video. Although, coming off of all those epics, you can't really blame her.
Order: 17
Title: "Does He Love You" (with Linda Davis)
Album: Reba McEntire: Greatest Hits Vol. 2 (1993)
Song Premise: The wife and her husband’s mistress wonder who their man really loves.
Video Premise: Reba and Linda are at a Hollywood extravaganza. Linda is having and affair with Reba's husband, and she knows all about it. They exchange jealous looks on the red carpet. Tired of being cheated on, Reba buys a bomb and plants it on her husband's boats while he and Linda are on it. The boat explodes...but the whole thing turns out to be a movie directed by Rob Reiner.
Comments: Out of Reba's classic videos, this one is probably my favorite. The song probably has a lot to with it, I'm sure. I never watched Dynasty, but if it was anything like this, I might start. It's just fun and satirizes the seriousness and huge production values Reba puts into her videos. I think a more subtle and serious version could be made, but...this is awesome on its own.
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