"The Fear of Being Alone" is a song by American country music artist Reba McEntire, released on September 16, 1996, as the lead single to her 22nd studio album What If It's You (1996).
| "The Fear of Being Alone" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Reba McEntire | ||||
| from the album What If It's You | ||||
| B-side | "Never Had a Reason To" | |||
| Released | September 16, 1996[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1996 | |||
| Studio | Starstruck Studios (Nashville, TN) | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:04 | |||
| Label | MCA Nashville | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| Reba McEntire singles chronology | ||||
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The song was written by Walt Aldridge and Bruce Miller and produced by McEntire and John Guess; although he was featured as an engineer on McEntire's previous albums, this was the first time he was directly involved with the production. Recording for the song took place in Starstruck Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.
Critically acclaimed, "The Fear of Being Alone" was a success, giving McEntire her first top-five single in nearly two years.[2] It peaked at number two on the US Hot Country Songs chart while topping Canada's RPM Country Tracks.
Content
editThe song is about a woman and man, who is presumed to be a widower, going on a date. When the man tries to say that he loves her, she rejects it, saying he doesn't really love her and only loves her because he doesn't want to be alone.
Critical reception
editDeborah Evans Price from Billboard gave the single a positive review saying, "McEntire's vocal performance infuses the song with a mixture of hope and caution. Penned by Walt Aldridge and Bruce Miller, it's a strong song, and McEntire's vibrant performance should serve her well at country radio."[3] In his retrospective series "Every No. 1 Single of the Nineties", Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe critically praised the track, calling it McEntire's best single of the decade and one of the best country songs of all time.[4]
Music video
editThe accompanying music video for "The Fear of Being Alone" was directed by Dominic Orlando. It features McEntire singing at a recording studio, filmed at Starstruck Studios. The video debuted to CMT on October 6, 1996.[5] The following week on October 13, 1996, the video debuted to the now defunct The Nashville Network.
Charts
editOn October 5, 1996, "The Fear of Being Alone" debuted at number 41 on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, becoming both the Hot Shot Debut of the week and McEntire's highest debut on the chart, only being broken by "Strange" when it debuted at number 39 in 2009.[6] It peaked at number two on the chart the week of December 7, 1996, blocked by Alan Jackson's "Little Bitty". It spent ten weeks in the top ten and spent 20 weeks overall on the chart. It however reached number one on Radio & Records, topping the magazine's country chart on December 6, 1996. The song also reached as high as number eight on Cashbox's Country Singles chart before the magazine ceased publication in November 1996.
Charts
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Weekly chartsedit
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Year-end chartsedit
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Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ Price, Deborah Evans (October 19, 1996). "McEntire cuts new image". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 42. pp. 13, 20. ISSN 0006-2510 – via Google Books.
The first single, "The Fear of Being Alone," shipped to country radio Sept. 16...
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 227.
- ^ Evans Price, Deborah (September 28, 1996). "Reviews & Previews: Singles". Billboard. p. 86. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ Coyne, Kevin John (June 29, 2022). "Every No. 1 Single of the Nineties: Reba McEntire, "The Fear of Being Alone"". Country Universe. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
- ^ "Video Monitor: New Ons". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 42. Nielsen Business Media. October 19, 1996. p. 97. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved August 19, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Vol. 121, no. 16. Nielsen Business Media. April 25, 2009. p. 49. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved August 19, 2024 – via Google Books.
New track nets career-high solo bow previously set when "Fear of Being Alone" entered at No. 41 in 1996.
- ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 9886." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. December 2, 1996. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
- ^ "Reba McEntire Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "R&R Country Top 50". Radio & Records. No. 1175. December 6, 1996. p. 47.
- ^ "Cashbox Top 100 Country Singles". Cashbox. Vol. 60, no. 8. November 16, 1996. p. 20.
- ^ "RPM Top 100 Country Tracks of 1996". RPM. December 16, 1996. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
- ^ "Country: Top 96 of '96". Radio & Records. No. 1176. December 13, 1996. p. 57.
- ^ "Country: Best of '97". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 5, no. 52. December 26, 1997. p. 8.
