Reba McEntire - Sweet Sixteen

Reba McEntire's traditional country phase of the mid-eighties ended with this album, which signalled the start of a move to the pop-country sounds that brought Reba greater success in the nineties. Nevertheless, the production remains simple here so all but the most die-hard traditionalists can enjoy this.

Sweet Sixteen opens with Reba's brilliant cover of Cathy's Clown, the Everly Brothers classic, with the lyrics adjusted to present Cathy's perspective, giving it a slightly more upbeat feel.

You can hear an optimistic view of a sad situation in Till Love Comes Again. A slightly sad song is It Always Rains On Saturday. You Must Really Love Me, Say The Word, Walk On and New Love are all upbeat in mood although they vary in tempo.

This album, with so many upbeat songs and with even the sad songs not being especially sad, may lack the gravitas that a real tearjerker would give this album, but Reba has recorded plenty of those elsewhere. This is a good-time album with which to forget about all life's problems. ~ P D Harris

• Cathy's Clown
• Til Love Comes Again
• It Always Rains On Saturday
• Am I The Only One Who Cares
• Somebody Up There Likes Me
• You Must Really Love Me
• Say The Word
• Little Girl
• Walk On
• A New Love