''Stronger Than the Truth'' is the thirty-second studio album by American country music singer

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

. It was released on April 5, 2019, by

Big Machine Records Big Machine Records is an American independent record label, distributed by Universal Music Group. Specializing in country and pop artists, Big Machine is based on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee. The label was founded in September 2005 by fo ...

. The album was nominated for

Best Country Album The Grammy Award for Best Country Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the country music genre. Honors in ...

at the

62nd Grammy Awards The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 26, 2020, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from October 1, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Ali ...

Background

On September 18, 2018, McEntire posted a picture on

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stating that she was back in the studio, and told ''The Boot'' that; "It's gonna be probably the most country album I've ever recorded." She also described it as "real country", and was inspired by the music she grew up listening to." In a press release, McEntire explained her inspiration and song selection, saying, "The response to '' Sing It Now: Songs of Faith & Hope'' reinforced my love for recording songs that speak to the heart. So when I started selecting songs for this album, I stuck with that same formula – go with the songs that touch my heart, and hopefully when you hear me singing it, they'll touch yours too. That honesty once again revealed itself." The track "Cactus in a Coffee Can" was originally recorded by Jerry Kilgore on his 1999 album ''Love Trip''.

Promotion and release

The album was announced on February 11, 2019. The first promotional single from the album, "Stronger Than the Truth", was released on February 15, along with the album's pre-order. McEntire also announced that a new song from the album would be released each Friday leading up the album's April 5 release date. "No U in Oklahoma" was released as the second promotional single on February 22. On March 1, "In His Mind" was released as the third promotional single. "Tammy Wynette Kind of Pain" was released on March 8 as the fourth promotional single. The fifth promotional single, "Storm in a Shot Glass" was released on March 15. "Freedom" was released as the album's lead single on March 22. On March 28, the album became available for streaming exclusively on

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's website as a part of their First Listen series. McEntire also performed the album's single "Freedom" on the 54th

Academy of Country Music Awards The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The academy ...

on April 8, 2019

Commercial performance

''Stronger Than the Truth'' debuted at No. 4 on ''Billboard'' Top Country Albums, with 20,000 traditional albums sold (21,000 in equivalent album units). It is her 27th top 10 in the Top Country Albums chart, the first of which she achieved 33 years ago on April 19, 1986 with ''

Whoever's in New England ''Whoever's in New England'' is the tenth studio album of American country music artist Reba McEntire released on February 10, 1986, through MCA Nashville. It is her first #1 album on the Billboard country albums chart, producing two singles th ...

''. The album has sold 57,500 copies in the United States as of March 2020.

Critical reception

Rating it 4 out of 5 stars,

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

called it a "pure, unadorned country album" and "flinty even when it's tender". He also wrote that "She channels this empathetic toughness into a series of songs that plays like short stories...and that deft, subtle blend of music and message gives Stronger Than the Truth a lasting emotional resonance."

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from the album liner notes. Vocals *Wyatt Beard – background vocals *Buddy Cannon – background vocals *

Melonie Cannon Melonie Cannon is an American singer, blending country and bluegrass on her solo albums and session work. Willie Nelson said, "Melonie Cannon is one of the best singers I know." Biography Early years Cannon was born in Jackson, Tennessee, but her ...

– background vocals *

Sonya Isaacs Sonya Melissa Isaacs (born July 22, 1974) is an American country, bluegrass gospel and Christian music singer. Isaacs grew up near Morrow, Ohio, and graduated from Little Miami High School in 1992. Her maternal grandparents are Polish Jewish ...

– background vocals *Reba McEntire – lead vocals *Jenifer Wrinkle – background vocals Production and musicians *Jim "Moose" Brown – piano , B-3 organ , synthesizer *Buddy Cannon –

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

*Alex Carter – recording assistant *Tony Castle – recording, mixing *Taylor Chadwick – mastering assistant *Tony Creasman – drums, tambourine *Nick Davison – recording assistant *Shannon Finnegan – production coordination *Bobbi Geil – mastering assistant *Mike Johnson – steel guitar, dobro *Jeff King – electric guitar *Catherine Marx – piano *

Brent Mason Brent Mason (born July 13, 1959) is an American, Nashville, Tennessee-based recording studio guitarist and songwriter, performing primarily country music. Guitar World Magazine listed him as one of the "Top Ten Session Guitarists of All Time". ...

– acoustic guitar , electric guitar *Reba McEntire – producer *Andrew Mendelson – mastering *Jason Mott – recording assistant *Larry Paxton – bass *Megan Peterson – mastering assistant *Deanie Richardson – fiddle, viola *Bryce Roberts – recording assistant *Ned Singh – recording assistant *Joe Spivey – fiddle *Bobby Terry – acoustic guitar , banjo Other *Brett Freedman – hair, make-up *Loretta Harper – wardrobe *Allison Jones – A&R *Robby Klein – photography *Leslie Matthews – wardrobe *Justin McIntosh – art direction, graphic design, wardrobe *Janice Soled – copy coordinator *Brianna Steinitz – copy coordinator

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 2019 albums Albums produced by Buddy Cannon Big Machine Records albums Reba McEntire albums