"Whoever's in New England" is a song written by Kendal Franceschi and Quentin Powers, and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

entertainer

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 in March 1986 as the first single and title track from the album ''

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 song is considered one of her signature and breakthrough singles.

Composition and legacy

The song was written in the voice of a Southern woman who believes her husband is having an affair during his business trips to Boston (the video clearly shows him having at least an emotional affair with a co-worker), but tells him she will stay with him. The song's composition and production were inspired in part by

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

's 1976 song "

Weekend in New England "Weekend in New England" is a song recorded by Barry Manilow for his fourth studio album, '' This One's for You'' (1976). Written by Randy Edelman, it was released as the second single from the album, and became a Top Ten hit on the ''Billboard ...

." In turn, the 2007

Sugarland Sugarland is an American country music duo founded in Atlanta, Georgia. The duo consists of singer-songwriters Jennifer Nettles (lead vocals) and Kristian Bush (vocals, guitar, mandolin). They were founded in 2002, at which point Kristen Hall (vo ...

hit "

Stay Stay may refer to: Places * Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US Law * Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment * Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tri ...

" was inspired by "Whoever's in New England", and tells the story from the perspective of the mistress. It was a career-making song for McEntire, not least because it was promoted by her first music video. Reaching number one in May 1986, it marked a major breakthrough for her. "Little Rock", the follow-up single, also hit number one, as did the ''Whoever's in New England'' album, her first album to be certified platinum. In 1987, McEntire won the

Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance was first awarded in 1965, to Dottie West. The award has had several minor name changes: *From 1965 to 1967 the award was known as Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Female *In 1 ...

for "Whoever's in New England", her first Grammy. Also thanks in part to the success of the song, McEntire won a number of awards from the

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

and

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

Music video

"Whoever's in New England" was McEntire's first music video and was directed and produced by Schock/Small. It was filmed in Boston, and featured footage of

Boston Public Garden The Public Garden, also known as Boston Public Garden, is a large park in the Downtown Boston, heart of Boston, Massachusetts, adjacent to Boston Common. It is a part of the Emerald Necklace system of parks, and is bounded by Charles Street (Bosto ...

, Trinity Church, and the

John Hancock Tower 200 Clarendon Street, previously John Hancock Tower and colloquially known as The Hancock, is a 60-story, skyscraper in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston. It is the tallest building in New England. The tower was designed by Henry N. Cobb of ...

. It begins with a shot of a packed suitcase, before revealing Reba singing the opening lines while staring out the window of her house. It is implied that she is married, and her husband is set to go on a required business trip. He, all of a sudden, reflects on his relationship with another woman, a co-worker of his. As Reba finishes the first chorus, her husband confronts her. She starts the second verse while in the car on the way to the airport, while more memories of the man and his other girlfriend playing in the snow are then seen. At the airport, the man is almost ready to go on his flight, but stops short when Reba confronts him. He leaves her at first, but all of a sudden, drops his suitcase and goes back to embrace Reba as others are heading to their gates.

Chart positions

References

{{Reba McEntire singles Songs about Boston 1986 singles Reba McEntire songs Song recordings produced by Jimmy Bowen MCA Records singles Songs written by Kendal Franceschi 1986 songs Songs about infidelity