Customer Reviews

Just a Little Love

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Please note that this is a re-issue of a CD previously tithed I'm not that lonely.

Reba has, for a long time, been one the finest singers in country music and these live recordings provide yet further proof, as if that were needed. They were recorded at Doc Severinsen's Music Showplace in Oklahoma City. No date is given but it is likely to be around 1985, given the track selection. Around that time, Reba's recordings were firmly rooted in tradition and that is reflected in these recordings. Pop fans will find nothing of interest here.

Many of the songs are those that Reba recorded during her years on Mercury. Her first MCA album, Just a little love, is represented by five tracks and there is just one more recent song - Red roses won't work now, from Have I got a deal for you? It is, of course, possible that she was singing this in concert for a while before she recorded it in the studio.

There are three songs here that have never appeared on any of Reba's studio albums, these being Up where we belong (a cover of the Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes classic), Islands in the stream (a cover of the Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton classic) and Open road (Hot rod guitar), a song that I've not come across elsewhere. The first two are duets featuring Reba's brother Pake. Elsewhere, the album is filled with live versions of her early hits and album tracks including Can't even get the blues, You lift me up to heaven, Today all over again and Just a little love.

Reba's dedicated fans will no doubt want this anyway, but as an introduction to her early music, this is also excellent.

I bought this CD on vinyl when it first came out!! I loved it!! I thought it was pure magic and the cover is a young, beautiful shot of "wholesome" Reba, pensive and alluring. The title track is among the best ballads that Reba has ever done. Also noteworthy is "You Are Always There For Me"...a truly beautiful, haunting tune. "If Only" is exceptional. "Congratulations" is quirky but appealing!! "He Broke Your Mem'ry Last Night" exercises Reba's powerful vocal chords in a good work out!! "I'm Getting Over You" is better than anything she ever did in the 90s. The uptempo numbers are fun! Truly a work of art...as I said..pure magic came from this session in the recording studio!

Actually I wasn't born yet in 1984 but when you're a Reba McEntire fan you want all of her music. In discovering her older stuff I am knocked over by the songs she used to sing and wonder why she doesn't do stuff like this any more. Except for maybe two or three songs on here, this album is a lot better than any of her new stuff. I especially like "You Are Always There For Me" and "I'm Gettin' Over You". But also noteworthy is the title track and "He Broke Your Memry Last Night". I listen to this one all the time because I really like it.

This is a beautiful album!! Especially the song "Just a LIttle Love", a great tune that surpasses anything she did before or since. Its my favorite Reba song and one I wish she would sing at her concerts!! I remember going to a concert of hers back when this CD was released and she sang this...and oh, what a performance!!!

JUST A Little Love was Reba's first release after moving from Mercury/Polygram to MCA; this CD is the first time that I think we get a true grasp of her greatness. Country's forever queen gives a stunning release that, while MCA was not happy with, I think is one of her best, and the best, ever. She tenderly sings "Just A Little Love," a Top 5 hit in 1984, then rocks on "Poison Sugar." The best track is the third; the laid back feeling of "I'm Gettin Over You" really sounds more like a Hawaiian beat or something; who cares! Reba could sing the Sears catalog and I'd buy it.
But don't let that influence you---this CD really is great. Reba keeps the nice tracks coming with "You Are Always There For Me," then delivers another highlight with the fifth; the haunting "Every Second Someone Breaks A Heart" is downright chilling. Reba's amazing voice soars on the seventh track, the Top 15 single "He Broke Your Memory Last Night." Hitting those high notes on the last chorus like she does is why Reba was, is, and will always be the most talented and wonderful vocalist in the history of music, all genres.
Maybe you think I'm just way too into Reba and that this CD probably isn't that good.
Man are you missing out.
5 Stars!

She indeed made me cry on three songs: The title cut, "He Broke Your Memory Last Night" and "If Only" one of the saddest songs I've ever heard. Reba did everything brilliantly on this CD.

If Reba was going to go the pop route, this is a good example of it!! The songs are just the right blend of traditional country with contemporary production and her voice is great! Having good material always helps. This is one of her best! Enjoy!

Even the cover of the CD is beautiful!! Reba is not an especially attractive woman but made up correctly she is beautiful!! But this isn't what this review is about. Its about what is inside. What's inside is Reba doing what she does best and that is singing her heart out with good material and honest lyrics and tasteful production!! This one is a keeper!

Its weird because this album has a pop feel to it but yet the songs are good and the production is such that it doesn't sway so far out of country that you feel like you're listening to Pat Benatar or Britney Spears which is the case with most of Reba's latest albums. I really thought this one was out of this world!!

Just A Little Love was an album that may've been misunderstood by many of the country fans of 1984. It contained some great ballads, however also had many many pop songs. Poison Sugar and Every Second Someone Breaks A Heart were 2 extremely upbeat songs. These songs may've been accepted more by people today who aren't always looking for Traditional country. It's too bad, because it was a really great album. Actually, her producer Norro Wilson for this album rejoined her in 2003 to produce Room to Breathe. So if you liked her new album, give this one a try. I know you won't be disappointed by your decision.
This is also Reba's first album with MCA. It actually almost got her fired, because it was too pop for the new owner of MCA records Jimmy Bowen. He actually co-produced Reba's albums from 1985-1989. She convinced him that it wasn't her type of music either, and made a tape of Her Kind of Country, which led into her 2nd album of 1984 "My Kind of Country", which yielded 2 #1 hits, but that's a story for another review!