Martina McBride Album Series Rankdowns

[bboat11]

Go on and be that way. 

Slam that door, 

Make a scene,

 Yell some more.

 Come on, let’s have it out.

 Have your say,

 ‘Cause with a love this strong, 

Baby, it’s okay 

For you to be that way.

4. "Be That Way"

Track #3

Runtime: 3:34

Songwriters: Bob DiPiero, Stephony Smith

Vocal Range: E♭3 - E♭5



Total: 75
Average: 4.41
Std Dev: 2.69

BlueShades874 - 1
kansasmeetsmo - 1
BackwoodsBarbie - 2
born - 2
bboat11 - 3
dub - 3
Cody Wants Out... - 3
castleoblivion26 - 4
someguy - 4
fearlessarrow - 4
.indulgecountry - 5
Kanenrá:ke - 5
cerulean - 5
@adam1995 - 6
codyj100 - 7
tim - 9
d3vin44 - 11

Leo ✔


I know that this one just saw some #1 predictions thanks to my revelation of the fact that the #1 was an underdog, but unfortunately this song was the wrong underdog. "Be That Way" made it up to #3 a few times, but in reality it never even came close to leaving the 3rd or 4th positions. Still, it had an impressive turnout! "Be That Way" was so well-liked that even many of the people who put it in their top 5 were in the bottom-half of its rankings! 13 out of 17 posters put it in their top 5s, but only 2 of them put it at #1.

"Be That Way" is one of Martina's most iconic album tracks, so it is no surprise to me to see it being the highest-placing album track. Just about anyone who knows anything about Martina's career would tell you that this should have been a single. The melody is challenging yet pleasant, and once again allows Martina to tackle a higher-than-usual range with dexterity and ferocity. This song is perfect for her voice, yet somehow also offers a different sound from what people have come to expect from her. But unlike "I Don't Want To See You Again", we actually have a live version to study!!








Looks like she performed this song on the Opry in 1997! And she killed it too! You can tell in the live version that this is a higher song for her, but it honestly sounds perfect to my ears...

[bboat11]

Despite the fact that it didn't compete for the top spot, this song's placement in this rankdown is incredible because of how iconic the album is. Many of these album tracks are among most fans' favorites from her entire career, but this one rose above them all to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with 4 of her biggest hits in the top 5, and even managed to beat one of them! The 3 songs ahead of this one are 3 of her most career-defining songs.

We are left with "A Broken Wing", "Wrong Again", and "Whatever You Say". Two #1 hits and a #2 hit that should have been a #1. Two of them fought it out for #1 for the entire submission process, but ultimately ended up tying just behind the unexpected surprise winner. 1 of them was safe at #1 up until the last moment. One of them was #1 for the majority of the submission process, but ended up not being able to stay. And one of them was carried to #1 right when it mattered most, by the final submission, to take the crown.

Anyone want to change their predictions for which order these will be eliminated in?  The top 3 reveal will come sometime later, when I feel there are more people online!

[d3vin44]

You said each song left had 1 person put it outside the top 10. I'm that 1 person on 2 of the 4 songs. Whoops! 

[bboat11]

Oct 27, 2017 14:08:39 GMT -5 d3vin44 said:

You said each song left had 1 person put it outside the top 10. I'm that 1 person on 2 of the 4 songs. Whoops! 

Lol don't you feel curmudgeonly!

[kansasmeetsmo]

If it's a surprise win, Wrong Again has to be number. If not I really wouldn't consider it a surprise at all.

[d3vin44]

3. Wrong Again
2. Broken Wing
1. Whatever You Say

[bboat11]

Oct 27, 2017 14:13:53 GMT -5 kansasmeetsmo said:

If it's a surprise win, Wrong Again has to be number. If not I really wouldn't consider it a surprise at all.

I mean, I'm not surprised that any of them were #1 contenders. So I wouldn't say that any of them are necessarily a surprise if you just consider the songs themselves.

The surprise comes from the fact that the winner flew up to #1 at the last second to beat the 2 songs that had been duking it out for #1! And it was an incredibly close battle between all of them, so the answer definitely cannot be figured out with logical reasoning based on which songs are perceived to be bigger hits

[BlueShades874]

I really hope Wrong Again wins. I absolutely love that song and feel that it's very underrated among her big hits. I like A Broken Wing, but I feel over the course of the years it's been played a little too much for my liking. I never have been too big on Whatever You Say. Of her top ten hits, this is one of my least favorites. Not that it's a bad song by any means, just not one that I go out of my way to listen to at all.

[BackwoodsBarbie]

Be That Way is pure perfection. Melody, instrumentation, lyrics and especially the way she sings it - simply amazing.

I probably won't be around when the winner will be announced so my last thoughts are - I hope Wrong Again wins!

[born]

I'm heartbroken, I really liked that one :(

Prediction:
1. A Broken Wing
2. Wrong Again
3. Whatever You Say

[.indulgecountry]

As long as "A Broken Wing" doesn't win, I'll be happy. Love the other two. <3

[Cody Wants Out...]

3. Whatever You Say
2. A Broken Wing
1. Wrong Again

[castleoblivion26]

Whatever You Say for the win!

[someguy]

Love them all, but I'm definitely pulling for "Wrong Again".

[bboat11]

Howdy folks! I ended up waiting TOO long yesterday... A bunch of my friends came over just after lunch time, and then didn't leave until late at night! Lol but now I am here, and I am ready to reveal the top 3 Is anybody else here and ready???

castleoblivion26 @adam1995 BlueShades874 dub Kanenrá:ke kansasmeetsmo someguy tim fearlessarrow Cody Wants Out... d3vin44 .indulgecountry BackwoodsBarbie cerulean codyj100 born Leo ✔

[castleoblivion26]

I am out of town but can respond a little on my phone. Excited to see how this ends!

[.indulgecountry]

I'm leaving for Maren Morris in about half an hour so do it quick! :kii:

[someguy]

I'm on my phone too, but go for it!

[bboat11]

Oct 28, 2017 18:26:39 GMT -5 .indulgecountry said:

I'm leaving for Maren Morris in about half an hour so do it quick!

LMAO it takes me like a half hour to type up just one of these reveal posts... Looks like you're just gonna have to wait longer than everybody else to see the top 2

[.indulgecountry]

Oct 28, 2017 18:29:46 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

Oct 28, 2017 18:26:39 GMT -5 .indulgecountry said:

I'm leaving for Maren Morris in about half an hour so do it quick!

LMAO it takes me like a half hour to type up just one of these reveal posts... Looks like you're just gonna have to wait longer than everybody else to see the top 2

And I thought it took me awhile to type up the reveals on mine.

[bboat11]

After all my heart had put me through,
I knew that it was safe with you
And what we had would never end.
Wrong again.

3. "Wrong Again"

Track #5
Runtime: 3:15
Songwriters: Cynthia Weil, Tommy Lee James
Vocal Range: F3 - B4

Total: 67
Average: 3.94
Std Dev: 2.99

someguy - 1
fearlessarrow - 1
BackwoodsBarbie - 1
Cody Wants Out... - 2
castleoblivion26 - 2
BlueShades874 - 2
kansasmeetsmo - 2
@adam1995 - 3
dub - 4
Kanenrá:ke - 4
tim - 4
.indulgecountry - 4
codyj100 - 5
bboat11 - 6
born - 6
cerulean - 7
d3vin44 - 13

Leo ✔

Coming in at #3, many of you are wrong again for predicting this would be the underdog to take it all! In fact, this song was not an underdog in any way, shape, or form. This song occupied the penthouse for almost 1/2 the submission process, especially in the second half! It was our #1 right up until the last submission, when born 's #6 ranking of this proved to be just fatal enough to push it back into a tie with #2. The reason this one lost the tie and got pushed back to #3 is because it ONLY had 3 #1 rankings...our next elimination has 5!

"Wrong Again" is one of my favorite Martina songs of all time. The fact that I am one of the lowest voters for this is absolutely crazy, because I love it SO MUCH!!! People may be surprised to learn that this is one of Martina's least challenging songs in terms of vocal range. She only goes up to a B4 with this song. I was shocked when I discovered that, because she absolutely slays every aspect of this vocal performance, and makes it sound every bit as epic as all her big power ballads. (Also, random tidbit, but the acoustic version of this song that you may or may not know about is actually a half step higher, with a vocal range of F#3 - C5!) I love all the vocal tricks she does in this song though, especially cracking her voice on most of the words that start with an "h" in the choruses.

This song also features one of the most epic guitar solos in all of Martina's discography. On top of everything though, the lyrics shine through as the best part of this whole song. The hook for this song is absolutely brilliant! What I mean specifically is the way she says a positive statement, only to negate the whole thing by saying, "Wrong again." Then she does it again. There seems to be hope, things are looking up, but oh no, wrong again. But then finally in the 3rd chorus when it seems like all hope is lost and she will be miserable forever, she turns the phrase once again, giving the song a happy ending. What a perfect yet simple way to depict a failing relationship and the way it destroys hearts along the way.

I was pretty disappointed when this song got tanked back to #3 at the last second, because even though I ranked both of the remaining 2 songs higher, I was so happy to see this song getting the recognition it deserved! It seems to be one of her hits that gets the least amount of attention. I cannot believe it was a #1 hit, because it doesn't seem to have been nearly as impactful as many of her other top 10s that didn't even make it to #1. This song DESERVES more attention than it gets, for sure.

She has never performed this song frequently (like I said, it's a forgotten hit), but it has made more appearances in recent years. Here is a semi-recent performance from 2009-ish!

[castleoblivion26]

Sad that this is out at #3 but so happy Whatever You Say is top 2 at least. Would love to see that be #1 over A Broken Wing!

[codyj100]

Okay, NOW I am excited. I believe my top two are still in.... 

[fearlessarrow]

I was hoping "Wrong Again" could be #1... Oh well, the race for #1 was super competitive so I'm not completely surprised this ended up at #3. 

[bboat11]

Oct 28, 2017 20:02:29 GMT -5 codyj100 said:

Okay, NOW I am excited. I believe my top two are still in.... 

Your remaining songs are 1 and 3. "Happy Girl" was your #2

[Cody Wants Out...]

My #1 actually has a chance at winning this?

[codyj100]

Oct 28, 2017 20:19:02 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

Oct 28, 2017 20:02:29 GMT -5 codyj100 said:

Okay, NOW I am excited. I believe my top two are still in.... 

Your remaining songs are 1 and 3. "Happy Girl" was your #2

Oh yeah...Thank you for letting me know. The more I listen to it, my #3 should've been #1. But, we'll see how it pans out.

[Leo ✔]

Inb4 a rant of country posters against Jim
#DamnPopPosters

[bboat11]

So while I am tying up the final reveal, y'all should watch this live video I found of Martina performing our final 2 back to back! This was filmed at the 2001 Farm Aid. I have no idea what Farm Aid is, but I know that some of Martina's best live videos have come from Farm Aid shows!

Anyway, I feel like the early 2000s, when she was in the middle of her Greatest Hits album era, was one of the best times to see Martina live. She was finally a big enough star that everybody knew all her songs, and the crowd bought into her 100%. She seemed very confident and purposeful in her performances. She sang with her entire body, and that energy is palpable in every note. On top of that, she had been a live performer for long enough that her vocals were extremely consistent. She held absolutely nothing back when she was singing, often making her emotional power ballads seem somehow even more epic in a live setting. For example, I much prefer her live performances of "A Broken Wing" from the 2000s to any of her performances from the time when the song was a current hit, because she manages to make it sound somehow even better.

I mean, she has always been fantastic in a live setting, but it felt like the early 2000s was when she was at her best, vocally. I'll stop talking now, so you guys can enjoy the video! Seriously, I would highly recommend watching it!

[bboat11]

Whether I go, whether I stay, 

Right now depends on 

Whatever you say.

2. "Whatever You Say"

Track #8
Runtime: 4:30
Songwriters: Ed Hill, Tony Martin
Vocal Range: E♭3 - E♭5



Total: 67
Average: 3.94
Std Dev: 3.54 (3rd largest!)

bboat11 - 1
castleoblivion26 - 1
dub - 1
Kanenrá:ke - 1
Cody Wants Out... - 1
d3vin44 - 2
@adam1995 - 2
someguy - 2
.indulgecountry - 3
kansasmeetsmo - 3
codyj100 - 3
born - 4
fearlessarrow - 6
cerulean - 6
tim - 8
BlueShades874 - 10
BackwoodsBarbie - 13

Leo ✔


Coming in at #2, we lose 5 peoples' #1 song. A whopping 11 of us ranked this in their top 3! That's right, "Whatever You Say" just happens to be the song that was our #1 for over 1/2 of the submission process... "Wrong Again" put up a valiant fight, but this one was the rightful victor of the two based on how much time it spent at #1. Unfortunately BackwoodsBarbie tanked this song right at the end, and it never managed to recover. But guys, this battle was SO CLOSE!!! Look at the last couple submissions on the graph; codyj100 managed to push this song back a position to #3, despite putting this in his top 3! How crazy is that!

Anyway, this is one of Martina's best songs of all time. She sounds better than ever here. This was one of the first examples of what would later become her signature sound: subdued verses, followed by epic belted choruses. With a full 2 octave belt range, this is definitely one of her largest-ranged songs. It is so fun to see her perform this song live, because she gives it even more energy, plus she throws on a couple extra choruses at the end to facilitate crowd interaction. This one is a crowd favorite for sure!

Interestingly enough, Martina has said that she really does not like her vocal performance on the studio version of this song... We are all our own worst critic I personally think the studio vocal here is one of her best!