The title of the album relates to the many roles that McEntire plays in her life.^[6] Asked once in an interview for a ranking, McEntire responded, "Mother first, wife second, and the rest just follow."^[7] The album features a cover of American recording artist Beyoncé Knowles' single "If I Were a Boy". McEntire's version became a viral video when she first performed the song on CMT's Unplugged earlier in 2010.^[8] Reba's next album was supposed to be a Christmas album but the song 'If I Were a Boy' changed McEntire's mind.

Upon its release, All the Women I Am received generally positive reviews from most music critics.^[18] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 74, based on 5 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".^[18]

Michael McCall with the Associated Press gave it a mixed review, saying "at age 55, McEntire remains a powerhouse who tends to err by trying harder than necessary to show her range".^[10] Jessica Phillips of Country Weekly gave the album four star rating, calling the release "[an] emotionally charged set of songs" and commended her cover of "If I Were A Boy", calling it a "soulful, countrified look at love from a male perspective".^[13]

Giving the release a 3½ star rating, Matt Bjorke of Roughstock, saying "All The Woman I Am had the potential to be a missed-opportunity after the first two tracks on the record but the album is saved by a meaty collection of songs that hopefully will find Reba retaining her current resurgence at radio".^[14] Allison Stewart with The Washington Post'' compared the album to its predecessor, Keep On Loving You, saying that the album "tries harder, with worse results; McEntire and her collaborators aim for Carrie Underwood and too often wind up with warmed-over Shania Twain". On a positive note, she called her version of "If I Were a Boy" "fantastic".^[16] Thom Jurek with Allmusic gave the release a 2½ rating, saying "Everything, from songs and arrangements to production tries hard to sound on the contemporary edge, but comes off as underscoring that Underwood has the corner on this sound [...] ultimately, All the Women I Am falls flat; it feels awkward in its stylistic mimicry, and has no center".^[9]

Steve Morse with The Boston Globe called it "one of her best effort", saying "It blends hard-edged, modern country-rock with some profoundly tender ballad singing".^[12] Blake Boldt with "Engine 145" gave it a 3½ star rating, saying "Women is a crash course in dealing with emotional hurdles. There’s a great deal of value when McEntire sings about volatile emotions, and she builds a rapport with female listeners by admitting her own frailties".^[17]

The album debuted at number seven on the U.S. Billboard 200, and at number three on the Top Country Albums chart, selling 64,174 copies in its first week of release.^[19][20] The album has sold 347,000 copies in the US as of April 2015.^[21]

Adapted from the album's liner notes.^[1]

Musicians edit

• Reba McEntire – lead vocals
• Charlie Judge – keyboards, synthesizers, synth strings, synth horns, Rhodes piano, clavinet, Hammond B3 organ, programming, string arrangements and conductor (8, 10)
• Gordon Mote – acoustic piano
• Steve Nathan – acoustic piano, Hammond B3 organ
• Jimmy Nichols – acoustic piano, Wurlitzer electric piano
• Tom Bukovac – electric guitar
• J. T. Corenflos – electric guitar
• Dann Huff – electric guitar, acoustic guitar, banjo
• Jerry McPherson – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
• Ilya Toshinsky – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, banjo, mandolin
• Bruce Bouton – steel guitar
• Paul Franklin – steel guitar, dobro
• Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass guitar
• Shannon Forrest – drums
• Scott Williamson – drums
• David Huff – percussion, programming
• Eric Darken – percussion
• Mark Douthit – saxophone
• Stuart Duncan – fiddle
• Jonathan Yudkin – fiddle
• Carl Gorodetzky – string contractor (8, 10)
• The Nashville String Machine – strings (8, 10)
• Vicki Hampton – backing vocals
• Joanna Janét – backing vocals
• Cherie Oakley – backing vocals
• Angela Primm – backing vocals
• Russell Terrell – backing vocals
• Jenifer Wrinkle – backing vocals

Production notes edit

• Dann Huff – producer
• Allison Jones – A&R
• Velvet Reid – A&R
• Brent King – recording
• Steve Marcantonio – recording, mixing
• Justin Niebank – recording, mixing
• Mark Hagen – additional recording
• Seth Morton – additional recording
• Steve Blackmon – recording assistant
• Drew Bollman – recording assistant
• Tristan Brock-Jones – recording assistant
• David Huff – digital editing
• Christopher Rowe – digital editing
• Adam Ayan – mastering
• Hank Williams – mastering
• Mike "Frog" Griffith – production coordinator
• Whitney Sutton – copy coordinator
• Austin Hale – package design
• Aaron Rayburn – package design
• Josh Shearon – package design
• Russ Harrington – photography
• Justin Nolan Key – photography
• Brett Freedman – hair stylist, makeup
• Terry Gordon – wardrobe