Featuring guest vocals from then-labelmates Sons of the Desert, "I Hope You Dance" became Womack's only number one single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

The #23 country hit "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger", written by Buddy and Julie Miller, was the album's last single release.

From the gorgeous title track to the tough-yet-tender ache in her Appalachian soprano, this is country music good enough to stand beside the legendary work of the genre's icons.

"[6] Geoffrey Himes of The Washington Post listed the album as the seventh best album of 2000 and he wrote, "Just when you thought mainstream country was hopelessly bankrupt, along comes this diminutive singer with the immense voice, bringing genuine class to the "Forever Young"-like title-track smash and lending some universality to such alt-country writers as Bruce Robison, Rodney Crowell, and Buddy and Julie Miller.

"[7] Greg Quill of The Toronto Star said, "Her new CD I Hope You Dance is a spectacular collection of some of the finest story-songs recently crafted in the country and country folk areas, from veteran hit writers Mark D. Sanders' and Tia Sillers' title track – an achingly uplifting song of hope and goodwill – and country staples, Rodney Crowell's "Ashes By Now" and Ronnie Bowman's "The Healing Kind," to the dark and almost perverse offerings of alt-country icon Buddy Miller's "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger?

"[8] Editors at Billboard gave the album a positive review and wrote, From the opening fiddle strains on "The Healing Kind" to the cautious optimism of "Lord I Hope This Day Is Good" 11 tracks later, this is an emotional tour de force and one great country record.

[9] Ralph Novak of People wrote, "With its rueful tone, evocative songs and emotion-drenched, sweet-voiced vocals, this could have been mistaken for a Dolly Parton album.

"[10] Richard Corliss of Time wrote, "Womack's work on this solid set suggests that she's too good for a future in the lounges.

"[12] Robert Christgau gave the album a two-star honourable mention rating, which corresponds to "a likeable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well enjoy.