No Place That Far (CD - 1998)

Personnel: Sara Evans, Vince Gill, George Jones (vocals); B. James Lowry (acoustic & gut string guitars); Jim Hurst (acoustic guitar, background vocals); Larry Byrom (acoustic guitar); J.T. Corenflos (electric 6- & 12-string guitars); Billy Sanford (electric guitar); Sonny Garrish (dobro, steel guitar); Larry Franklin (fiddle, mandolin); Chris Carmichael (fiddle); John Hobbs (piano, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer); Randy McCormick (synthesizer); Larry Paxton (4- & 6-string basses); Eddie Bayers (drums, tambourine); Lonnie Wilson (drums); Terry McMillan (percussion); Martina McBride, Alison Krauss, Jamie O'Hara, Larry Marrs, Curtis Young, Liana Manis, Dennis Wilson, Lesley Lyons, Ashley Evans, Dan Tyminski (background vocals).

Principally recorded at Emerald Sound Studios and Starstruck Studios, Nashville, Tennessee.

Personnel: Sara Evans (vocals, background vocals); B. James Lowry (acoustic guitar, gut-string guitar); Jim Hurst (acoustic guitar, background vocals); Larry Byrom (acoustic guitar); Billy Sanford, J.T. Corenflos (electric guitar); Sonny Garrish (steel guitar, dobro); Larry Franklin (mandolin, fiddle); Chris Carmichael (fiddle); John Hobbs (piano, organ, synthesizer); Randy McCormick (synthesizer); Eddie Bayers (drums, tambourine); Lonnie Wilson (drums); Terry McMillan (percussion); Larry Marrs, Curtis Young, Dan Tyminski, Dennis Wilson , George Jones, Jamie O'Hara, Alison Krauss, Martina McBride, Vince Gill, Liana Manis (background vocals).

Audio Mixer: Brian Tankersley.

Recording information: Emerald Sound Studios, Nashville, TN; Music Mill Recording Studios, Nashvi; Starstruck, Nashville, TN.

Photographer: Andrew Eccles.

On the follow-up to her surprise 1997 debut hit, Three Chords and the Truth, singer and songwriter Sara Evans shocked many of the fans who embraced it with No Place That Far. Where Dwight Yoakam producer and guitarist Pete Anderson helped Evans shape a modern version of hardcore country traditionalism on the first disc, RCA brought in producers Buddy Cannon and Norro Wilson to protect their investment and take her to the next level by adding plenty of sheen and shine -- and a slew of celebrity guests for good measure. It worked: No Place That Far firmly established Evans as a bona fide superstar, a down-home singer with the pipes of a diva. Almost immediately, she entered the pantheon reserved for singers like Martina McBride (who appears here) and Trisha Yearwood (who she basically replaced) in the spotlight. Evans co-wrote five of the set's 11 tunes including the title track, which was a smash out of the box. It's not that slick pop completely replaced the torch and twang in Evans' voice and songs; it's more like it was integrated gradually, eventually replacing it. There are still a number of cuts here that show off Evans' roots sound: the opener, "The Great Unknown," co-written with Phil Barnhart and James House; "These Days," written with the great Matraca Berg; and the closer, "There's Only One," penned with Leslie Satcher. But the title track, written with Tony Martin and Tom Shapiro, could have been released in 2007 -- it bore the adult pop mark of the new contemporary country sound. With backing vocals by heavy hitters like Vince Gill and McBride, it was destined for the Top Five. The soaring emotional euphoria in the refrain (which seemingly underscores the definition of transcendent love) was impossible to resist. Another notable cut is Jamie O'Hara's country pub rock shuffle "The Crying Game." (It sounds like it was written by Hank DeVito and produced like it was a track on an early Rosanne Cash or Rodney Crowell record.) It was a place where Evans' voice was left pretty much untreated and allowed to display its natural range and emotional depth. "Fool, I'm a Woman," with its sprightly mandolins, ringing electric guitars, and crackling snare drum, is another of those crossover tunes that landed as a single. In all, the album scored three, and placed Evans in the multi-platinum category at the top of the charts, where every effort since has landed. ~ Thom Jurek

Like Lee Ann Womack, Sara Evans is a hugely talented singer who manages to sound traditional and modern at the same time. But Evans' debut album THREE CHORDS & THE TRUTH, though a critical smash, was criminally overlooked by radio. Her sophomore CD isn't likely to suffer the same fate. It's an outstanding collection of songs (five co-written by Evans) made even more remarkable by her powerful vocals and some great production. Her voice, strongly reminiscent of Patty Loveless mixed with a hint of Bakersfield, can wring heartache out of ballads like "Time Won't Tell" and "These Days," and gallop through rockers like the clever opening track, "The Great Unknown," or the sassy "Fool, I'm A Woman."

The title track, featuring harmonies by Vince Gill, is a simply gorgeous ode to the lengths we go to for love. And it's a testament to Evans' talents that none other than the legendary George Jones agreed to lend his unmistakable voice to the hilarious, rollicking "Cupid." As the two singers tear their way through the song, grinning all the way, you can hear the essence of Evans' music--an up-to-the-minute sound with a hard country core. minimize