Sara Evans announces 2011 disc

Copy That

Nine songs in, Sara Evans finally unleashes a country song that she wanted to cover. And it's one of the most copied songs at that - Hank's "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." The cut is a decided left turn from the rest of "Copy That," songs that Evans adored "plain and simple." Overcovered though it may be, Evans' version resonates. Let's face it, her vocals remain a powerful thing of beauty, power and emotion. And it helps that she is backed by ...

Words

You gotta love country music, which still demonizes tobacco just like a Baptist Church Sunday sermon. "Marquee Sign," off Sara Evans' "Word" album begins with the country star announcing, "I wish you were a pack of cigarettes/'Cause you would have come with a warning." Cigarettes, like the tequila she sings about later, are clearly bad for you. Unfortunately, the man in this song didn't come labeled with a skull and cross bones. The album from whence ...

At Christmas

Sara Evans is straight-up one of the best singers in country music, and when she performs "Go Tell It On The Mountain" backed by a supportive choir on her new holiday offering, "At Christmas," the girl is squarely in her element. She has the kind of strong voice that gives this lyric the spiritual declarative quality it requires. And yet, she can switch to the acoustic guitar-backed "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and sing ever so prettily and quietly. ...