WZZK-FM (104.7 FM) is a country music formatted radio station licensed to Birmingham that serves northern and central Alabama. As of January 3, 2007, WZZK-FM is the flagship station of the Rick and Bubba radio network. It was the first FM station in Birmingham to switch to country music, and throughout much of the 1980s and 1990s was the top-rated radio station in Birmingham.^[1] The station is owned by Cox Radio alongside six other stations. Its transmitter is located atop Red Mountain in Birmingham.

History[link]

The 104.7 frequency was originally put on the air as the sister station of WJLD-AM (1400). It signed on in 1948 as WJLN-FM and originally repeated the rhythm and blues music format of the AM station. By the end of the 1960s, WJLN began playing progressive rock music at night, while continuing the daytime simulcast of WJLD.

In 1973, the call letters of WJLN were changed to WZZK. With the new call letters, WZZK became a full-time album rock station. The station’s main competitor in this format was WERC-FM. However, the station failed to attract a significant listening audience. In 1977, WVOK-FM (K-99) made its on-air debut as an album rock station, forcing WZZK to abandon the format a year later.

In 1978, WZZK changed formats and became Birmingham's first FM country music station, challenging long-time market leader WYDE-AM. Initially, the new WZZK was automated, with no live studio announcers. The station began adding announcers in 1980 and began to assert itself in the Birmingham market. By 1982, the success of WZZK forced WYDE to drop the country music it had had since 1963. Throughout most of the 1980s and 90s WZZK was ranked no lower than #3 in the Birmingham Arbitron ratings, despite challenges from first WQUS, then from WBMH, later WIKX. Neither station made a significant impact; in fact the parent company of WZZK bought WIKX in 1991 and changed its format.

In 1985, the first of two AM stations that had the WZZK call letters made its debut. Longtime Top 40 powerhouse WSGN (610) was purchased, and began a simulcast that continued until 1998. The AM station is now one of the more successful urban gospel stations in Birmingham. In 2003, the second WZZK-AM debuted as a classic country station at 1320 AM (now WENN). The second WZZK-AM changed formats in January 2006 and is today a neo-soul music station.

The most serious and successful challenge to WZZK’s dominance came in 1994, when WZBQ, a station licensed to Jasper that had previously targeted the Tuscaloosa area, moved its studios to Birmingham and relaunched itself as WOWC. The new competitor, by then having the new call letters WDXB, gradually began chipping away at WZZK’s audience, and in 2002 began broadcasting from atop Red Mountain in Birmingham, where most of the market’s FM stations have their broadcast towers located. In 2006, WZZK and WDXB were the two dominant country music stations in Birmingham.

On January 2, 2007, it was announced that the popular morning-drive radio team of Rick and Bubba would be moving their show from crosstown rival WYSF to WZZK, effective the next day.

Programming[link]

Notable programming includes The Rick & Bubba Show with Rick Burgess, Bill "Bubba" Bussey, Calvin "Speedy" Wilburn, Greg Burgess & Don Dailey (News). Other on-air personalities include Casey Carter on mid-days, Ron Chatman on afternoons, Lia on nights, Jay Michaels on overnights, and Mark Deese, Ron Foster, and Rebecca Gosnell on weekends.

References[link]

External links[link]

• WZZK official website
• Official Website of Rick and Bubba
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WZZK
• Radio-Locator information on WZZK
• Query Arbitron's FM station database for WZZK

Coordinates: 33°29′06″N 86°48′25″W / 33.485°N 86.807°W / 33.485; -86.807

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions. (June 2011)

Paul Finebaum is an American sports author, television and radio personality and former columnist based in Birmingham, Alabama. His primary focus is sports, particularly those in the Southeast. Finebaum was born in Memphis, Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee, where he received a liberal arts degree in Political Science. He currently serves as host of the Paul Finebaum Radio Network, whose flagship station is on WJOX from 2:05-6pm CST. The show is syndicated in Alabama (27 stations), Mississippi (2 stations), Tennessee (3) and on single stations in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. The show can also be watched live internet stream at MyFoxFinebaum.com. It can also be heard daily on Sirius XM Radio (Channel 91). On March 12, the Finebaum began its third year on Sirius/XM.

News Reporter[link]

Paul Finebaum arrived in Birmingham in 1980 and became a columnist and investigative reporter for the Birmingham Post-Herald. Finebaum's work has earned him over 250 national, regional and area sports writing awards, including his investigative stories on the recruitment of Alabama basketball player Buck Johnson. He also in 1993 broke the story of Antonio Langham, a University of Alabama football player who signed a contract with a sports agent while playing for the school, which led to NCAA probation for the school. He was also first to report the firing of Auburn University coach Terry Bowden in 1998.^[1] Finebaum joined the Mobile Press Register in 2001 where he wrote a twice-weekly (later weekly) column with the column syndicated to other newspapers. Finebaum discontinued the column in December 2010.^[2] On Sept. 1, Finebaum returned to writing with his first column for Sports Illustrated. His weekly column appears every Thursday at SI.com. His Christmas Eve column on a radio caller from Iowa suffering from cerebral palsy was among the most critically acclaimed stories of his career.

Finebaum found himself embroiled at the center of one of biggest stories in America - the poisoning of the famous trees on Toomer's Corner at Auburn University. The man charged called the Finebaum show, claiming to have poisoned the trees. The audio of the call was played on nearly every national radio show and television newscast in the nation. In the aftermath, Finebaum was featured on the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, appeared on CNN, ESPN, MSNBC and several other networks. He also was blamed by many for the reason for the event including one caller saying "if anything else happens, there will be blood on your hands." ^[3]On April 21, Harvey Updyke appeared again on the Finebaum show, speaking publicly for the first time since the incident, breaking his long silence. The interview, perhaps the most listened to ever in the history of the Finebaum show, made national news, appearing in publications ranging from the New York Times to ESPN's SportsCenter. Updyke ended the 45-minute interview with his signature Roll Damn Tide. Finebaum also had a leading role in ESPN's critically acclaimed documentary, ``Roll Tide, War Eagle. The producers used Finebaum and his program as the voice of the documentary, which debuted on Nov. 8.

In late May, Finebaum received more national attention for his four hour interview with Randy Owen, raising awareness for victims of the April 27 tornadoes. Donna Francavilla described the moment in a recent article in the RTDNA (Radio television news directors association) magazine: ``On the day the storm hit, Finebaum described the tornado as he watched it approach the big picture window in his studio. Since then, Finebaum hasn’t talked much about sports. Finebaum said, “On the day the Bama Rising concert was announced, we had (Alabama native country music star) Randy Owen in studio for the entire show, four hours, promoting the event, taking phone calls about the tornado. He ended up giving a mini-concert. (Citadel manager) Bill Thomas told me afterwards that we broke every rule in sports radio history; however, it was by far, the most memorable and meaningful program we have ever done - and the best. He sang many songs and naturally ended the show by singing an acoustic version of ``My Home’s In Alabama.’’ There wasn’t a dry eye in the house or in cars across the listening audience. We have stayed with the story non-stop with the support of our partners at Sirius-XM.” In October, Mark Kelly wrote the cover story in Weld on Finebaum http://weldbham.com/blog/2011/10/18/the-listener-paul-finebaum, a piece many consider the most definitive and revealing of his career. Kelly is reportedly turning the magazine story into an upcoming book on Finebaum. Recently, Finebaum also found his program thrust in the middle of the 2012 Presidential race after a gaffe on his program by front runner Mitt Romney. Romney's response to a question about Peyton Manning quickly made every major newspaper and news broadcast in the nation, from The New York Times to CBS to CNN to even leading the Today show. http://pic.twitter.com/dJs66TxQ

Radio and television[link]

Finebaum started his radio appearances in the mid 1980's by giving morning commentary on the Mark and Brian Radio Show on WAPI-FM (I-95). After starting his own afternoon radio show a few years later on WAPI-AM, his program quickly became the highest rated sport-talk show in Birmingham. In October 1993, Finebaum moved his sports-talk show to WERC. His show prospered immensely and in 2001 the show began syndication with affiliates across the southeast. It is now one of the highest-rated sports show in America.

In 2002, Paul was named by The Tennessean in Nashville as one of the Southeastern Conference's Top Power Brokers.

The Paul Finebaum Radio Network, comprising Finebaum, Network Director Pat Smith, Newsman Neal Vickers, Associate Producer Kerry Adams and webmaster Dave Sibley was named in 2004 by Sports Illustrated as one of the top 12 sports radio shows in the United States. In January 2007, his radio show moved to WJOX.^[4]

In 2008, Columbia University named Finebaum's Show as one of the winners of its annual 'Let's Do it Better! Workshop on Journalism, Race and Ethnicity. Sponsored by the Ford Foundation, the award singles out newspaper, broadcast and web reporting that fosters coherent, authentic coverage of race reporting. Finebaum was selected for providing a strong and sometimes controversial view on racial issues in sports through his multi-media contributions that include the “Paul Finebaum Radio Network,” his Web site, Finebaum.com and a twice-weekly syndicated sports column. In particular, Columbia cited a poignant show on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday - which highlighted the slain Civil Rights leaders still strong connections with today's sports stars - was among those submitted to the panel selecting the awards. Among Finebaum's written works noted included a column in the Mobile Press-Register on the first two black coaches in the bowl, the admission of NBA star that he was gay, a column on the University of Alabama snubbing of Sylvester Croom to be the first black football head coach in the SEC and a tribute to the late Grambling coach Eddie Robinson.

In July 2009, The Orlando Sentinel^[5] named Finebaum as one of the SEC's 10 most powerful people. "With a syndicated show heard in multiple SEC states that also commands a big audience on the Web, the Birmingham, Ala.-based Finebaum has proven in more than two decades of muckraking in print and on the air that his barbs can influence a coach's fate." On Jan. 11, 2011, CNBC's Emmy-Award winning sports reporter, Darren Rovell, wrote: ``Back 2 back titles by Alabama & Auburn make Finebaum the most powerful small market sports media member in the nation." Rovell added:``What makes Finebaum so good at what he does? He's the best listener of any sports talk radio host. In July, 2011, Finebaum was awarded the dubious honor in a list of 10 sports figures, as the 'Most Hated Man in the SEC' beating out the likes of Cam Newton, Steve Spurrier and Harvey Updyke. In January,2012, The Bleacher Report named Finebaum one of the 25 Most Influential People in college football. He was one of only two members of the media listed, along with ESPN president John Skipper.

Finebaum's television contributions have been numerous. In Birmingham he currently appears as a sports analyst for WBRC Fox 6. He was sports director for WIAT-TV from 1997 to 2002 and co-hosted individual shows on WVTM-TV NBC 13 and ABC 33/40. Recently he has been a frequent guest on ESPN's Outside The Lines with Bob Ley commenting on national and regional stories.

He's been a guest on television's Larry King Live, CBS' 60 Minutes, Nancy Grace, MSNBC's Morning Joe, HBO and Tru TV.

Publications[link]

By Finebaum[link]

Finebaum's books include his popular I Hate... series, including I Hate Notre Dame: 303 Reasons Why You Should, Too, and several dozen similarly titled works which attack most major college athletic programs.

Finebaum's other books include The Worst of Paul Finebaum (ISBN 1881548120), a 1994 compilation of some of the newspaper columns he has written; and Finebaum Said (ISBN 1931656037), a 2001 collection of columns and interviews.

About Finebaum[link]

As a spoof, his friend and colleague Tommy Charles published I Hate Paul Finebaum: 303 Reasons Why You Should, Too in 1996. This fall, the publication of a book exclusively about the unique culture of the Finebaum Show. Great Call: Why The Finebaum Show Is America's Barbershop, was written by Author Tom Ward.

Famous guests[link]

On his weekly show during the college football season, Finebaum has many weekly guests. Included is former University of Alabama head coach Gene Stallings, former Auburn University head coach Pat Dye, Barbara Dooley, wife of former University of Georgia head coach Vince Dooley and mother of current University of Tennessee coach Derek Dooley, Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News, ESPN College Gameday's Kirk Herbstreit, CBS college football analyst Gary Danielson and CBS Sports's Tim Brando. Leading up to the season, the show had a number of major head coaches on, including Alabama's Nick Saban, Auburn's Gene Chizik, Florida's Urban Meyer, Jacksonville's Kerwin Bell, South Carolina's Steve Spurrier, Notre Dame's Brian Kelly, Oklahoma's Bob Stoops and TCU's Gary Patterson.

References[link]

• Barnes, Susan. (Summer 2005) "The Devil We Know". Tennessee Alumnus Magazine. Vol. 85, No. 3 - accessed April 16, 2006
• Paul Finebaum is "the most influential sports-talk personality in the Southeast" - Huntsville Times, August 21, 2003.
• "Paul Finebaum, the state's most influential sports columnist and talk-show host" - New York Times, May 4, 2003.
• Fowler, Jeremy. "Finebaum voted as one of the SEC's 10 most powerful people"- "[1]". Orlando Sentinel, July 10, 2009.

External links[link]

• Paul Finebaum Radio Network official site
• MyFoxFinebaum.com (streamng video)
• FinebaumFan.com (Community Fan Site)
• Finebaum headed to WJOX, Birmingham News
• Cranehill Press "I Hate..." Series
• Paul Finebaum article at BhamWiki.com
• Listen to Paul Finebaum Show on RadioJunkee.com

Sara Evans
Sara Evans in 2008
Background information
Birth name	Sara Lynn Evans
Born	(1971-02-05) February 5, 1971 (age 41) Boonville, Missouri, U.S.
Genres	Country
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1992–present
Labels	RCA Records Nashville
Associated acts	Vince Gill, Lee Ann Womack, Faith Hill, Martina McBride, Carrie Underwood, LeAnn Rimes, Mindy McCready, Brad Paisley, The Warren Brothers, Phil Vassar
Website	saraevans.com

Sara Lynn Evans (born February 5, 1971) is an American country singer and songwriter. For her entire career, she has been signed to RCA Records Nashville.

Evans' debut, Three Chords and the Truth, did not produce a Top 40 hit on the Hot Country Songs charts. She followed this up with No Place That Far (1998), Born to Fly (2000), Restless (2003) and Real Fine Place (2005). No Place That Far received a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), while the other three albums all were certified platinum. These discs include the number 1 singles "No Place That Far", "Born to Fly", "Suds in the Bucket" and "A Real Fine Place to Start", plus the top 10 hits "I Could Not Ask for More" (a cover of the Edwin McCain song), "I Keep Looking", "Perfect" and "Cheatin'". Her 2007 Greatest Hits included the top 20 hits "You'll Always Be My Baby" and "As If". Stronger (2011) included her fifth number 1 hit, "A Little Bit Stronger", which was co-written by Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum.

Evans has also won one award each from Billboard, the Academy of Country Music, Country Music Association, Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) and a Dove Award.

Biography[link]

Early life and the rise to fame[link]

Evans was born in Boonville, Missouri, in 1971, and is of Welsh, English, and Irish descent. She was raised on a farm near New Franklin, Missouri, the eldest girl of seven children. By five, she was singing weekends in her family's band. At the age of eight, she was struck by an automobile in front of the family home, and her legs suffered multiple fractures. Recuperating for months in a wheelchair, she continued singing to help pay her medical bills. When she was 16, she began performing at a nightclub near Columbia, Missouri, a gig that lasted two years.

Evans moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1991 to be a country music artist. She met fellow musician Craig Schelske and left Nashville with him in 1992, moving to Oregon. They married in 1993. She returned to Nashville in 1995 and began recording demos.^[1] Nashville songwriter Harlan Howard was impressed by her demo of his song "Tiger by the Tail". He decided to help her music career, leading to a signed contract with RCA Nashville.^[2]

In 1997, Evans released her debut album for RCA, Three Chords and the Truth. Although none of its three singles ("True Lies," the title track, and "Shame About That") reached the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, the album received critical praise for its neotraditional country sound. In 1998, Evans released her second album, No Place That Far. The album's lead single, "Cryin' Game," also failed to reach the Top 40. However, the album's second single and title track, gave Evans her first Number One hit on the Hot Country Songs chart in March 1999. The album was eventually certified Gold by the RIAA, and produced one additional Top 40 country hit in "Fool, I'm a Woman."

[edit] Breakthrough: the Born to Fly and Restless albums

Evans' third studio album, Born to Fly, was released on October 10, 2000. She insisted on hiring Seattle-based rock drummer Matt Chamberlain (The Wallflowers, Edie Brickell), who brought a different sound to her music.^[3] The album's title track ("Born to Fly"), which was released as the lead single, was a Number One hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. Three more singles were released from the album ("I Could Not Ask for More," "Saints & Angels," and "I Keep Looking"), all of which were Top 20 hits on the country charts. Born to Flywas eventually certified 2× Platinum by the RIAA in 2004.

In 2001, Evans was the most-nominated artist at the Country Music Association awards with seven nominations overall, and she won her first CMA award when "Born to Fly" won the award for Video of the Year, her first major industry award.

Evans released her fourth studio album, Restless, on August 19, 2003. The album's lead single, "Backseat of a Greyhound Bus," was a Top 20 hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. The album debuted at No. 3 on the Top Country Albums chart and at No. 20 on the Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of over 40,000 copies. "Perfect," the album's second single, was a No. 2 hit on the country charts. However, the album's third single, "Suds in the Bucket," was the most successful single; it became Evans' third Number One hit on the Hot Country Songs chart and was also her fifth Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Additionally, it was Evans' first ever Gold-certified single by the RIAA. The album's fourth and final single, "Tonight," failed to reach the Top 40 country charts. Restless received a nomination in the 2005 Academy of Country Music Awards.

[edit] Success of the Real Fine Place album and Greatest Hits

Sara Evans at Toadlick 2012

Evans' fifth studio album, Real Fine Place, was released on October 4, 2005. The album's lead single, "A Real Fine Place to Start," reached No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005, as well as reaching the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. It was certified Gold by the RIAA. The album sold 130,000 copies in its first week, which allowed it to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. "Cheatin'" was released as the second single from Real Fine Place and became a Top 10 country hit, reaching a peak of No. 9 on the Hot Country Songs chart. The album produced two additional chart singles in "Coalmine" (a minor Top 40 hit) and "You'll Always Be My Baby" (a Top 20 hit). Evans released a gift book that coincided with the album's fourth single. It was written by Evans, Tony Martin and Tom Shapiro, and was also titled You'll Always Be My Baby.^[4]

On December 6, 2005, Evans released the compilation album Feels Like Home through Cracker Barrel stores. The album includes a live version of "Born to Fly" and an acoustic version of "No Place That Far." In 2006, Evans released another compilation album, Always There through Hallmark stores for Mothers' Day. The album featured six of her favorite already-released songs, including a live version of "Suds in the Bucket" and an acoustic version of "Born to Fly," as well as two new songs: "You Ought to Know by Now" and "Brooklyn & Austin."^[5]

On May 23, 2006, Evans performed at the 2006 ACM awards show in Las Vegas, where she won her first ACM for Top Female Vocalist. R&R also announced Evans as the Female Vocalist of the Year in its 2006 Readers' Poll.

On October 9, 2007, Evans released her first Greatest Hits collection. The compilation features four new songs, including the lead-off single "As If," which was a Top 20 hit on the country charts. It was announced on October 15, 2007, that Evans would host the 41st annual CMA Awards show with LeAnn Rimes on November 7, 2007.^[6] Two further singles were released from the album ("Some Things Never Change" and "Love You With All My Heart"); the former was a minor Top 40 hit, while the latter became Evans' first single to fail to chart.

A libertarian Republican, Evans also showed support for Texas Congressman Ron Paul in the 2008 Presidential election and was the headliner at his "Rally For The Republic" on September 2, 2008 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the same day as the Republican National Convention in neighboring St. Paul.^[7]

Evans also became a spokesperson for National Eating Disorders Association, and has spoken out widely on this subject, as she has been personally affected by it.^[8] She also hosted a charity event, Fashion for Every Body, which featured a fashion show, silent auction and performance by Evans.^[9]

[edit] Stronger and career today

The single "Low" was released to radio on September 29, 2008, to promote Billy: The Early Years (for the movie released October 10).^[10] The song is featured on the movie's soundtrack which was released on October 7, 2008, and also includes other big name country artists. "Low" debuted (and peaked) on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart at No. 59 on October 12, 2008. It only remained on the chart for one week but returned for a second week in January 2009 at the same position before again falling off the chart.

A book called The Sweet By and By, written by Evans with author Rachel Hauck, was released on January 5, 2010.^[11][12] It is the first release of a four-book deal inked with Thomas Nelson Fiction. The second book, Softly and Tenderly, was released January 14, 2011,^[13] and the third, Love Lifted Me, was released January 3, 2012.^[14]

Evans stated in a video posting to her fan club on December 23, 2008, that she was working with her brother Matt Evans and producer Nathan Chapman on her sixth studio album. "Feels Just Like a Love Song",^[15] was released on July 20, 2009. The song debuted and peaked at No. 59 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart; after spending two weeks on the chart, it fell off. It was intended as the lead-off single to Evans' sixth studio album, Stronger, but was later cut from the final track listing.

In 2009, ABC Daytime and SOAPnet sponsored a tour, headlined by Evans, that featured performances throughout the summer. Additionally, soap performers made appearances at her shows. Evans participated in performances on the networks, as well as on-air interstitial campaigns and online promotions.^[16]

In late 2009, Evans released a four-song Christmas EP, I'll Be Home for Christmas, to coincide with her 2009 Christmas tour. The EP includes the title track as well as "O Come All Ye Faithful", "Go Tell It on the Mountain", and "New Again" (a duet with Brad Paisley). It was released on November 3, 2009 to digital retailers.^[17]

During Evans' 2010 fanclub party on June 10, 2010, she debuted the first single from her sixth studio album, Stronger, which was released on March 8, 2011. The song, titled "A Little Bit Stronger," was released to radio on September 27, 2010. One of the few songs on the album not co-written by the artist, it was pitched to Evans by its songwriter, Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum. Additionally, the song was included on the soundtrack to the 2010 film Country Strong.^[18] It debuted at No. 56 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of October 2, 2010 and hit No. 1 in May 2011. Evans sang the song on the finale of season 12 of the American ABC TV show Dancing with the Stars on May 24, 2011. "A Little Bit Stronger" became Evans' first Platinum-certified single by the RIAA.

"My Heart Can't Tell You No" was released as the second single from Stronger on June 20, 2011.^[19] It ultimately reached a peak of No. 21 on the country charts in January 2012. "Anywhere" is slated to be the album's third single.

Television work[link]

In April 2004, Evans appeared as a special guest on "Nashville Star".^[20] She appeared on the game show "Million Dollar Password" in June 2008.^[21]

In September 2006, Evans began competing with other celebrities on the third season of ABC's Dancing with the Stars with (professional) partner Tony Dovolani. Evans launched a new fan web site to provide behind-the-scenes material from her participation on the program. Evans was the first country music singer to ever participate in the show. However, she chose to withdraw from the competition due to her divorce.

Also in 2006, Evans guest starred on Jeff Foxworthy's TV show, Foxworthy's Big Night Out.

Evans made an appearance judging on HGTV Design Star in which she chose which of two redesigned rooms at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center was most like her own style. This aired on July 6, 2008^[22]

In October 2008, Evans also hosted a charity skating fundraiser, "Skating for Life". Olympic skaters skated to Evans' songs.^[23][24]

In March 2009, Evans hosted the ACM GAC Top New Artist Special, which launched the fan voting for the ACMs three new categories: Top New Female Vocalist, Top New Male Vocalist and Top New Vocal Duo or Group.^[25]

Evans sang "God Bless America" during the All Star Game in St Louis, Missouri on July 12, 2009.^[26]

In June 2011 Evans appeared on the Flatts Fest 2011 Tour with Rascal Flatts, Justin Moore, and Easton Corbin.

Sara Evans' Band[link]

Current band:^[27]

• Sara Evans - Lead Vocals
• Jim Bloodgood - Drums
• Matt Evans - Bass/Band Leader/Harmony Vocals (Sara's brother)
• Lesley Evans Lyons - Harmony Vocals (Sara's sister)
• Ashley Evans Simpson - Harmony Vocals (Sara's sister)
• Jonathan Lawson - Fiddle/Acoustic Guitar/Harmony Vocals
• Justin Butler - Lead Guitar/Acoustic Guitar
• Brent Wilson - Lead Guitar/Acoustic Guitar/Mandolin/Harmony Vocals

Personal life[link]

Sara Evans in 2007

Evans married Craig Schelske, an aspiring politician, on September 25, 1993,^[28] and divorced in September 2007.^[29] Evans and Schelske have three children: Avery Jack (born August 21, 1999), Olivia Margaret (born January 22, 2003)^[30] and Audrey Elizabeth (born October 6, 2004).

On June 14, 2008, Evans married Jay Barker, a former University of Alabama quarterback, national championship winner and current radio show host. They married in Franklin, Tennessee, with their children as their attendants.^[31][32] Evans and her three children now live in Mountain Brook, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, with Barker and his children.

Divorce[link]

On October 12, 2006, Evans left Dancing with the Stars, citing personal reasons, and the following day it was revealed that Evans had filed for divorce from her husband of 13 years, Craig Schelske.^[33] Documents filed by Evans' husband accused the singer of having close to a dozen affairs, including singer/songwriter Richard Marx, country star Kenny Chesney, Dancing with the Stars partner Tony Dovolani, various members of Evans' band, and four of the five members of the rock band 3 Doors Down. A representative for Chesney called the allegations "ridiculous,"^[34] and Kirt Webster, a spokesman for the rock band 3 Doors Down, stated that the accusations are "ludicrous" and "untrue" and that the band members "are saddened by what she's going through." ^[35]

On September 28, 2007, the divorce between Evans and Schelske became final. Evans will pay him a minimum of $500,000 in alimony over a ten-year period. Evans was awarded custody of their three children with visitation rights to Schelske.^[29]

An ex-nanny of Evans', Alison Clinton Lee, sued her for $3 million,^[36] claiming that Evans has smeared her name by including it in her divorce papers as one of the many women Evans claims her husband had affairs with.^[37] The case was settled in July 2009, for $500,000.^[38]

On February 25, 2010, Evans obtained a restraining order against Schelske. Documents say Schelske is not allowed to make any derogatory statements about Evans to the media or make allegations about what led to their divorce.^[39]

Awards and nominations[link]

Discography[link]

Studio Albums

• 1997: Three Chords and the Truth
• 1998: No Place That Far
• 2000: Born to Fly
• 2003: Restless
• 2005: Real Fine Place
• 2011: Stronger

Compilation album

• 2007: Greatest Hits

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sara Evans

• SaraEvans.com (Official site)