Evolution

Martina McBride | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 26, 1997)
• Original Release Date: August 26, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000002X49
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #122,709 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW! An Exceptional Blend of Vocals, Lyrics and Music, December 20, 1999

By 

"arebafan" (Farmington, New Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Evolution (Audio CD)

On my first review of this album, I gave it a 5 star performance while only listening to it a few times. I now realize, that I wrote it with very little understanding, and may not have given the album and it creators the proper credit. The album is a masterpiece in artistry! I consider every aspect of this album 5 star, and it gets better every time I listen to it. Hopefully this is a lesson well learned, for I now know, that many of the subtleties in an album are not exposed during the first few listenings. These artists (singers, musicians, producers, and mixers) put hundreds of hours into the creation of an album, and it is probably only fair that I should listen to an album many times prior to writing a review. Anyway, I have listened to "Evolution" many times since my first review, and I have much more respect and appreciation for the artists and the album. The album is vocally, lyrically, and musically beautiful. I guess it all starts with the song choice. The album has a nice variety of songs and each song brings about different emotional and physical responses from the listener. A slow tempo message song may be followed by an up tempo happy song, and then followed by a nice love song. I like the variety, and actually look forward to each change in song style. They chose songs with incredible lyrics, but at the same time allowed Martina to showcase every aspect of her tremendous singing ability. The songs reveal an emotional and heartfelt style of delivery (in Martina), that often, may have been overshadowed by her rich sounding voice. And even though her delivery is expressive and emotional, Martina's voice is clearly the "EVENT" of the album (she really lets it fly on this album). The musical interpretation on this album is 5 star, as well. As lyrically and vocally rich as the album was, the musicians (producer and staff) needed to be wise on the musical support. They were as masterful at their job, as Martina was at hers. The sounds from the instruments are beautiful and rich sounding, and are placed strategically, to bring out the best in the vocals and lyrics. They still created a sonically appealing modern country sound, while supporting the heart of the songs. As far as I'm concerned, this is Martina and her staff's best production, to date. I enjoy every track on this album, but my favorites would have to be, "Whatever You Say", "Wrong Again", and "Here In My Heart". This album will always be one of my favorites, and I like what it has done for me. It has made me a better listener, knowing that I still may be missing some of the intended beauty. I am highly recommending this album, but please beware of the albums ability to grow on you. It is really GOOD!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Little hairs stand up...., July 3, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Seattle, Wa.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Evolution (Audio CD)

When I first heard "Broken Wing" on the radio, little hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I had chills. That is what Martina McBride's powerful voice does to me. Not only has she chosen beautiful, intellegent songs for this album (an evolution from past works) she knows exactly how to interpret them. Yes, she can belt out a chorus like no one else, like on "Be That Way" and "A Broken Wing" but she shows wonderful range and lets the song tell the story as in "Wrong Again" and "Whatever You Say". Her ballad cross-over "Valentine" proves that this country singer can not be stereotyped and stands in a class by herself. I would highly reccommend this cd to anyone who likes to feel their music in the pit of their stomach.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Less country, more pop, still brilliant, April 24, 2004

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Evolution (Audio CD)

Martina's first three albums (Time has come, Way that I am, Wild angels), although all pop-country albums, retained a very strong country feel. With this album, Martina, her producer and musicians have injected a greater dose of pop into the mix. However, this is still a high quality album. You have to make up your own mind whether it is country or not.

The album yielded five major solo country hits (Happy girl, A broken wing, Wrong again, Whatever you say, Valentine) and also includes a wonderful duet with Clint Black (Still holding on) as well as some other outstanding tracks. Martina's strong, powerful voice may seem overwhelming to some people on the up-tempo tracks but I enjoy her music, whatever type of song and whether it is pop, country or somewhere in between.

I could have done without the recording of I'm little but I'm loud, made when Martina was just seven years old, but it only lasts a minute so it's soon done with. Much better is Happy girl, the first real track here, which has become one of Martina's signature songs. Be that way (about a woman in an uneasy relationship with a difficult man) is followed by A broken wing, which could be interpreted as being about the end of that same relationship. Wrong again (about a relationship that seemed ideal but didn't work) has more of a country feel to it. Keeping my distance is about a woman waiting for a man to finish with another woman, just waiting for her chance. I won't close my eyes is about a woman who is suspicious about her man but doesn't want to believe that he's doing her wrong.

There are so many great songs here. I've only mentioned some of them but, except for the brief opening track, they are all enjoyable, at least to my ears. This is a world removed from traditional country but in the field of contemporary country, Martina is as good as anybody. If you are new to Martina's music, you could begin with Greatest hits (which includes five of the tracks here) but this album is also a good one to start with.