Hard on the Heart - Sammy Sadler

A powerful new CD from a vocalist who truly embodies the meaning of getting a "second chance" in life.

Sammy Sadler is a man who knows what it means to get a second chance. A second chance at life and now, a second chance at a real music career. Fifteen years ago, Sadler nearly lost his life when a spate of gunfire sidelined his career in its infancy and left Cash Box Magazine employee Kevin Hughes dead (this was the "Murder on Music Row"). Sammy escaped the shooter and managed to survive, but the trauma has been hard to overcome. Now Sadler is back strong with "Hard On A Heart," a warm, rich CD filled with Ronnie Milsap-esque Countrypolitan stylings that have "hit" written all over them.

Sadler's compelling tenor voice reaches for the heights in such lovely ballads as "Freedom Feels Like Loneliness Today" (written by Charles Browder and John Wesley Ryles), and touches the heart with "Nobody Knows." The beautiful title track is rich and lightly laced with steel guitar and delicate fiddle. Sadler definitely knows how to deliver a song with passion. The production, while slick, is not intrusive; Chet Hinesley (producer for Doug Stone) knows to let Sammy's beautiful voice be the compelling spotlight of each track.

For Sadler, this has been a long time coming. He's been more than worth the wait. He brings back a sense of sophistication and style to the more "pop" side of country, a maturity that's been sorely lacking.