Best Known As: Country-Gospel singer of "Three Wooden Crosses"
Name at birth: Randy Bruce Traywick
Randy Travis is a country and gospel music singer whose distinctive baritone and traditional style have made him a star since the 1980s. As a child he performed around Charlotte, North Carolina with his brother as the singing Traywick Brothers, but then he dropped out of high school and spent his reckless youth getting into scrapes with the law. In the late 1970s he began making demo tapes and recorded a few singles, and in 1981 he moved to Nashville, Tennessee. After a few years as a cook and singer at night spot, he released an independently produced live recording to capitalize on his increasing fan base. His first record on a major label, Storms of Life was released in 1986, and Travis toured the United States on the strength of the hits "On the Other Hand" and "1982." Since then he has sold millions of records and won numerous awards, including Grammys for Best Male Country Vocal Performance (1987 and 1988), Best Country Song (1988's "Forever and Ever, Amen") and Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album (2004's Rise and Shine). Travis is known as a country crooner in the style of Lefty Frizell and George Jones. In recent years he has recorded bluegrass and gospel albums that have had great success, including the hit and 2003 CMA Song of the Year, "Three Wooden Crosses."
Travis has a bit of experience as an actor whose films include The Rainmaker (1997, with Matt Damon) and Texas Rangers (2001, with Usher)... A record company executive is the one who changed Randy's surname from Traywick to Travis.
Representative Albums: "Trail of Memories: The Randy Travis Anthology," "Storms of Life," "Greatest Hits, Vol. 2"
Representative Songs: "Forever and Ever, Amen," "Hard Rock Bottom of Your Hear," "It's Just a Matter of Time"
Biography
Like the Beatles in rock, Randy Travis marks a generational shift in country music. When his Storms of Life came out in 1986, country music was still wallowing in the post-urban cowboy recession, chasing elusive crossover dreams. Travis brought the music back to its basics, sounding like nothing so much as a perfect blend of George Jones and Merle Haggard. He became the dominant male voice in country until the rise of "hat acts" like Garth Brooks and Clint Black, releasing seven consecutive number one singles during one stretch. He won the CMA's Horizon Award in 1986 and was the association's Male Vocalist of the Year in 1987 and 1988.
Travis (born Randy Bruce Traywick, May 4, 1959, Marshville, NC) was born and raised in North Carolina, in a small town outside of Charlotte. His father encouraged his children to pursue their musical inclinations, as he was a fan of honky tonkers like Hank Williams, Jones, and Lefty Frizzell. Randy began playing guitar at the age of eight, and within two years, he and his brother Ricky formed a duo called the Traywick Brothers. The duo played in local clubs and talent contests. Both of the brothers had a wild streak, which resulted in Ricky going to jail after a car chase and Randy running away to Charlotte at the age of 16. While he was in Charlotte, he won a talent contest at Country City U.S.A., a bar owned by Lib Hatcher. Hatcher was impressed by Travis and offered him a regular gig at her bar, as well as a job as a cook.
For several years, he sang and worked at Country City. He still had trouble with the law in his late teens. At his last run-in with the police, the judge told him if he saw Travis again he should be prepared to go to jail for a long time. Travis was released into the care of Hatcher. In a short time, Hatcher became Travis' manager, and the pair began to concentrate on his career. Joe Stampley helped Travis land a contract with Paula Records in 1978. The following year, Travis released two singles under his given name; one of them, "She's My Woman," scraped the bottom of the country charts. In 1982, Travis and Hatcher moved to Nashville, where she managed the Nashville Palace nightclub while he sang and cooked. Within a couple of years, the pair independently released his debut album under the name Randy Ray; the record was called Randy Ray Live and sold primarily in the Nashville Palace.
Thanks to Hatcher's persistent efforts and the Randy Ray Live album, Warner Bros. signed Travis in 1985 and suggested that he change his performing name to Randy Travis. "On the Other Hand," his first single for the label, was released in the summer of that year and climbed to number 67. Despite its lackluster performance, radio programmers were enthusiastic for Travis, as evidenced by the number six placing of "1982," which was released late in the year. "1982" was followed by a re-release of "On the Other Hand" in the spring of 1986. This time, the song hit number one.
Storms of Life, Travis' full-fledged debut album, was released in the summer of 1986 and became a huge success, eventually selling over three million copies. Travis was the first country artist to go multi-platinum; before his success, most country artists had difficulty achieving gold status. With his mass appeal, he set the stage for country music's crossover success in the early '90s. However, Travis dominated the late '80s. The last two singles from Storms of Life, "Diggin' Up Bones" and "No Place Like Home," hit number one and two, respectively. "Forever and Ever, Amen" -- the first single from his second album, 1987's Always & Forever -- began a streak of seven straight number one singles that ran through 1989. Always & Forever was more successful than his debut, reaching number 19 on the pop charts and going quadruple platinum; it also earned him the CMA's award for Male Vocalist of the Year. Old 8x10 (1988) and No Holdin' Back (1989) weren't quite as successful as their predecessors, but they still spawned number one singles and both went platinum.
Travis was still at the top of his form in the beginning of the '90s, starting the decade with his biggest hit, "Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart." However, his hold at the top of the charts began to slip after Clint Black and, in particular, Garth Brooks. Nevertheless, Travis never fell away completely -- his albums continued to gold and he usually could crack the Top Ten. Wind in the Wire, a soundtrack to his television special released in 1992, marked his first unsuccessful album -- none of the singles broke the Top 40. This Is Me, released in 1994, was a successful comeback to the top of the charts, featuring "Whisper My Name," his first number one hit in two years. In August 1996, Travis released Full Circle, his last album for Warner Brothers. He left the label in 1997, signing with the fledgling "super" label Dreamworks. His first album for the label, You and You Alone, was released in the spring of 1998; Man Ain't Made of Stone followed a year later.
Traveling the familiar country route, he released an album of traditional and contemporary religious songs, Inspirational Journey, which hit the stores in late 2000. The album went on to win two awards at the Gospel Music Association's 32nd Annual Dove Awards in 2001; Inspirational Journey took home honors for Country/Bluegrass Album of the Year and Country Recorded Song of the Year for "Baptism." Selected songs from the album also made their way into the two-part finale for Touched by an Angel, which featured Travis in character. Two years later, Travis continued with his gospel fare with the release of Rise and Shine, followed by the similarly reverent Worship & Faith, Passing Through, and Glory Train. Around the Bend appeared in 2008. ~ Brian Mansfield & Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Randy Travis sings his chart-topping song "Three Wooden Crosses," at the DoD-sponsored salute to Korean War veterans at the MCI Center in Washington, July 26, 2003.
Randy Travis (born May 4, 1959) is a Grammy Award- and Dove Award-winning Americancountry singer. Active since 1985, he has recorded more than a dozen studio albums to date, in addition to charting more than thirty singles on the BillboardHot Country Songs charts, of which sixteen have reached Number One.
Considered a pivotal figure in the history of country music,[1] Travis broke through in the mid-1980s with the release of his album Storms of Life on Warner Bros. Records; the album sold more than three million copies. It also established him as a neotraditionalist country act, and was followed by a string of several more platinum and multi-platinum albums throughout his career. Starting in the mid-1990s, however, Travis saw decline in his chart success. He left Warner Bros. in 1997 for DreamWorks Records; there, he would eventually switch his focus to gospel music, a switch which — despite earning him only one more country hit in the Number One "Three Wooden Crosses" — earned him several Dove Awards.
Travis, in addition to singing, holds several acting credits, starting with his television special Wind in the Wire in 1992. Since then, he has appeared in several movie and television roles, occasionally as himself.
Travis was born Randy Bruce Traywick in Marshville, North Carolina,[1] the second of six children of Bobbie, a textile factory worker, and Harold Traywick, a horse breeder, turkey farmer, and construction business owner.[2][3] While growing up, Travis was forced to take guitar lessons by his father and began performing at the age of eight with his brother, Ricky. Travis began drinking at the age of 12, and by 14 was a regular marijuana user, who occasionally tried harder drugs. He often fought with his father and soon dropped out of high school.[4] He became a juvenile delinquent and was arrested for various offenses, including auto theft and burglary. Travis has since voiced regret for his past misdeeds.[5]
Harold Traywick entered Randy and Ricky in a talent contest at a nightclub called "Country City, USA" in Charlotte, North Carolina. Randy and Ricky shared their small time success with another local from Forest Hills High School, James "Spanky" Deese. Deese was one of the town's best football athletes at the time. Randy and Rickey encouraged Deese to pursue a life of music with them. In the meantime, Ricky, who also had brushes with the law, was sentenced to jail and Randy had to complete the contest alone, but he won anyway. The club's manager, Elizabeth "Lib" Hatcher, took an interest in Travis and gave him a job singing at the club.[3] Travis began focusing on music. He first recorded for Paula Records and released two unsuccessful singles — "She's My Woman" and "Dreamin'". Travis' legal troubles continued and he was due in court for probation violations. Hatcher pleaded with the judge and Travis was released in her custody with the warning that if the judge ever saw him again "he'd better bring his toothbrush, because he would be going to jail for a very long time."
Travis moved in with Hatcher. This put further strain on her already fragile marriage. She eventually left her husband and, in 1982, she and Travis moved to Nashville, Tennessee. Travis was soon turned down by every record label in town. His early demo tapes were criticized by Nashville record executives as being "too country." Hatcher took a job as manager of a nightclub, "The Nashville Palace" and hired Travis as a cook and singer.[3] It was during this time that an unlikely romance began to form between the two; Travis said "I think we discovered how much we needed each other."[6]
Career
In 1982, Travis recorded an independent album Randy Ray Live and Lib Hatcher used it to secure a deal with Warner Bros. Records. However, the label said they had to keep their romance a secret so as not to turn away fans, and changed his stage name from Randy Ray to Randy Travis.[6] In 1985, Warner Brothers released the single "On the Other Hand" which peaked at #67 on the country charts. His next single, "1982", became a Top 10 hit followed by the re-release of "On the Other Hand" in 1986. The re-release became Travis' first number one hit.
His debut album, Storms of Life, went on to sell more than 4 million copies. In the late 1980s he had a string of hits, including "No Place Like Home" and "Diggin' Up Bones." A song from his second Warner Brothers album "Always and Forever" titled "Forever and Ever, Amen" arguably launched the neo-traditionalist country era, boosting the popularity of country music beyond its traditional fan base[citation needed]. For two years in a row, Travis won the Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance, for the albums Always & Forever in 1988, and for Old 8x10 in 1989. Off the success of his first two albums, Old 8x10 was certified platinum, and [3]Always and Forever was number one for 43 weeks.
Travis and Hatcher married in 1991. That year Travis took part in Voices That Care, a multi-artist project that featured other top names in music for a one-off single to raise money for the allied troops in the Gulf War. The project included fellow singers Garth Brooks, Kenny Rogers and Kathy Mattea. By 1992, Travis was no longer charting high, as artists such as Garth Brooks, Clint Black and others had begun to gain success. He took a break from music to concentrate on acting and landed roles in several Western-genre films. He returned to recording with the 1994 album This Is Me and the hit single "Whisper My Name".
In 1997, Travis parted ways with Warner Brothers. He moved to DreamWorks Nashville and recorded You and You Alone, which produced the top 10 hits "Out of My Bones" and "Spirit of a Boy, Wisdom of a Man." These were followed by the albums Inspirational Journey (2000), Rise and Shine (2002), and Worship & Faith (2003). The single "Three Wooden Crosses" from the Rise and Shine album reached No. 1 and won the CMA song of the year in 2003. That same year, Travis ranked #13 on CMT's 40 Greatest Men of Country Music. Travis continued to act in film and television; he appeared in several episodes and in the series finale of Touched by an Angel.[7] His album, Passing Through, was released in November 2004. It combined the country music of his earlier years, with the gospel influences from his more recent albums. After the release of Glory Train: Songs of Faith, Worship, and Praise in 2005 and the Christmas album Songs of the Season in 2007, Travis released his brand new single "Faith in You" as a free download from his official website. It heralded the July 2008 release of his latest album, Around the Bend. Along with the release of the free single, RandyTravis.com also underwent a complete overhaul, with opportunities for fans to create blogs and join an upcoming official fan club. Writer Anthony Maurizio has created the Digging Up Bones blog series, which presents an insight into the current events involving Randy Travis and draws the highest number of visitors to the website[citation needed].
In 1991, Lina Accurso, a freelance writer from New York, filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission about Travis's song "Point of Light". She charged that the single (released during a United States election year) qualified as political advertising for President George H.W. Bush, since Roger Ailes produced the video and Sig Rogich, a White House publicist at the time, co-wrote the song. The FEC rejected the complaint, ruling that the song and video "neither expressly advocate the election of, nor solicit contributions on behalf of, Mr. Bush."[8]
Personal life
A June 25, 1989, article in the New York Times stated that "there is no mistaking the affection in [Travis' & Hatchers'] relationship or the strength each derives from it."[9] Nevertheless, in 1991, a tabloid ran an article with claims that Travis was gay and that he was looking for a boyfriend. The incident infuriated him and motivated him and Elizabeth "Lib" Hatcher to come forward with their relationship; they were married twelve weeks later in a private ceremony.[6]
Travis is a born-again Christian and has released four Christian or Gospel records, which are, in chronological order, Inspirational Journey; Rise and Shine; Worship and Faith; and Glory Train.
