Grand Ole Opry Will Honor Randy Travis On His 60th Birthday

Country music legend Randy Travis, known for hits such as "Three Wooden Crosses" and "I Told You So," turns 60 years old on May 4th.  To commemorate the milestone, the Grand Ole Opry is planning a special tribute to Travis, while the flagship radio station of the Opry, 650 AM-WSM, has named Randy Travis their Artist of the Month with special programming beginning for the country legend on Monday, April 29th.

The May 4th Opry presentation will include an appearance by Randy Travis himself, along with fellow Country Music Hall of Famer Don Schlitz, who wrote or co-wrote many of Randy's biggest hits, including "Deeper Than The Holler," "Forever And Ever, Amen," "Heroes And Friends," "On the Other Hand" and "Point Of Light." Also making appearances as part of the tribute will be Josh Turner, Charlie Worsham, and Nashville TV star turned Opry regular, Charles Esten.

Also on May 4, Randy Travis will release his autobiography. Thomas Nelson, a division of HarperCollins, will release the memoir, Forever and Ever, Amen: A Memoir of Music, Faith, and Braving the Storms of Life, on May 14. Travis wrote the book with Ken Abraham. 

Travis opens up for the first time in the book about his troubled working-class childhood in North Carolina, highlighted by a difficult relationship with his father and punctuated by drinking and stealing cars. Country music helped him escape that situation, and Travis became one of the leading lights in the genre in the 1980s and '90s with a string of hits that included "On the Other Hand," "1982," "Digging up Bones," "Forever and Ever, Amen," "I Told You So" and more. 

"I didn't really feel I had a book to write until I stood on the distant shore and looked back over the ripples my life has made on myself and on others. My songs were the stories of my life and I learned from those who listened, they were theirs too. My fans inspired me and continue to do so," said Travis

He recounts his troubled youth full of drinking and stealing cars, a tense relationship with his father and his life in music and acting.

"I learned a lot about myself going back through the chronicles of my past. In my waning years of ability, I have a clearer picture of the past. It's an interesting game of patience to sit and wait for the clocks of time to expose so much," said Travis. "As the candle burns, it is time to share the history that made me who I am, tell the backstory to some of my songs, give insight to the challenges I faced, and reflect on the blessings through it all."

 

 

 

 

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