RANDY TRAVIS
THE COUNTRY MUSIC STAR HAS RELEASED HIS FIRST SINGLE SINCE HIS 2013 STROKE
After a devastating 2013 stroke stole his voice, the beloved country singer is releasing a new single and planning more projects.
Randy Travis’ warm, honeyed voice spins a wistful tale of forbidden love in the newly released single “Fool’s Love Affair.” The tune is an unexpected gift for his fans, who have been longing to hear new music from the country superstar since a debilitating stroke robbed him of his singing voice in 2013. “It gives me goose bumps,” Randy’s wife, Mary Travis, tells Closer about the single, which Randy recorded as a demo in the 1980s. “It’s a song that just needs to be out there.”
Randy limits his answers to one-word replies during the couple’s interview with
Closer, leaving his wife of five years to do most of the talking. Mary explains that at home in Texas, they often communicate wordlessly. “We’ve had to learn a new language,” she says. “I kind of started learning to read his mind. I know what his needs are and just pay attention. I think it’s so important that we listen to each other. You just let your heart speak.”
Though there remain many challenges in their life together, the pair “laugh a little bit every day,” says Mary. “It’s by God’s grace and Randy’s will that we got through the stroke and its aftermath. But there never really was a Plan B. Our commitment only got stronger.”
NEW CHALLENGES
The release of “Fool’s Love Affair,” which coincides with the 35th anniversary of Randy’s first single, “On the Other Hand,” is the first of many projects for the couple. “There’s a two-hour documentary that will becoming out,” says Mary, explaining that the filmmakers shot footage of Randy pre- and post-stroke. “We’ve also been approached to do a movie.”
And they hope to release many more of Randy’s lost recordings. “There’s a whole album of tracks that Randy laid down through the years,” says Mary, adding that the songs include traditional country, as well as dips into gospel, swing and jazz.
It’s been seven years since Randy’s stroke, but the couple don’t look back. “We’re traveling a different road with different scenery, but it still has silver linings,” says Mary. “There’s just so many blessings in it.” —