Forever and Ever, Amen: A Memoir of Music, Faith, and Braving the Storms of Life

By Randy Travis and Ken Abraham

Narrated by Rory Feek

A riveting tale of

• unfathomable success
• great joy
• deep pain, and 
• redemption that can come only from above.

From a working-class background in North Carolina to a job as a cook and club singer in Nashville to his "overnight success" with his smash 1986 album Storms of Life--which launched the neotraditional movement in country music--Randy's first three decades are a true rags-to-riches story. But in 2009, this seemingly charmed life began a downward spiral. His marriage dissolved, he discovered that his finances had unraveled, and his struggles with anger led to alcohol abuse, public embarrassment, and even police arrest in 2012.

Then, just as he was putting his life back together, Randy suffered a devastating viral cardiomyopathy that led to a massive stroke which he was not expected to survive. Yet he not only survived but also learned to walk again and, in 2016, accepted his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame by singing the hymn that explains his life today: "Amazing Grace."

Filled with never-before-told stories, Forever and Ever, Amen is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at dizzying success and the miraculous road to restoration.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: May 14, 2019
• ISBN: 9781400208005

Randy Travis

Randy Travis is a country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. Since 1985, he has recorded twenty studio albums and charted more than fifty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts and had twenty-two #1 hits. His debut album, Storms of Life, sold more than 4 million copies and established him as a major force in the neotraditional country movement. Travis followed up his successful debut with a string of platinum and multi-platinum albums. A member of the Grand Ole Opry, he has sold more than 25 million records, and has earned six #1 albums, seven Grammy Awards, five CMA Awards, eleven ACM Awards, 10 AMA Awards, eight Dove Awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2016, Travis was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Reviews for Forever and Ever, Amen

[johatt212 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It’s always best to read an autobiographical book. It’s the best way to learn the truth.

[Thomas East · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

You felt like you was right there with Randy through it all!!!

[BRENDA COVEY · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed reading about his climb to success. In the 80’s he was really popular. But then he fell off the radar. It was interesting to hear what happened to him later and how he persevered all of his obstacles.

[Guyla Armstrong · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I didn’t have any knowledge about Randy’s story and it was so worth my time to listen. Rory Feek did a great job narrating it, too. I highly recommend it to any one - country fans or not!

[Patrice E Christie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What an incredible inspiration! To struggle and rise and fall and rise again this time with God's great grace is an amazing thing. I am grateful that Randy and Ken and Mary took the time and effort to tell this story as honestly as they could and as eloquently as they did. It was a life-changing, thought provoking book that reveals God in all His glory at work in the life of one man and the people whose lives he touched

[Rodger Hutchison · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I can personally relate to Randy and his story. Not musically as I can’t play a radio without static. However, I was,( as I am now,{ a common working man}, father of two daughters attending college in Louisiana and husband to 1 wife for 29 years... I was n administrative sales manager of a construction supply retail outlet in Northern California. May 4th, 2013 I had a major Middle Right cerebral, Ischemic stroke. Due the brain swelling, zI had to undergo a surgical procedure,
(Craniotomy), in which they removed the upper right section of my skull, while in ICU recovery from that procedure, I experienced a secondary infarction, (continuance of the primary stroke). I am typing this today as I remembered Randy having the same operation, I was curious how he was doing. In my search to find out, I learned of this book and had to have it. 2/3rds of my right Cerebellum died as a result of my stroke events. This equated to my left side hemiplegia. Because of the remaining life I had in my brain remaining, I was finally able to realize the condition I was in. Fortunately, I remembered who I use to be and realized God kept me alive for a reason. I knew my only choice was to find out what purpose He had for me the remainder of my life.
In this story of Randy’s, I can testify of the little improvements being significant victories. Indeed the plateaus come and it requires tremendous will to rise above them. As long as the improvements are God’s will, we appreciate the Amazing Grace of God and do what we humanly can to demonstrate the testimony of God’s sovereign purpose. I am encouraged even more after reading this book and recommend it to any survivor and caregiver experiencing the recovery process of stroke or other traumatic event. I am now 71/2 years into my recovery enjoying 1 year old grand-twins of our youngest daughter. Never give up on recovery if there is life after stroke. Because there can be life after stroke. You never know to what extent unless you give it your best.
Sincerely,
Rodger A. Hutchison
Katy, Texas

[david ward · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Well told story and highly recommend. I only knew Randy Travis for his “Forever and Ever Amen” song. And I’m not a country western listener. But this book is heartwarming and worthwhile.

[Rachel Smith · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful story, beautiful soul, amazing love, and country grit! Bless you Randy Travis and Mary Travis...I will keep y'all in my prayers as you continue to dig for truth with finances and fight for Randy's voice. This is probably the best bio I have listened to....I grew up in the Charlotte Metro area and there is no better person than Randy to represent the Tarheel State.

[kaulsu · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This audio book suffers from such poor production--well, it is sad that Travis didn't benefit from a first class, polished, presentation. Each chapter is announced. This is good--I've listened to books that didn't. I've also run across books that evidently didn't use periods, so perhaps I'm being a bit harsh. This book decided to eliminate paragraphs. One sentence on topic A just ran right in to some totally different topic. Was a shame.The book itself detailed Travis's life to the nth degree. Perhaps there were sins of omission, but it seemed like it was all there. If you aren't familiar with his work, listen to a few of the songs he mentions! You'll be in for a real treat.

[samsattler · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I can remember so clearly the first time I heard a Randy Travis recording and how excited I was to discover his first major label release, the album Storms of Life. To understand my excitement, you have to recall just how bad country music radio was in mid-1986 when that album came out of nowhere; traditional country music was on its deathbed, having been replaced by spawns of that awful Urban Cowboy craze that gave us the silliness of John Travolta being accepted as a cowboy role model, line-dancing, and some of the worst music I’ve ever heard. Fans of traditional country music were yearning for new songs in the style they had loved their entire lives – but no one in the industry was paying any attention.And then Randy Travis burst onto the scene as one of those overnight successes (who, of course, had been working for peanuts for years), and all was well in the world of country music again. Suddenly, everyone wanted to make music in Randy’s neo-traditionalist style and major labels were falling all over themselves trying to find their own version of Randy Travis. And for a while, that’s exactly what happened, enabling fans of real country music to hear the real thing on their radios for another few years. Sadly though, as soon as Randy’s generation hit middle age, the boom was over and country radio is worse today than it ever has been. But that’s not Randy’s fault. He did his bit.But it wasn’t easy. Forever and Ever, Amen is one of those conversational memoirs produced by so many celebrities and their co-authors (in this case that would be co-author Ken Abraham) that we’ve come to expect over the years. Reading them often has the feel of sitting down across the table from the celeb in question and listening to them reminisce for five or six hours. Forever and Ever, Amen is a little different, though, for readers who already know how the story is going to end. For those readers, this is more like watching one of those horror movies where you want to yell at the actors on screen not to go into that room or open that closet door. In the cases of Randy Travis, I wanted to yell at him, “Stay away from Lib Hatcher, whatever you do, Randy. Don’t listen to her.” Amazingly enough, Randy Travis is such a forgiving person that he gives Hatcher all the credit for making him into the huge country music star he became despite the fact that she robbed him blind in the process, manipulated everything in his personal life to her benefit, and is probably at least technically guilty of some level of child abuse (Travis was 17 years old when their relationship began and Hatcher is more than a decade older than him). He emphasizes her role in launching and managing his career, as well as in weaning him from the teenaged drugging and drinking habits that would have likely seen him end up in prison had he not met her. And even when enumerating the ways that Hatcher abused his trust in her, both financially and emotionally, Travis never adopts an angry tone.But there’s still the ending (at least for now it’s the ending) of the story, and that’s the part of Forever and Ever, Amen that I can’t imagine anyone reading with a dry eye. In 2013, Randy Travis suffered a massive stroke while in the midst of life-threatening breathing difficulties that stopped his heart in a hospital emergency room. Because he went into a coma at the same time, no one recognized that Travis had had a stroke and he was not treated for it until two days later, way too late to prevent massive brain damage and paralysis of his right side. It got so serious at one point that those closest to him were advised by doctors to pull the plug on him to end his suffering. When he did finally leave the hospital, the man had to learn to walk and talk again, and his recording career was over.But Randy Travis is not a quitter, so maybe one day we will be reading Forever and Ever, Amen, Part 2. I hope so. Bottom Line: Forever and Ever, Amen is a heartfelt memoir that tells the story of a man of faith who managed to beat the odds more than once in his life. His story is a remarkable one that will especially be appreciated by Randy Travis fans, but more importantly, it is an inspirational story powerful enough to change lives for the better.