Travis was born in Marshville, North Carolina, the second of six children of Bobbie, a textile factory worker, and Harold Traywick, a horse breeder, turkey farmer, and construction business owner. 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 dabbled in harder drugs. He often fought with his father and soon dropped out of high school. He became a juvenile delinquent and was arrested for various offenses, including auto theft and burglary.
Harold Traywick entered Randy and Ricky in a talent contest at a nightclub called "Country City, USA" in Charlotte, North Carolina. 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. 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. 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."
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. In 1985, Warner Brothers released Travis' single, "On the Other Hand," which topped out 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. 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 shipped platinum. 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 Brooks, Clint Black and others had taken over Nashville. 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 2000's albums Inspirational Journey, 2002's Rise and Shine and 2003's Worship and Faith. 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 continues to act in film and television; he appeared on the series finale of Touched by an Angel. His second most recent album, Passing Through, was released in November of 2004. It combines the country music of his earlier years, with a little gospel mixed in from more recent albums. After the release of "Glory Train" 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 heralds the projected summer [2008] release of his forthcoming album, "Around the Bend". Along with the release of the free single, RandyTravis.com has also underwent a complete overhaul, with opportunities for fans to create blogs and join an upcoming official fan club. The new sleek look of the website has attracted throngs of fans. Contributor Anthony Maurizio has recently produced the Digging Up Bones blog series on the website, which has increased website traffic and is considered one of the most esteemed country music articles available for reading.
Stranger In My Mirror
Randy Travis Lyrics
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Who don't know how to behave
He keeps grinnin' 'bout you and whistlin' tunes
While he ought to be watchin' me shave
We move alike and we look the same,
But I swear we've got totally different brains,
And the love we're in with you,
Just makes it clearer,
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
And he doesn't want to go out drinkin',
With all of his friends no more,
He's got both of thinkin', you're what we're livin' for
We've gone crazy and we can't recover
You're always on one mind or the other,
I admit we should be certified,
He's a little schizophrenic and so am I,
There's a stranger in my mirror
Who don't know how to behave
He keeps grinnin' bout you and whistlin' tunes
While he ought to be watchin' me shave
We move alike and we look the same,
But I swear we've got totally different brains,
And the love we're in with you,
Just makes it clearer,
He used to be my twin,
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
And he's always doin' little things,
I never thought I'd do,
Like lookin' at diamond rings,
Drawin' hearts and writin' I love you's,
Thought it was just a case of mild affection
Until I caught a glimpse of my reflection
I looked up into my own eyes
And saw someone startin' back I didn't recognize.
There's a stranger in my mirror
Who don't know how to behave
He keeps grinnin' bout you and whistlin' tunes
While he ought to be watchin' me shave
We move alike and we look the same,
But I swear we've got totally different brains,
And the love we're in with you,
Just makes it clearer,
He used to be my twin,
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
Lord, I'm in love with you,
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
The song "Stranger In My Mirror" by Randy Travis talks about the changes that love can bring in a person's life. The song speaks of a man who is experiencing a new version of himself, a version that is lovestruck and consumed by affection. The man in the song is seeing a different version of himself in the mirror, as he is caught up in the joy and fear of loving someone - someone who tends to push him to do things he wouldn’t normally do.
The lyrics talk about how the man’s entire personality has changed because of this newfound love. He feels like there's someone else looking back at him in the mirror. The new “him” is different from the person he used to be. He draws hearts, writes "I love you's," and even talks differently – things he never thought he would do. He’s aware of the change happening within and ambiguously aware of the disorderly nature of what he is experiencing.
The song is emotional, and it speaks to the overwhelming nature of love. It describes how it makes people feel and the power it holds over them. It's a clear illustration of how love can change people – how it can consume them entirely, making them unrecognizable to not just themselves, but to everyone around them.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a stranger in my mirror
I don't recognize myself anymore because of how much I've changed since falling in love with you.
Who don't know how to behave
The person I see in the mirror acts differently than I used to, which is unsettling.
He keeps grinnin' 'bout you and whistlin' tunes
I'm so in love with you that it's all I can think about, even when I'm shaving or doing other mundane things.
While he ought to be watchin' me shave
I should be focused on myself and my appearance, but I'm distracted by thoughts of you.
We move alike and we look the same,
Physically, I haven't changed, but mentally I'm completely different now.
But I swear we've got totally different brains,
My thoughts and actions are now completely different than before I fell in love with you.
And the love we're in with you,
Our love for you is so strong that it's made me feel like a different person.
Just makes it clearer,
My transformation is becoming more evident as time goes by.
He used to be my twin,
I used to be the same person I see in the mirror, but not anymore.
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
I'm so changed by our love that I no longer recognize myself.
And he doesn't want to go out drinkin',
I'm not interested in the same activities or socializing with the same friends as before.
With all of his friends no more,
I'm more interested in spending time with you than going out and socializing with my friends.
He's got both of thinkin', you're what we're livin' for
Our love for you is all-consuming and we constantly think about you.
We've gone crazy and we can't recover
Our love for you has made us act irrational at times and there's no going back.
You're always on one mind or the other,
Thoughts of you are always at the forefront of my mind, even when I'm doing other things.
I admit we should be certified,
Our obsession with you is so intense that we should probably seek professional help.
He's a little schizophrenic and so am I,
Our love for you has made us act in unpredictable ways, similar to symptoms of schizophrenia.
And he's always doin' little things,
I find myself doing things that I never thought I would before falling in love with you.
I never thought I'd do,
My behavior has changed significantly since falling in love with you.
Like lookin' at diamond rings,
I'm now interested in things like jewelry and other romantic gestures that I never cared about before.
Drawin' hearts and writin' I love you's,
I find myself leaving romantic notes and messages for you as a way to express my love.
Thought it was just a case of mild affection
I thought my feelings for you were just a passing infatuation, but they've become so much more.
Until I caught a glimpse of my reflection
I didn't realize how much I'd changed until I saw my new reflection in the mirror.
I looked up into my own eyes
I took a long, hard look at myself and realized that I'm not the same person I used to be.
And saw someone startin' back I didn't recognize.
The person I see in the mirror is so changed that I no longer feel like I know myself.
Lord, I'm in love with you,
My love for you is so strong that it's changed me fundamentally, and I can no longer recognize myself in the mirror.
Now there's a stranger in my mirror
Our love has made me a completely different person.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: DONALD EWING II, KIM WILLIAMS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind