Randy Travis - Storms Of Life

Randy Travis' first major label album (after an independently released live set), Storms Of Life almost single-handedly yanked commercial country out of its '80s Urban Cowboy crossover phase and back to the music's rural roots.

Even better, it introduced a singer who mixed George Jones' clench-jawed intensity with hints of his idols Lefty Frizzell and Merle Haggard.

Beautifully produced by Klye Lehning, it's an all but perfect mixture of cheating songs (Reasons I Cheat) and weepers (like 1982 and The Other Hand - guess what's on it?) and up-tempo neo-honky-tonkers (There'll Always Be a Honky Tonk Somewhere). A great debut.

• On the Other Hand 
• Storms of Life  
• My Heart Cracked (But It Did Not Break)  
• Diggin' Up Bones 
• No Place Like Home 
• 1982 
• Send My Body 
• Messin' with My Mind 
• Reasons I Cheat 
• There'll Always Be a Honky Tonk Somewhere