South Dakota Author Talks New Book on Randy Travis

Is there anything Diane Diekman can't do? Born and raised as a farm girl, Diane would eventually join the U.S. Navy and rise all the way to the rank of Captain. She also developed a passion for two things: writing and country music.

I had the opportunity to sit down with Diane and speak with her about all things Randy Travis. In our interview, she talks about Randy's rise to fame, his recording process, and a day in July 2013 that would change his life forever.

You can listen to my interview with Diane in the KXRB Studio below.

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Diane' Diekman's book Randy Travis: Storms of Life is available on the University of Illinois Press Website. Here's a short write-up on the book:

Randy Travis’s 1986 breakthrough put him at the forefront of Nashville’s new traditionalist sound and, in the words of Garth Brooks, saved country music. The singer’s warm baritone and all-time classic songs like “Forever and Ever, Amen” landed him atop the charts sixteen times. His cross-genre appeal brought a level of multiplatinum success that no country artist before him had ever achieved.Diane Diekman’s biography follows the life and career of one of country music’s most beloved figures. Steered from a troubled path as a teen, Travis served a long apprenticeship under manager and future wife Lib Hatcher before being rejected by the Nashville music industry as “too country.” The single “On the Other Hand” and his smash debut album did away with the doubters and began a dominant four-year run that stretched into ongoing success as a recording artist, trailblazing live performer, and actor in film and television. Diekman uses dozens of interviews and extensive research to fill in the details of Travis’s pre-fame life and document his enormous impact on country, popular, and gospel music. From there, she pivots to telling the story of the singer’s difficult divorce from Hatcher, subsequent problems with alcohol and run-ins with the law, and the challenges he overcame in the aftermath of a devastating 2013 stroke.

Informed by a wealth of new research and interviews, Randy Travis is the first in-depth biography of the country music legend.

Diane has also chronicled the lives and careers of Marty Robbins and Faron Young. You can find more information on these books and Diane's work on her website.

Story Sources: Diane Diekman Website, University of Illinois Press Website