Crackin' Up! was Ray Stevens' twenty-fourth studio album and his fourth for MCA Records, released in 1987. Three singles were lifted from the album: "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex," "Three-Legged Man" and "Sex Symbols," the last two of which did not chart.
The Gambler is the sixth studio album by Kenny Rogers, released by United Artists in December 1978. One of his most popular, it has established Rogers' status as one of the most successful artists of the 1970s and 1980s. The album reached many markets around the world, such as the Far East and Jamaica, with Rogers later commenting "When I go to Korea or Hong Kong people say 'Ah, the gambler!'". The album has sold over 35 million copies.
He Thinks He's Ray Stevens was Ray Stevens' twenty-first studio album and his first for MCA Records, released in 1984. The front of the album cover shows Stevens spoofing French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. It was recorded in an effort to reestablish Stevens as a comic singer after a period in the early 1980s when he had focused mainly on serious material.
Surely You Joust was Ray Stevens' twenty-third studio album and his third for MCA Records. The album's front cover shows Stevens disguised as a medieval knight with a horse standing next to him. The album's back cover shows Stevens in the same costume but in a junk pile with two junk men. Three singles were lifted from the album: "Southern Air", "People's Court", and "Can He Love You Half as Much as I", the last of which did not chart.
Always & Forever is the second studio album by country music singer Randy Travis. It was released on May 4, 1987, by Warner Bros. Records. Released from this album were the singles "Too Gone Too Long", "I Won't Need You Anymore ", "Forever and Ever, Amen" and "I Told You So", all of which reached Number One on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. On the award winning podcast Never Not Funny, it was revealed that the album was comedian Jimmy Pardo's second-favorite album of 1987, just behind Don Dixon's Romeo at Juilliard.
White Limozeen is the twenty-ninth solo studio album by Dolly Parton. It was released on May 30, 1989, by Columbia Records. The album returned the performer to the country music fold, after the critical and commercial failure of 1987's Rainbow. The album was produced by Ricky Skaggs, and featured a duet with Mac Davis, along with a cover version of Don Francisco's Christian classic, "He's Alive", as well as a bluegrass cover of the 1978 REO Speedwagon hit "Time for Me to Fly." For Parton's efforts, she was rewarded with two country #1 singles: "Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That" and "Yellow Roses". The album spent 100 weeks and peaked at #3 on the U.S. country albums chart and won Parton back much of the critical praise she had lost with Rainbow. It ended up being certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Storms of Life is the debut studio album by country music star Randy Travis, and was released on June 2, 1986 by Warner Bros. Records Nashville. Certified 3× Multi-Platinum by the RIAA for American shipments of three million copies. it features the singles "On the Other Hand", "1982", "Diggin' up Bones" and "No Place Like Home". Although "On the Other Hand" charted at number 67 on the Hot Country Songs charts upon its initial release, the song reached number one on the same chart once it was re-released, following "1982" which peaked at number six. "Diggin' up Bones" also reached number one, while "No Place Like Home" peaked at number two.
Boogity, Boogity – A Tribute to the Comic Genius of Ray Stevens is a tribute album recorded by country music singer/parodist Cledus T. Judd. It contains Judd's renditions of twelve songs previously recorded by country music artist Ray Stevens, largely with duet partners. Stevens himself is featured on the cover of "The Streak". "Gitarzan", featuring former Trick Pony lead vocalist Heidi Newfield, was the only single released from this project.
Beside Myself was Ray Stevens' twenty-sixth studio album and his sixth for MCA Records, released in 1989. It includes the singles "I Saw Elvis in a UFO" and "There's a Star Spangled Banner." The album was also his last for MCA Records before he moved to Curb Records for his next studio album, 1990's Lend Me Your Ears.
No Holdin' Back is the fourth studio album by American country music singer Randy Travis. It was released on September 26, 1989, by Warner Bros. Records Nashville. Three singles were released from it, all of which charted on the Hot Country Songs charts: the Number One hits "It's Just a Matter of Time" and "Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart", as well as the #2 hit "He Walked on Water". "It's Just a Matter of Time" was previously a Number One hit for Brook Benton in 1959 on the R&B charts, and for Sonny James in 1970 on the country charts. Glen Campbell also had a #7-peaking rendition of the song in 1986.
A Bridge I Didn't Burn is the sixth studio album by Country music artist Ricky Van Shelton. The tracks "A Couple of Good Years Left" and "Where Was I" were released as singles. The first failed to reach the top 40 while the latter peaked at number 20 on the charts.
Kenny Rogers is the second studio album by Kenny Rogers from United Artists Records, released worldwide in 1977. The album marked his first major solo success following the minor success of Love Lifted Me in 1976.
Misty was Ray Stevens' twelfth studio album as well as being his seventh and final for Barnaby Records. It was released in 1975. This album contains primarily cover versions of various songs that were popular from the 1920s to the 1950s, though there are two original songs for the album as well. Four singles were lifted from the album: the title track, "Indian Love Call," "Young Love," and "Mockingbird Hill".
Kentucky Thunder is the tenth studio album by American country music artist Ricky Skaggs. It was released in 1989 via Epic Records. The album peaked at number 18 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.
Be Your Own Best Friend was Ray Stevens' sixteenth studio album as well as his fourth and final for Warner Bros. Records, released in 1978. The third track, "You've Got the Music Inside," is a re-recording of a track that was from Stevens' 1973 album Nashville.
One More Last Chance was Ray Stevens' eighteenth studio album as well and his second for RCA Records, released in 1981. The front of the album cover shows Stevens dressed in cowboy attire and at a bar with a pretty, flirtatious woman standing at his side. The singles "Night Games" and "One More Last Chance" were lifted from this album. The album was a pivot back toward more serious material for Stevens, as he felt that the novelty music he had been recording in the late 1970s was falling out of fashion; he would eventually return to the novelty music in 1984.
#1 with a Bullet is the twenty-eighth studio album of American country and comedy singer Ray Stevens. It was released in June 1991. The album includes the singles "Working for the Japanese" and "Power Tools", which respectively reached numbers 62 and 72 on the Hot Country Songs charts. The album also includes a re-recording of "The Pirate Song," which was originally recorded for his 1986 album I Have Returned.
I Never Made a Record I Didn't Like is Ray Stevens' twenty-fifth studio album and his fifth for MCA Records, released in 1988. Two singles were lifted from the album: "Surfin' U.S.S.R." and "The Day I Tried to Teach Charlene Mackenzie How to Drive." The "Surfin' U.S.S.R." single was accompanied with a music video. The song blends the sound of the Beach Boys with the real world events of the Soviet Union. The second single tells the story of how Stevens attempts to teach a deaf woman how to drive. The character would play an important role several years later when Stevens filmed his direct-to-home video movie, Get Serious!. Connie Freeman portrayed Charlene Mackenzie in the movie.
Me was Ray Stevens' twentieth studio album and his third and final for Mercury Records, released in 1983. In 1982, Stevens returned briefly to Mercury to record this album before moving to MCA Records in 1984. The front of the album cover shows Stevens portraying a painter painting a self-portrait; while the back shows the finished portrait on a table along with a second self-portrait that is sketched by pencil, a cup filled with paint brushes, the paint tray, tubes of paint, a small glass filled with water and a rose, and a lamp. Two singles were lifted from the album: "Love Will Beat Your Brains Out" and "My Dad."
Higher Ground is the twenty-seventh studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Tammy Wynette. It was released on July 6, 1987, by Epic Records.
