The inspiration for Randy Travis‘s hit song “Is It Still Over?” came from a conversation he had with his producer, Kyle Lehning, about his admiration for Lefty Frizzell. Lehning was not familiar with Frizzell, which made Travis concerned about whether he was the right man to guide his career. To educate Lehning, Travis gave him a copy of Frizzell’s greatest hits album. After listening to the album, Lehning understood and recognized the influence Frizzell had on country music.
The songwriters, Ken Bell and Larry Henley, came up with the idea for “Is It Still Over?” during one of their weekly writing sessions. Henley had recently broken up with his girlfriend and decided to call her to see if they were still over. Bell heard the title in Henley’s quip and suggested they write a song around it. They wrote the entire song in about 20 minutes, recording it on a small tape recorder while they laughed and joked around.
Henley later ran into Martha Sharp of Warner Bros. Records and pitched the song to her for Randy Travis. Since they didn’t have a demo, Henley gave her the work tape containing all the laughter and cutting up from their writing session. Fortunately, the musicians were able to construct the melody from the work tape and, after six attempts, Travis and Lehning were finally satisfied with the musical track. The song peaked at number one on the Billboard country singles chart on May 13, 1989, becoming Travis’s ninth number one hit.
Artist: Randy Travis
Released: 1988
Album: Old 8×10
Featured artist: Carrie Underwood
Lyrics
Being without you has turned out to be so inconvenient
And wishing I was with you just seems to use up all my time
You been gone so long that it’s hard to recall just how the dream went
And all but this broken heart in me, I guess is doing’ fine
Is it still over? Are we still through?
Since my phone still ain’t ringing
I assume it still ain’t you
I’ve half a mind to take the time to find somebody new
But I’m not to sure that I’m still over you
That lie that I tried to slip by you was told with good intentions
It was just another way to say, “I love you” and protect you from the truth
And half a pound of cure is surely worth a half an ounce of pure prevention
And trying to explain while I’m insane’s the hardest thing I’ve ever tried to do
Is it still over? Are we still through?
Since my phone still ain’t ringing
I assume it still ain’t you
Well, I’ve half a mind to take the time to find somebody new
But I’m not sure that I’m still over you
Is it still over? Are we still through?
Since my phone still ain’t ringing
I assume it still ain’t you
Well, I’ve half a mind to take the time to find somebody new
But I’m not sure that I’m still over you
If I repeat myself it’s ’cause I’ve nothing else to do
And I’m not sure that I’m still over you
I’m not sure that I’m still over you
