Country singer Randy Travis is in critical condition at a hospital in Plano, Texas, after suffering a stroke, the Baylor Health Care System says.
He underwent surgery Wednesday night to relieve pressure on his brain, the hospital system adds. Word of his stroke came that evening.
Travis, 54, was brought to the hospital on Sunday. Doctors say he had developed a viral upper respiratory illness and was suffering from "presumptive cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure." On Tuesday, the Dallas Morning Newsadds:
" The beloved Tioga resident had a pump surgically implanted in his left ventricle that allows the heart to keep pumping blood in case it fails."
Reuters writes that Travis, "a six-time Grammy award winner known for hits such as 'Forever and Ever, Amen' and 'Three Wooden Crosses' ... has received an outpouring of well wishes from country music stars and his fans."
The wire service also notes that "legal troubles have put Travis in the spotlight in the past year. He was arrested after Texas state troopers found him lying naked in the road near his crashed car almost a year ago. He pleaded guilty to drunken driving and was sentenced to two years' probation and ordered to serve 30 days at an in-patient alcohol treatment facility."
The Associated Press offers a " playlist of five of Randy Travis' greatest songs":
-- "Three Wooden Crosses"
-- "Forever and Ever, Amen"
-- "Angels"
-- "On the Other Hand"
-- "I Told You So"
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