by Stephen Thomas Erlewine As Randy Travis has never attempted to shroud his influences in secrecy, there arent a lot of surprises on Influence, Vol. 1: The Man I Am. He does romp through Louis Armstrongs "Big Butter and Egg Man," but there are so many Merle Haggard tunes ("Someday Well Look Back," "What Have You Got Planned Tonight Diana," "Ever Changing Woman," "Im Always on a Mountain When I Fall") this could almost be classified as a tribute. After all, the Bob Wills song here, "Trouble in Mind," was a Merle Haggard staple, and the Lefty Frizzell and Ernest Tubb songs ("Saginaw, Michigan" and "Trouble in Mind," respectively) seem as if he cut them. Travis stretches out a little bit at the end by recording Waylon Jennings version of Billy Joe Shavers "You Asked Me To," and saluting George Jones via a version of "Why Baby Why" and his newly written tribute "Tonight Im Playing Possum," a new song that provides the hook into this covers record and is a pretty good little tune. The whole affair doesnt deliver anything unexpected, but thats also its appeal: Travis doesnt surprise, he satisfies, and hearing him sing songs he loves is certainly a good time.