Skaggs pens autobiography

Growing up in the small town of Cordell, Ky., Skaggs learned to play the mandolin at five years old. By the time he was six years old, Skaggs' talent was clear enough that his daddy knew he had to get that boy onstage. When Bill Monroe rolled into a nearby small town, Ricky was there. As the crowd cheered, "Let little Ricky sing one" so began a storied life in music.

Despite the hit singles, gold records, and successful tours, Skaggs knew there was more to his mission, Skaggs had a failed marriage and a sometimes strained relationship with his children. But he embraced Christianity and remarried.

In "Kentucky Traveler," Skaggs gives a warm memoir of decades in music - along with the Ten Commandments of Bluegrass, as handed down by Skaggs' mentor Bill Monroe; the Essential Guide to Bedrock Country Songs, a lovingly compiled walk through the songs that have moved Skaggs the most throughout his life; Songs the Lord Taught Us, a primer on Skaggs' most essential gospel songs; and personal snapshots of his musical heroes.

Skaggs has again teamed with Bruce Hornsby for a life disc, "Cluck Ol' Hen," due out, due out Aug. 20.