returned to working on his own music career and recorded what was to be a new album for Warner Bros., Street Language. That album, a pop-sounding effort co–produced by David Malloy, was rejected by Warner Bros, and was rejected by the label and never released. Warner Bros. requested a more Nashville-friendly record, but Crowell negotiated a release from his contract and moved to Columbia Records. 1986–1995: Columbia Records and mainstream success After producing Rosanne Cash's Rhythm & Romance, Crowell signed to Columbia Records in 1986. His first album for that label was reworked Street Language, co-produced with Booker T. Jones and featuring a blend of soul and country music. The album did not chart. Although best known as a songwriter and alternative country artist, Crowell enjoyed mainstream popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s. His critically acclaimed album 1988's Diamonds & Dirt produced five consecutive No. 1 singles during a 17-month span in 1988 and 1989: "It's Such a Small World" (a duet with Cash), "I Couldn't Leave You If I Tried," "She's Crazy For Leavin'," "After All This Time" and "Above and Beyond" (a cover of Buck Owens' 1962 hit). Crowell's "After All This Time" won the 1990 Grammy Award for Best Country Song. His follow-up album, 1989's Keys to the Highway, produced two top 5 hits in 1990, which were "Many a Long and Lonesome Highway" and "If Looks Could Kill." After 1992's Life Is Messy, he left Columbia Records and signed to MCA Records where he released two more albums — Let the Picture Paint Itself and Jewel of the South. 2001–2010: Songwriting success, critical acclaim Crowell continued to enjoy success as a songwriter in the 1990s and 2000s. Crowell's songs that reached to Top Ten in the country charts in the decade included "Song for the Life" by Alan Jackson, "Making Memories of Us" by Keith Urban, "Ashes by Now" by Lee Ann Womack, and "Please Remember Me" by Tim McGraw. In 2001, after a brief hiatus from recording, Crowell released The Houston Kid on Sugar Hill Records, his first studio album since 1995's Jewel of the South. Many songs on the album were semi-autobiographical, and the album included a duet Crowell had recorded and released as a single in 1998 with his ex father-in-law Johnny Cash, "I Walk the Line Revisited". Crowell followed up this effort with Fate's Right Hand in 2003 and The