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Conway Twitty

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Conway Twitty

Conway Twitty (September 1 1933 - June 5 1993), born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was one of the United States' most successful country music artists of the 20th century.

He had the most singles (55) reach Number 1 on various national music charts. Up until George Strait broke the record for most number 1's on the Billboard country chart with 43, Twitty had 42 (counting his pop number 1 with "It's Only Make Believe", and a B-sided country single). Most commonly thought of as a country music singer, he also enjoyed success in early Rock and Roll, R&B, and Pop music (among others).

Biography

Early life

Conway Twitty was born Harold Lloyd Jenkins on September 1 1933 in Friars Point, Mississippi.

Jenkins was named by his great uncle after his favorite silent movie actor, Harold Lloyd. The Jenkins family moved to Helena, Arkansas (now known as Helena-West Helena, Arkansas) when Jenkins was 10 years of age, and it was in Helena that Jenkins put together his first singing group, the Phillips County Ramblers.[citation needed]

Two years later, he had his own local radio show every Saturday morning. Jenkins also practiced his second passion, baseball. He received an offer to play with the Philadelphia Phillies after high school, but he was drafted into the Army, which effectively put an end to that dream.[citation needed]

Inspired by Elvis

After his discharge from the Army, Jenkins again pursued a music career. After hearing Elvis Presley's song, "Mystery Train", he began writing rock 'n' roll material. As a matter of course, he headed for the Sun Studios in /Mephis, Tennessee and worked with Sam Phillips, owner and founder of Sun Studios, to get the "right" sound.[citation needed]

Source of stage name

Jenkins felt that his real name wasn't marketable, and he changed his show business name in 1957. (Harold Lloyd Jenkins would always remain his legal name, however). Looking at a road map, he spotted Conway, Arkansas and Twitty, Texas. Thus, he went with the professional name of "Conway Twitty".[citation needed]

Alternatively, Jenkins met a Richmond, VA, man named W. Conway Twitty Jr. through Jenkins' manager in a New York City restaurant. The manager served in the army with the real Conway Twitty. Later, the manager suggested to Jenkins that he take the name as his stage name because it had a ring to it. The Richmond Conway Twitty subsequently recorded the song, "What's in a Name But Trouble," in the mid-1960s, lamenting the loss of his name to Jenkins. The flip side of the 45 RPM record was "The One-Eyed One-Horned Flying Purple People Eater." ( The more well known version of Purple People Eater, however, now having sold over 100,000,000 copies was recorded by Sheb Wooley )

First successes

"It's Only Make Believe" was recorded in 1958 and became the first of nine Top 40 hits for Twitty, selling eight million copies. The song was written between sets by Conway and drummer Jack Nance when they were in Hamilton, Ontario playing at the Flamingo Lounge.[1]

Rock successes

Twitty's fortunes changed in 1958, while he was with MGM Records. An Ohio radio station did not play "I'll Try", an MGM single that went basically nowhere in terms of sales, radio play, and jukebox play, instead playing the "B side" of the single. The B side was a song called "It's Only Make Believe". It was popular in Ohio, and was gradually becoming popular throughout the country, as well.

For a brief period in Twitty's music career, some believed that he was Elvis Presley recording under a different name. This was largely the case with "It's Only Make Believe." The record took nearly one year in all to reach and stay at the top spot of the charts. The song went on to sell over 8 million records and to No. 1 on the Billboard pop music charts in the U.S. as well as No. 1 in 21 different nations.

Twitty would go on to enjoy rock-n-roll success with a song like "Danny Boy" and "Lonely Blue Boy". "Lonely Blue Boy" was originally titled "Danny" and was recorded by Presley for the film King Creole It was not used in the film soundtrack.[citation needed]

Career in country music

Conway Twitty always wanted to record country music and in 1965 he did just that. His first few country albums were met with country DJs refusing to play them because he was well known as a rock-n-roll singer. He finally broke free with his first number one country song, "Next In Line" in 1968.

In 1970, Conway recorded and released "Hello Darlin'".

In 1971 he released his first hit duet with Loretta Lynn, "After the Fire Is Gone". It was a success, and many more followed, including "Lead Me On" (1971), "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man" (1973), "As Soon As I Hang Up the Phone" (1974), "Feelins" (1975), "I Still Believe in Waltzes", "I Can't Love You Enough" and many others. Together, Conway and Loretta (as they were known in their act), won four consecutive Country Music Association awards for vocal duo (1972-75).

In 1973, Twitty released "You've Never Been This Far Before", which was #1 for three weeks that September. Some disc jockeys refused to play the song because of its suggestive lyrics.

In 1993, shortly before he died, he had recorded a new album, Final Touches.

Twitty's last chart appearance on the country charts was a duet with Anita Cochran, "I Want to Hear a Cheating Song" (2004). Twitty's voice was electronically created based on one of his hits from the 1980s.

Appearances in other media

On October, 2004 "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man" (sung by Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn) appeared on the popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on fictional country music station K-ROSE.

On Family Guy episodes "Bill and Peter's Bogus Journey" and "Peter's Daughter", clips of Conway Twitty performing on Hee Haw were shown, because of their comic or perhaps ironic value to modern audiences.

Covers

While Twitty has been known to cover songs – most notably "Slow Hand" which was a major pop hit for the Pointer Sisters – his own songs have not been covered that often.[citation needed] However, four notable covers include George Jones' rendition of "Hello Darlin", Blake Shelton's "Goodbye Time", The Misfits version of "It's Only Make Believe" and Elvis Presley's version of "There's A Honky Tonk Angel".

Private Life

Marriages

Twitty married three times. After his death, his widow, Dee Henry Jenkins, and his four grown children from the previous marriages, Michael, Joni, Kathy and Jimmy Jenkins engaged in a public dispute over the estate. His will had not been updated to account for the third marriage, but Tennessee law reserves one third of any estate to the widow. A public auction of much property and memorabilia was held because the widow refused to accept the appraised value so therefore she demanded that everything be sold so she could get a higher amount.

In 2008, controversy again erupted in the family when the four children sued Sony/ATV Music Publishing over an agreement that Twitty and his family signed in 1990. The suit alleges that the terms of the agreement were not fully understood by the children, although they were all adults at the time. It seeks to recover copyrights and royalty revenue that the document assigned to the company. Dee Jenkins is not a party to the suit and has stated that it dishonors Twitty's memory.[2]

Twitty City

Twitty lived for many years in Hendersonville, Tennessee, just north of Nashville, where he built a country music entertainment complex called Twitty City. Its lavish displays of Christmas lights were a famous local sight. It has since been sold to the Trinity Broadcasting Network and converted to a Christian music venue in 1994.

He used to live in a house on Old Hickory Lake in Hendersonville, TN. The house is at the end of a peninsula and has a pink roof.

Death

Conway Twitty became ill while performing in Branson, Missouri, and was in pain while he was on the tour bus. He died June 5 1993 in Springfield Missouri at Cox South Hospital from an abdominal aortic aneurysm.

Twitty's success in country music was a key factor in his winning a case in U.S. Tax Court. The IRS denied Twitty's attempt to deduct from his taxes, as an "ordinary and necessary" business expense, payments he had made to investors in a defunct restaurant business. It was to be a fast-food chain called "Twitty Burger." The chain went under in 1971. The general rule is that the payment of someone else's debts is not deductible. But Twitty won because his primary motive was "protecting his personal business reputation." The court opinion contained testimony from Twitty about his bond with country music fans.

Source: T.C. Memo. 1983-667, 1983 WL 14653 (U.S.Tax Ct.), 47 T.C.M. (CCH) 238, T.C.M. (P-H) P 83,667, 1983 PH TC Memo 83,667.

Awards

Twitty never won a solo CMA award. By the end of his tenure at MCA in 1981, he had accumulated 32 No. 1 hits, while another 15 had reached the Top 5. He moved to Warner Bros. Records in 1982, where he had another 11 No. 1 hits. By 1987, Twitty was back at MCA where he continued to score top 10 hits until 1991.

Conway Twitty was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999 and his pioneering contribution has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, as well.

In 2003, Twitty was ranked #8 in CMT's 40 Greatest Men of Country Music.

Discography

1950s

  • 1958 Conway Twitty Sings
  • 1959 Saturday Night

1960s

  • 1960 Lonely Blue Boy
  • 1960 A Rock and Roll Story
  • 1960 Greatest Hits
  • 1961 The Conway Twitty Touch
  • 1962 Portrait of a Fool
  • 1964 Hit the Road
  • 1966 Look Into My Teardrops
  • 1966 Conway Twitty
  • 1967 Country
  • 1968 Next in Line
  • 1968 Here's Conway Twitty
  • 1969 Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie
  • 1969 I Love You More Today
  • 1969 You Can't Take Country Out of Conway

1970s

  • 1970 Hello Darlin' (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1970 To See My Angel Cry
  • 1970 That's When She Started To Stop Loving You
  • 1970 Conway Twitty
  • 1970 Fifteen Years Ago
  • 1971 How Much More Can She Stand
  • 1971 Hits
  • 1971 I Wonder What She'll Think About Me Leaving
  • 1971 Lead Me On (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1971 We Only Make Believe (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1972 Conway Twitty Sings the Blues
  • 1972 I Can't See Me without You
  • 1972 I Can't Stop Loving You
  • 1972 Shake It Up
  • 1972 Conway Twitty's Greatest Hits Vol.1 (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1973 Clinging to a Saving Hand
  • 1973 I Can't Stop Loving You
  • 1973 (Lost Her Love) On Our Last Date
  • 1973 She Needs Someone to Hold Her
  • 1973 Who Will Pray for Me
  • 1973 You've Never Been This Far Before (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1973 I'm So Used To Loving You
  • 1974 Country Partners
  • 1974 Honky Tonk Angel
  • 1974 I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
  • 1974 Never Ending Song of Love
  • 1975 Feelin'
  • 1975 High Priest of Country Music
  • 1975 Linda on My Mind
  • 1975 Star Spangled Songs
  • 1975 This Time I've Hurt Her More
  • 1976 Conway Twitty's Greatest Hits Vol.2 (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1976 Now and Then
  • 1976 Twitty
  • 1976 United Talent
  • 1977 Dynamic Duo
  • 1977 I've Already Loved You in My Mind
  • 1977 Play, Guitar Play
  • 1978 Conway Twitty Country
  • 1978 Conway
  • 1978 Georgia Keeps Pulling On My Ring
  • 1978 Honky Tonk Heroes
  • 1978 The Very Best Of Conway Twitty (Certified Platinum by the RIAA)
  • 1979 Country Rock
  • 1979 Cross Winds
  • 1979 Twain't Never Gonna Do It Again, Babe, Not In A Million Years"

1980s

  • 1980 Diamond Duet
  • 1980 Heart & Soul
  • 1980 Rest Your Love on Me
  • 1981 Mr. T
  • 1981 Two's a Party
  • 1982 Dream Maker
  • 1982 Number Ones (Certified Gold by the RIAA)
  • 1982 Southern Comfort
  • 1983 Conway's #1 Classics, Vol. 2
  • 1983 Lost in the Feeling
  • 1983 Merry Twismas
  • 1984 By Heart
  • 1984 Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn
  • 1985 Chasin' Rainbows
  • 1985 Don't Call Him a Cowboy
  • 1986 A Night with Conway Twitty
  • 1986 Fallin' for You for Years
  • 1987 Borderline
  • 1988 Making Believe
  • 1988 Still in Your Dreams
  • 1989 House on Old Lonesome Road

1990s

  • 1990 Crazy in Love
  • 1991 #1's, Vol. 2
  • 1991 #1's, Vol. 1
  • 1991 Even Now
  • 1992 Country Gospel Greats
  • 1993 Final Touches
  • 1995 Sings Songs of Love
  • 1996 Crazy Dreams

2000s

  • 2002 Road That I Walk
  • 2007 A Twismas Story

Singles Discography

Year Title US Country US Hot 100 Label Album
1957 I Need Your Lovin' 93 Mercury Single Only
1958 It's Only Make Believe 1 MGM Sings
1959 Story Of My Love 28 MGM Sings
1959 Hey Little Lucy (Don'tcha Put No Lipstick On) 87 MGM Saturday Night
1959 Mona Lisa 29 MGM Sings
1959 Danny Boy 10 MGM Saturday Night
1959 Lonely Blue Boy 6 MGM Lonely Blue Boy
1960 What Am I Living For 26 MGM Greatest Hits
1960 She's Mine 98 MGM Saturday Night
1960 C'est Si Bon 22 MGM Single Only
1961 Next Kiss (Is The Last Goodbye) 72 MGM Portrait Of A Fool
1961 Portrait Of A Fool 98 MGM Portrait Of A Fool
1966 Guess My Eyes Were Bigger Than My Heart 18 Decca Conway Twitty Sings
1966 Look Into My Teardrops 36 Decca Look Into My Teardrops
1967 I Don't Want To Be With Me 21 Decca Look Into My Teardrops
1967 Funny (But I'm Not Laughing) 61 Decca Country
1968 Image Of Me 5 Decca Here's Conway Twitty
1968 Next In Line 1 Decca Next In Line
1968 Darling You Know I Wouldn't Lie 2 Decca Darling You Know I Wouldn't Lie
1969 I Love You More Today 1 Decca I Love You More Today
1969 To See My Angel Cry 1 Decca To See My Angel Cry
1969 That's When She Started To Stop Loving You 3 Decca To See My Angel Cry
1970 Hello Darlin' 1 60 Decca Hello Darlin'
1970 Fifteen Years Ago 1 81 Decca Fifteen Years Ago
1970 What Am I Living For (reissue) 59 MGM Hits
1971 After The Fire Is Gone with Loretta Lynn 1 56 Decca We Only Make Believe
1971 How Much More Can She Stand 1 Decca How Much More Can She Stand
1971 What A Dream 50 MGM Hits
1971 I Wonder What She'll Think About Me Leaving 4 Decca I Wonder What She'll Think About Me Leaving
1971 Lead Me On with Loretta Lynn 1 Decca Lead Me On
1971 I Can't See Me Without You 4 Decca I Can't See Me Without You
1972 (Lost Her Love) On Our Last Date 1 Decca I Can't Stop Loving You
1972 I Can't Stop Loving You 1 Decca I Can't Stop Loving You
1972 She Needs Someone To Hold Her (When She Cries) 1 Decca She Needs Someone To Hold Her
1973 Baby's Gone 2 MCA You've Never Been This Far Before
1973 Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man with Loretta Lynn 1 MCA Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man
1973 You've Never Been This Far Before 1 22 MCA You've Never Been This Far Before
1973 There's A Honky Tonk Angel Who'll Let Me Back In 1 MCA Honky Tonk Angel
1974 I'm Not Through Loving You Yet 3 MCA I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
1974 As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone with Loretta Lynn 1 MCA Country Partners
1974 I See The Want To In Your Eyes 1 MCA I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
1974 Linda On My Mind 1 61 MCA Linda On My Mind
1975 Touch The Hand 1 MCA The High Priest Of Country Music
1975 Feelin's with Loretta Lynn 1 MCA Feelin's
1975 This Time I Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me 1 MCA This Time I've Hurt Her More
1976 Don't Cry Joni 4 MCA The High Priest Of Country Music
1976 After All The Good Is Gone 1 MCA Now And Then
1976 Letter with Loretta Lynn 3 MCA United Talent
1976 Games That Daddies Play 1 MCA Greatest Hits 2
1976 I Can't Believe She Gives It All To Me 1 MCA Play Guitar Play
1977 Play Guitar Play 1 MCA Play Guitar Play
1977 I Can't Love You Enough with Loretta Lynn 2 MCA Dynamic Duo
1977 I've Already Loved You In My Mind 1 MCA I've Already Loved You In My Mind
1977 Georgia Keeps Pulling On My Ring 3 MCA Georgia Keeps Pulling On My Ring
1978 Grandest Lady Of Them All 16 MCA Georgia Keeps Pulling On My Ring
1978 You're The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly with Loretta Lynn 6 MCA Honky Tonk Heroes
1978 From Seven Till Ten with Loretta Lynn 6 MCA Honky Tonk Heroes
1978 Boogie Grass Band 2 MCA Conway
1978 Your Love Had Taken Me That High 3 MCA Conway
1979 Don't Take It Away 1 MCA Cross Winds
1979 I May Never Get To Heaven 1 MCA Cross Winds
1979 Happy Birthday Darlin' 1 MCA Cross Winds
1979 You Know Just What I'd Do with Loretta Lynn 9 MCA Diamond Duet
1980 I'd Love To Lay You Down 1 MCA Heart And Soul
1980 It's True Love with Loretta Lynn 5 MCA Diamond Duet
1980 I've Never Seen The Likes Of You 3 MCA Heart And Soul
1980 A Bridge That Just Won't Burn 7 MCA Rest Your Love On Me
1981 Lovin' What Your Lovin' Does To Me with Loretta Lynn 7 MCA Two's A Party
1981 Rest Your Love On Me 1 MCA Rest Your Love On Me
1981 I Am The Dreamer (You Are The Dream) 1 MCA Rest Your Love On Me
1981 I Still Believe In Waltzes with Loretta Lynn 2 MCA Rest Your Love On Me & Two's A Party
1981 Tight Fittin' Jeans 1 MCA Mr. T
1981 Red Neckin' Love Makin' Night 1 MCA Mr. T
1981 The Clown 1 Elektra Southern Comfort
1982 Slow Hand 1 Elektra Southern Comfort
1982 Over Thirty (Not Over The Hill) 69 MCA Mr. T
1982 We Did But Now You Don't 2 Elektra Dream Maker
1983 The Rose 1 Elektra Dream Maker
1983 Lost In The Feeling 2 Warner Brothers Lost In The Feeling
1983 Heartache Tonight 6 Warner Brothers Lost In The Feeling
1983 We Had It All 44 MCA Mr. T
1983 Three Times A Lady 7 Warner Brothers Lost In The Feeling
1984 Somebody's Needin' Somebody 1 Warner Brothers By Heart
1984 I Don't Know A Thing About Love (The Moon Song) 1 Warner Brothers By Heart
1984 Ain't She Somethin' Else 1 Warner Brothers Latest Greatest Hits
1985 Don't Call Him A Cowboy 1 Warner Brothers Don't Call Him A Cowboy
1985 Between Blue Eyes And Jeans 3 Warner Brothers Don't Call Him A Cowboy
1985 Legend And The Man 19 Warner Brothers Chasin' Rainbows
1985 You'll Never Know How Much I Needed You Today 26 Warner Brothers Chasin' Rainbows
1986 Desperado Love 1 Warner Brothers Fallin' For You For Years
1986 Fallin' For You For Years 2 Warner Brothers Fallin' For You For Years
1987 Julia 2 MCA Borderline
1987 I Want To Know You Before We Make Love 2 MCA Borderline
1987 That's My Job 6 MCA Borderline
1988 Goodbye Time 7 MCA Still In Your Dreams
1988 Saturday Night Special 9 MCA Still In Your Dreams
1988 I Wish I Was Still In Your Dreams 4 MCA Still In Your Dreams
1989 She's Got A Single Thing In Mind 2 MCA House On Old Lonesome Road
1989 House On Old Lonesome Road 19 MCA House On Old Lonesome Road
1989 Who's Gonna Know 51 MCA House On Old Lonesome Road
1990 Fit To Be Tied Down 30 MCA Greatest Hits 3
1990 Crazy In Love 2 MCA Crazy In Love
1990 I Couldn't See You Leavin' 3 MCA Crazy In Love
1991 One Bridge I Didn't Burn 57 MCA Crazy In Love
1991 Who's Gonna Know 51 MCA Greatest Hits 3
1991 She's Got A Man On Her Mind 22 MCA Even Now
1991 Who Did They Think We Was 56 MCA Even Now
1993 I'm The Only Thing (I'll Hold Against You) 62 MCA Final Touches
2004 (I Wanna Hear) A Cheatin' Song with Anita Cochran 57 Warner Brothers Single Only

42 # 1 Hits

  1. It's Only Make Believe
  2. Next In Line
  3. I Love You More Today
  4. To See My Angel Cry
  5. Hello Darlin'
  6. Fifteen Years Ago
  7. After The Fire Is Gone (with Loretta Lynn)
  8. How Much More Can She Stand
  9. Lead Me On (with Loretta Lynn)
  10. (Lost Her Love) On Our Last Date
  11. I Can't Stop Loving You
  12. She Needs Someone To Hold Her (When She Cries)
  13. Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man (with Loretta Lynn)
  14. You've Never Been This Far Before
  15. There's A Honky Tonk Angel Who'll Let Me Back In
  16. As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone (with Loretta Lynn)
  17. I See The Want To In Your Eyes
  18. Linda On My Mind
  19. Touch The Hand
  20. Feelin's (with Loretta Lynn)
  21. This Time I Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me
  22. After All The Good Is Gone
  23. Games That Daddies Play
  24. I Can't Believe She Gives It All To Me
  25. Play Guitar Play
  26. I've Already Loved You In My Mind
  27. Don't Take It Away
  28. I May Never Get To Heaven
  29. Happy Birthday Darlin'
  30. I'd Love To Lay You Down
  31. I Am The Dreamer (You Are The Dream)
  32. Rest Your Love On Me
  33. Tight Fittin' Jeans
  34. Red Neckin' Love Makin' Night
  35. The Clown
  36. Slow Hand
  37. The Rose
  38. Somebody's Needin' Somebody
  39. I Don't Know A Thing About Love (The Moon Song)
  40. Ain't She Somethin' Else
  41. Don't Call Him A Cowboy
  42. Desperado Love

References

  1. ^ "The Hamilton Memory Project;" (Press release). The Hamilton Spectator Newspaper- Souvenir Edition page MP44. Saturday June 10, 2006. {{cite press release}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ Twitty's children sue Sony/ATV for royalties | www.tennessean.com | The Tennessean
  • Oermann, Robert K. (1998). "Conway Twitty". In The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 553-4. lpdiscography.com.

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