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Trending in Conway Twitty’s World
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Timeless
Released Oct 6, 2017
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Quick Facts
Born
1933
1933
From
United States of America
United States of America
Journey
Long before he took the stage name Conway Twitty, Harold Lloyd Jenkins was a kid from Friars Point, Mississippi, with two big talents: picking a guitar and throwing a baseball. By age ten, he was already running a band and playing on local Arkansas radio, but his arm was good enough that semi-pro baseball almost became his life's work. When the U.S. Military sent him to Japan, he simply did both, playing Army baseball and performing in military bands. That unique mix of athletic drive and early stage experience was the secret sauce that later fueled his legendary leap from early rock 'n' roll to country royalty.
After returning home, Jenkins was drawn to the emerging rock-and-roll movement and recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis. He adopted the name Conway Twitty and scored his breakthrough in 1958 with “It’s Only Make Believe.” The recording became a No. 1 hit internationally and established him as a major rock-and-roll performer. He toured extensively, earned gold records, and appeared in several films, but country music remained the genre he ultimately wanted to pursue.
In 1965, Twitty signed with Decca Records and began the difficult transition into country music. His breakthrough came with “Next in Line,” which reached No. 1 on the country chart in 1968. From there, he built an exceptional catalogue that included “Hello Darlin’,” “You’ve Never Been This Far Before,” “Linda on My Mind,” “I’d Love to Lay You Down,” “Tight Fittin’ Jeans,” “Goodbye Time,” and “That’s My Job.” The Country Music Hall of Fame credits him with 40 Billboard country No. 1 hits, while his official estate biography cites 55 No. 1 singles across its broader chart count.
Twitty's partnership with Loretta Lynn became one of country music's defining duet collaborations. Together they recorded “After the Fire Is Gone,” “Lead Me On,” “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man,” “Feelins’” and “The Letter.” “After the Fire Is Gone” earned Twitty his only Grammy win, while the collaboration generated seven Grammy nominations.
Twitty continued recording and touring until his death on June 5, 1993. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999, leaving behind a career distinguished not merely by its number of hits, but by one of popular music's most successful reinventions.