Who is conrad twitty

With his deep, resonant down-home voice, Twitty was one of the smoothest balladeers to work in Nashville during the country-pop era, but he was also one of the most adventurous. More than any other singer, he was responsible for selling country as an "adult" music, slipping sexually suggestive lyrics into his lush productions, yet never singing misogynist lyrics -- by and large, his songs were sensitive and sensual, which is part of the reason why he achieved such a large success.

Though he had some pop success, Twitty remained country to the core -- occasionally, his song titles were simply too corny -- which was why he retained his popularity until his death in The son of a riverboat captain, Twitty born Harold Lloyd Jenkins , September 1, ; died June 5, was born in Mississippi and raised in Helena, AR, where he learned to love not only country, but also blues and gospel.

When he was ten years old, he joined his first group, the Phillips Country Ramblers, who occasionally performed on local radio. Despite his interest in music, he originally planned to become a professional baseball player. Jenkins was talented enough to be offered a contract by the Philadelphia Phillies, but he was unable to join the team, since he was drafted into the Army during the Korean War.

While he was serving in the Far East, he sang with a country band called the Cimarrons. Returning to America in , Jenkins still had an open offer to join the Phillies, yet he decided to pursue a musical career after he heard Elvis Presley.

With dreams of recording for Sun Records, Jenkins headed to Memphis, where Sam Phillips did indeed sign him to a recording contract, but none of the tracks he cut were ever released; Jenkins ' biggest contribution to the label was writing "Rock House," a minor hit for Roy Orbison. Leaving Sun in late , he set out on a rockabilly package tour, during which he invented the stage name of Conway Twitty by combining the names of an Arkansas and Texas city, respectively.

At the beginning of , he signed to Mercury Records, where he released a handful of singles that didn't make much of an impact, though "I Need Your Lovin'" scraped the very bottom of the pop charts. Recorded with vocal support by Presley 's back group, the Jordanaires , "It's Only Make Believe" became a major hit, spending two weeks at number one and going gold.

By the beginning of , his singles had stopped entering the Top Nevertheless, he continued to tour, but soon MGM dropped him from their roster.

His first wife gave birth to his son, Michael. In , he married Mickey Medley. Medley gave birth to 3 more children. The couple stayed together until This marriage lasted until his death. Conway Twitty passed away in Springfield, Missouri, on June 5, , after suffering an aneurysm.

He is buried in Gallatin, Tennessee. He was survived by his wife and 4 children. Have an account? He was survived by his wife and four adult children.

He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in For additional information: Cross, Wilbur, and Michael Kosser. The Conway Twitty Story. New York: Doubleday, Conway Twitty. Honor or memorial gifts are an everlasting way to pay tribute to someone who has touched your life. When a tribute gift is given the honoree will receive a letter acknowledging your generosity and a bookplate will be placed in a book.

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