Crazy In Love With Conway

Legend has it that one of Conway's most famous nicknames, The High Priest of Country Music, was bestowed upon him by comedian Jerry Clower because of the way Conway's female fans worshiped him with an almost religious fervor. (Here's a shocker...we still do!) I have a little different take on the nickname. While the outlaws of country music were (and still are) glorified thanks to their exploits involving drinking, drugs, and prison, Conway always appeared and conducted himself impeccably, the epitome of a southern gentleman. He oozed class and sophistication. To me, that's what makes him The High Priest of Country Music. Regardless of how the nickname originated, in the summer of 1975 The High Priest of Country Music became the title of an album. Its cover featured Conway in his trademark stance with spotlights all around him. The High Priest, indeed... Touch the Hand Short On Love Too Long Amanda Before the Next Teardrop Falls  I Sure Hate To See Me Go Don't Cry ...

Last week I read the sad news that the Jim Stafford Theatre in Branson, site of Conway's final concert on June 4, 1993, is scheduled to be demolished following an auction of its contents today .  A trip to Branson has always been on my bucket list, and this important Conway destination would've been at the top of the list of places I would want to visit, but now that will never happen. The story of how Conway ended up performing at the Stafford Theatre in his final weeks is rather interesting. Ready to cut back on the amount of time he spent out on the road, he had signed on to play 180 shows in 90 days from late April to early December in 1993 at (Mickey) Gilley's Theatre in Branson. In the early morning hours of May 10th an electrical short in a neon sign outside the building created a spark and the theater was destroyed, as were Conway's instruments and equipment which were on stage at the time.  Conway was booked for 80 more days at Gilley's through the rest of ...

Last month I picked up a free local newspaper at the grocery store, and my eyes were drawn to a story about a lady who lives 15 minutes away from me that makes soft felt dolls of TV and movie characters . As I read the article I couldn't help but wonder if she might be able to make a Conway doll, and when I saw that Tyler Mahan Coe (of country music podcast Cocaine & Rhinestones fame) asked her to make a doll of him, I knew country music stars just might be on her radar too. I visited the shop's Facebook page to see more of her creations, and lo and behold, she had already made a Conway doll over the summer! I messaged her that very night to ask if she could make another, placed my order, and 3 weeks later a Conway plushy was in my hands.  I knew he would be adorable, but he was even more adorable than I imagined. I think I said "OMG!" out loud 50 times after opening the package. He's incredibly well made, and I especially love the CT necklace stitched right i...

Little Rock's Best Park parking lot needed a creative solution to cover up the oddly shaped eyesores which were once vents for an underground parking deck. This summer they commissioned artist  @elenizzle  to paint street art on them featuring eight beloved Arkansas musicians including Johnny Cash, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Al Green, and most importantly, Conway! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Niz (@elenizzle) If you're in the Little Rock area off 7th Street between Louisiana and Center I would love to know how it looks in person!

Conway had millions of male fans, but it's pretty obvious that he had a special magic with the ladies. He often stated that he chose songs with women in mind - ones that said things women wanted to hear but men had a hard time saying. That philosophy temporarily went out the window with the recording of Tight Fittin' Jeans , the first single off Conway's Mr. T album. "Every once in a while, you've got to do something for the guys," he said.  Sure enough, men loved the toe-tapping song, but women did too. It became a nationwide phenomenon over the summer of 1981, inspiring "tight fittin' jeans" contests across the country as it climbed the charts, landing at #1 on both Billboard and Cashbox in late September. It remained a perennial concert favorite and is consistently one of the top 10 most downloaded/streamed Conway songs on the various digital music services. Cashbox, 9/19/81 Billboard, 9/26/81 A few interesting bits of trivia... 1) Conway...

Conway performed at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland, Vermont for the first and only time on September 5, 1986. He was scheduled to return exactly 7 years later on September 5, 1993 - the concert I planned to attend - but it wasn't meant to be.  His appearance 35 years ago this week made headlines not only for another stellar, sold out performance, but also for the way he went above and beyond for a fan. Rutland resident Gladys Bride was a lifelong fan of Conway's and desperately wanted to attend her idol's show, but she was paralyzed from the waist down and her family didn't know how they could possibly make her dream come true. Her daughter Judy decided to contact Ed Congdon, a local farmer who worked for the Regional Ambulance Service as a paramedic and manned the first aid station at the fairgrounds. Judy asked if it would be possible to have her mother transported to the fair in an ambulance and then put her in a wheelchair for the concert. Ed discussed it with fa...

Exciting news this week as word comes that Conway has received four more RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) gold certifications over the past couple months. The honors go to: GOLD Album - Conway Twitty: The Final Recordings of His Greatest Hits Vol. 1 (Curb Records 1993 reissue of 1982's Conway's #1 Classics Vol. 1. This is his first album to reach certification since 1994, and also the first certification of any recording from his Warner Brothers years.) GOLD Single - I'd Love to Lay You Down (500,000 digital downloads) GOLD Single - Tight Fittin' Jeans (500,000 digital downloads) GOLD Single - That's My Job (500,000 digital downloads) These recent certifications join the following, putting Conway at the 8 million mark with RIAA: GOLD Single - Hello Darlin' (500,000 mastertone/ringtone downloads, certified in 2010) GOLD Album - The Very Best of Conway Twitty (1989 Heartland Music, certified in 1994) PLATINUM Album - The Very Best of Conway Twitty...