A TRIBUTE RECORD THAT NEEDS TO BE MADE

In the past few decades, we usually see at least one tribute record a year. George Jones. Merle Haggard. Buck Owens---they all have been the subject of a multi-artist tribute to their songs. In November, Sony released an excellent tribute to Loretta Lynn, and just in the past few weeks, there has been a great tribute album to Waylon Jennings--the third to pay well-deserved homage to Jennings. There is one artist from Country's golden era, however, that has not been the subject of a tribute record----yet. Conway Twitty (until George Strait passed him) topped the chart more than any other artist of his era. But, for some reason Universal has never really given him his proper due, aside from several best of compilations that feature the same songs. I have no idea why there hasn't been a tribute record to Twitty---unless there's some legal protocol due to all the fighting that has taken place inside his family since his tragic passing in 1993. But, in case that door ever gets opened.....here's my thoughts on a twelve-cut Twitty retrospective. See what you think....

1. "Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie," One of his first chart-toppers, this one was a Twitty rarity----nominated for Song Of Thw Year by the CMA back in 1969. Conway showed his range with this spine-tingling ballad, that I think Ronnie Dunn could work magic with!

2. "Hello, Darlin," Of course, his calling card to Country stardom has withstood the test of time. I would love to hear a female vocalist tackle this one, but not one from the mainstream. I have always loved Allison Moorer's voice, and think she could knock this one out of the ballpark.

3. "You've Never Been This Far Before," One of his more suggestive songs, everyone and their preacher had an opinion on this one back in 1973. Just like "Hello Darlin," I would love to hear this from a female perspective. Sara Evans, perhaps, could work wonders with those bom-bom-boms.

4. "Don't Cry Joni," Conway's collaboration with his daughter is one that I think could sell a ton of Kleenex if Vince Gill and Alison Krauss ever collaborated on a remake.

5. "I've Already Loved You In My Mind," A 1977 # 1 (what from that era wasn't), this one stands as a pure honky-tonk classic, and when I think honky tonk angels, nobody does it better than Lee Ann Womack.

6. "Don't Take It Away," A soulful stretch for Twitty in 1979, who better for this Bluesy plea for forgiveness than Darius Rucker?

7. "I'd Love To Lay You Down," Ask any Kenny Chesney fan about some of their favorite cover moments from a Chesney fan, and they'll mention this one every time!

8. "Feelins," A mid 1970s chart-topper for Twitty and Lynn, this one gets a great live treatment from Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert, and I think it could be a major radio hit for them, as well.

9. "Somebody's Needin' Somebody," A number one hit in 1984, this showed better than any other single of the era how effective Twitty was at changing with the times. You've got to be a singer to pull this one off, and I think that an Oklahoma girl named Carrie Underwood could do just that.

10. "That's My Job," A song that many think was a number one, but it only made it to # 6. But, the song was so much bigger than its' chart position, as it affected many lives. What about the man who surpassed Twitty in terms of number ones---George Strait? That could be a great combination!

11. "I Wish I Was Still In Your Dreams," One of the highlights of Twitty's later years, this was also one of his more contemporary releases. Add some strings, and maybe some Memphis horns, and a long tall drink of water named Trace Adkins, and I think you would have a record to remember!

12. "Crazy In Love," His next-to-last number one, this was once again another nice example of how his sound evolved over the years. There was a female vocalist who once opened for Twitty who could nail some of those high notes in the song...or a song by Beyonce?......That's right, Reba McEntire would do a fabulous job on this hit from one of her mentors..

Well, that's it before CRS.....It's just around the corner. 52 interviews lined up as of 10:51 EST on Saturday night, but I can always do more, right? Hope to see a lot of you next week!