This year marks the 25th anniversary of Conway Twitty’s death at the age of 59. He toured until the very end, and now his spirit continues to tour, with grandson Tre Twitty, who is bringing his tribute to his late grandfather to the stage in a Saskatchewan tour. The younger Twitty will be in Yorkton on January 23 at the Anne Portnuff Theatre.
Tre believes that Conway was one of the more forgotten legends, even though he was as popular as artists like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard. He wants to keep his grandfather’s legacy alive, and is doing so by bringing his music to audiences.
“He’s been gone for so long he’s almost a myth at this point. We’re trying to keep his name out there and keep his music alive.”
That a tribute tour remains possible is evidence of the power the music still has.
“It’s a testament to his great art that he’s been dead for 25 years and people will still want to come out and hear his songs by his grandson.”
While he’s been gone for 25 years, when he was alive Conway performed in a wide range of styles and genre, starting as a rock and roll artist before making a transition to country. Tre admits that it’s almost impossible to get everything in the show, but says he plays a mix of big hits – songs like “It’s Only Make Believe” and “Hello Darlin’” – and takes guidance from the audience, asking people to shout out songs they want to hear.
“You can’t do all of them, I’d be there three hours.”
As much as Conway was famous for being a solo artist, he won the majority of the awards in his career for his work with Loretta Lynn in the 1970s. Lynn’s own granddaughter, Tayla Lynn, will be on tour as well, reviving the old collaboration two generations down the line. The Twitty and Lynn families are still very close, Tre explains, with the Lynn ranch hosting an annual tribute to Conway until Loretta had a stroke in 2017.
“They had a genuine love for each other. I don’t mean a romantic love. A genuine friendship and respect for one another. It came across when they went on stage... In fact, it was kind of strange, when my granddad died in Missouri, he collapsed in Branson, Missouri, they took him to a hospital in Springfield, Missouri, and Loretta Lynn just happened to be at that hospital when they brought him in... She was there when he died, it was completely random... Meant to be almost, they were connected to each other their whole life, and they still are.”
On stage, Tre says that the grandchildren reflect their grandparents.
“We have the same energy as our grandparents. Tayla is very much highly energetic, outspoken, unfiltered like Loretta was. I’m very reserved, laid back and quiet like my granddad was. When we’re together, the energy of them is the same as our energy.”
For Tre himself, the more he learns about his grandfather and the older he gets, the respect he has for the man can’t help but grow.
“I have so much admiration and respect for what he accomplished, because it was so rare.”
Tickets are available at Saddle and Steel Music Productions and online at www.rocketlaunchentertainment.com.
