(written by Wayne Kemp)
Conway Twitty (#5, 1968)
A classic tale of dissolution and regret, but with a twist: instead of bemoaning his lost innocence, the narrator rues the way he’s corrupted the love of his life, a “simple, old-fashioned” girl he remade in his own hard-drinking, fast-living image.
Conway Twitty can thank songwriter Wayne Kemp for his first three bona fide country successes. Kemp, a struggling artist, went to visit Twitty at his home in Oklahoma City, where both lived at the time. Close to bankruptcy, Kemp offered to sell Twitty a song titled “The Image Of Me” for $500 in an effort to scrape up some quick cash and keep his electricity on. Twitty agreed that it was a hit, but insisted that Kemp retain his publishing rights. Conway loaned him the $500, and promised that if Wayne’s own recording of the song (on an independent label) proved unsuccessful, then he’d cut it.
After three months in release, Kemp’s record had yet to chart, so Conway took the song into the studio. Legendary producer Owen Bradley helmed the session which featured guitar ace Grady Martin, Lew Houston on steel guitar, David Briggs on piano along with backup vocalists The Jordanaires. Joe E. Lewis provided the high harmonies during the chorus, giving the record extra sparkle. It broke into Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart on March 23, 1968 and went on to become Twitty’s first Top Five country hit. You can’t argue with success, and Twitty returned to Kemp for his next two follow-up singles: “Next In Line” (his first #1) followed by “Darling You Know I Wouldn’t Lie” (my personal favorite of all of Conway’s recordings) which peaked at #2 in early 1969.
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