INFLUENCED: Blake Shelton and Earl Thomas Conley

For CMA Male Vocalist of the Year Blake Shelton, a musical heavy-hitter who has scored 18 number one hits of his own serves as a big influence.  Blake tells Country Weekly, “Earl Thomas Conley’s my all-time country music hero.  He sings with so much emotion, and his writing, I think, is incredible.”
 
The Oklahoma native has even had the special opportunity of working with the singer-songwriter when they teamed up, along with Mike Pyle, to pen Blake’s 2001 single “All Over Me” from his self-titled debut album.  Blake recalls that Mike set him up with the writing appointment.  He shares, “I went out there to his house with Mike.  I was real, real nervous, but Earl’s the kind of guy who makes you feel real comfortable.  You would never know that he is the guy who had 18 number one hits.”  Blake adds, “If it’s over tomorrow, the fact that I got to meet Earl and write a song with him is something that I’m gonna hold high for the rest of my life.  That was a big, big deal for me.”

Earl Thomas Conley found most of his success throughout his run of hits during the 1980s, but before he become passionate about music, ETC had an interest in painting as a child grew up in Portsmouth, Ohio.  By the time he turned 14, Earl moved in with his sister who lived in Dayton.  After graduating from high school, he was set to pursue art at a local college but joined up with the army instead – a crucial decision that would affect his future career path.  While in the armed forces, ETC discovered his musical talents and soon turned to the music his father used to play for him, songs from Merle Haggard, George Jones and Charley Pride.  After leaving the army, Earl moved to Huntsville, Alabama where he commuted to Nashville to be a part of the music scene.

In 1973, ETC met Dick Herd, singer Mel Street’s producer, which lead to his first big break.  The pair sat down and wrote “Smokey Mountain Memories,” a Top 10 hit for Mel.  Earl made the move to Music City after achieving success with that tune and two years later had a number one hit as a songwriter with Conway Twitty’s “This Time I’ve Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me.”  In 1979, ETC tried his luck as a recording artist under the name Earl Conley.  He signed with Warner Brothers Records where he released three singles that didn’t make the Top 20.  However, after switching to an indie label and embracing his full name, ETC found himself at the top of the charts with his very first number one song as a vocalist, “Fire & Smoke.”

RCA Records soon picked up Earl’s recording contract from the indie label, and he soon found himself well on his way of making his mark in country music.  His music was a combination of country, R&B;, rock, pop and adult contemporary, and although it was different from the sounds of the Urban Cowboy era that Nashville was in at the time, it continued to break through to fans and the music industry.  In 1983, ETC won a Grammy for Country Song of the Year for his number one “Holding Her & Loving You.”  He even made history by having four singles from one album (Don’t Make It Easy For Me) hit number one – four years before Michael Jackson did it with his Bad album.  In another historic move, Earl was the first – and only – country artist to appear on Soul Train, where he sang his 1986 hit with Anita Pointer “Too Many Times.”  By the 1990s, things slowed down for ETC after he experienced vocal problems, frustrations with music industry politics and the death of his father.  After a seven year hiatus, he returned to the music business, primarily as a songwriter and an occasional recording artist.

Image courtesy of Michael Ochs Archive

Nikita Palmer (@CitadelDigital) for Citadel Digital © 2010

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