On this day (October 17) in 1941, Earl Thomas Conley was born in Portsmouth, Ohio. After finding his voice while serving in the United States Army, he relocated to Nashville, where he began a successful songwriting career. Later, he dominated the country charts in the 1980s with long strings of No. 1 hits. His releases set chart records and tore down longstanding boundaries around country music.
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Conley was 14 years old when his father lost his steady job with the railroad. With his family falling deeper into poverty, he moved in with his sister in Jamestown. According to a biography, Conley turned down an art school scholarship and chose to join the United States Army. While serving, he became a member of a trio where he discovered and honed his vocal talent.
After his discharge from the military, Conley decided to chase the dream of being a performing artist. At the same time, he began writing songs. While living in Dayton, Ohio, and working blue-collar jobs, Conley would commute to Nashville on weekends to play in clubs and write songs. There, he met Dick Heard and the pair began writing together. Their composition, “Smokey Mountain Memories,” was a top 10 hit for Mel Street.
Conley inked a deal with GRT, an independent label, in 1974. He released a few singles there, but found no success. Two years later, in 1976, Conway Twitty took the Conley-penned “This Time I’ve Hurt Her More (Than She Loves Me)” to No. 1. A year after that, he signed with Warner Bros.
Earl Thomas Conley Rises to the Top
Earl Thomas Conely’s early singles with GRT barely charted. His first few with Warner Bros. saw minor success. As a result, he left the label in 1979. He went into the 1980s with a new record deal. Conley released his first top 10 hit, “Silent Treatment,” with Sunbird Records. He followed that with “Fire and Smoke,” his first No. 1. After finding initial success, RCA offered him a contract, and, in 1981, he released the album Fire & Smoke. The next year, he released Somewhere Between Right and Wrong. The singles from that album would allow Conley to begin his reign over the charts.
In 1983, Conley released “Your Love’s on the Line” as the first single from Don’t Make It Easy for Me. The album produced three more No. 1 hits–“Holding Her and Loving You,” “Angel in Disguise,” and the title track. With this, he became the first artist in any genre to score four chart-topping singles from a single album.
“Your Love’s on the Line” also kicked off a string of nine consecutive No. 1 hits. The string ended in 1986, when “Too Many Times,” a duet with soul singer Anita Pointer of the Pointer Sisters, peaked at No. 2. This song helped Conley set another record. He became the first country singer to appear on the hit TV show Soul Train. More importantly, “Too Many Times” helped break down barriers between his and Pointer’s respective genres.
His next single, “I Can’t Win for Losin’ You,” kicked off another string of No. 1 hits. This time, he sent seven consecutive songs to the top of the country chart.
Later Years
Earl Thomas Conley’s chart success began to wane by the end of the 1980s. However, his popularity among country fans didn’t. One of the things that kept Conley popular among fans was his songwriting. Labeled “thinking man’s country,” he dove into the minds of the characters in his songs, taking things deeper than most writers. As a result, he shared more of himself with his audience. More importantly, fans found his music more relatable because of his writing style.
Conley passed away in 2019, leaving behind an immortal legacy and an unforgettable collection of songs.
Featured Image by Paul Natkin/Getty Images
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