Dwight Twilley, a revered power pop music artist from Tulsa who recently was unanimously selected for inclusion in the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, died Wednesday. He was 72.
The news was confirmed by Twilley's wife, Jan, and this was shared on the Facebook page of Church Studio: “With heavy hearts, we share the devastating news of Dwight Twilley’s passing. Today, he peacefully departed this world, surrounded by the love of his life, Jan., and close friends. The loss is immeasurable and our words can’t capture the depth of our grief. Dwight’s musical prowess touched countless lives, leaving an indelible mark on the hearts of many. We are profoundly thankful for the enduring musical legacy he has bestowed upon us all.”
Twilley was driving alone Oct. 14 when he suffered a massive stroke, lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a tree. He passed away at St. John's in the Critical Care Unit with his wife and close friends at his side.
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Power pop aficionados appreciate Twilley’s larger body of work (he released more than two dozen albums), but the native Tulsan charted two top-20 songs: “I’m on Fire” with the Dwight Twilley Band in 1975 and “Girls” as a solo artist in 1984.
“When I think of Tulsa, I think of one of my favorite bands, the Dwight Twilley Band,” drummer Clem Burke of Blondie said prior to a 2018 concert here. “They were a great band.”
Born June 6, 1951, Twilley grew up in a home where his father always had musical instruments available. Twilley was fueled to pursue music after seeing the Beatles on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and it was his love of the Beatles that led to a fortuitous encounter with musical partner Phil Seymour.
Twilley visited the Boman Twin theater to see a double feature that included a Beatles film and a surfer movie. Seymour, who lived a block away from Twilley, also happened to be there and they chatted each other up about the Beatles.
After the double feature, Twilley and Seymour went to Twilley’s house and began recording music. After continued sessions, they wondered if anyone in the record business might listen to their demo tapes.
“We knew we couldn’t afford to go to L.A. or New York,” Twilley said in a 2021 interview. “We packed up my little ‘58 Chevy station wagon and Memphis was the first place we went.”
Twilley and Seymour visited Sun Records, the launching pad for Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, and they had only an inkling that the place was known for something. They played their demos for music industry ears in Memphis and Nashville. They were matched with Ray Harris, an early Sun Records rockabilly artist who had a studio in Tupelo, Mississippi. Harris told the Tulsa boys they sang like sissies.
Message received, Twilley and Seymour went the opposite direction for another try. Armed with an album and half worth of material, they headed to Los Angeles and secured a deal with Shelter Records, which was co-owned by Leon Russell and Denny Cordell.
Shelter Records had offices in California and Tulsa. Twilley said “everybody” in Tulsa was trying to break into the music business through Shelter Records at that time, but he and Seymour weren’t trying to do that. They journeyed to California, where there were more options. But Cordell liked what he heard and he suggested the Tulsans change their band name from Oister to the Dwight Twilley Band.
Twilley and Seymour returned to Tulsa and made themselves at home at Shelter Records’ Church Studio. They were asked to familiarize themselves with the equipment and were instructed not to cut a record. Of course the kids made a record. Said Seymour to Twilley: “Let’s make a hit.”
The hit was “I’m on Fire,” a success despite an absence of promotion. That song, and other Twilley songs, continue to be licensed for use in TV and film projects, most recently in a flashback episode of “Reservation Dogs.”
Other acts signed to the Shelter Records label included the Tulsa-based GAP Band and Mudcrutch, later to be known as Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. When Twilley performed on the short-lived CBS Saturday morning variety show “Wacko” in 1977, Petty was a backing musician. Petty and Twilley contributed to each other’s recordings. Twilley and Seymour sang backing vocals on the Petty song “Strangered in the Night.” Seymour sang backup vocals on “American Girl” and “Breakdown.” Petty re-recorded “Breakdown” after Twilley identified the song’s hook, according to Twilley. Petty played on "Looking for the Magic," a track on the Dwight Twilley Band’s second album. Petty contributed backing vocals on Twilley’s hit single “Girls.”
“Girls” earned heavy airplay on MTV, but Twilley was embraced by the music network before the song’s release. In 1982, MTV aired an hour-long special with concert footage of Twilley performing at Rockabilly’s in Houston. Clips from the show became MTV videos.
“I definitely had a connection with MTV early on, and that was a big deal to have an hour special on MTV,” Twilley said. “They would advertise it as ‘Watch your clock and be sure to see Dwight Twilley.’”
Former MTV veejay Martha Quinn posted on social media that she was sorry to hear Twilley had died. "Dwight Twilley was part of the first wave of artists who put MTV on the map," she said.
Twilley had to overcome instances when his momentum was sabotaged by complications out of his control.
After “I’m on Fire” became a hit, the Dwight Twilley Band performed “Shark (in the Dark)” on “American Bandstand.” It was intended to be a follow-up to “I’m on Fire,” but “Jaws” was in movie theaters at the time, so Shelter vetoed the shark single. Also, the Dwight Twilley Band’s debut album (“Sincerely”) wasn’t released until more than a year after “I’m on Fire” because Cordell and Russell parted ways and Shelter Records lost its distribution deal. Seymour struck out on his own after the Dwight Twilley Band’s second album.
In the 1980s, Twilley seemed poised to capitalize on the success of “Girls,” a track on the album “Jungle.” He recorded a follow-up album, “Wild Dogs,” for a new label after parting company with EMI America. When an individual at the new label became a figure in a payola scandal, “Wild Dogs” was funneled to a different label and was released with minimal promotion. The album was made available for release on CD for the first time by Iconoclassic Records in 2022.
Twilley returned to “American Bandstand” following the release of “Girls” and host Dick Clark spoke on-air with Twilley about label-related problems. Offering an example, Twilley said he called his record company after the release of the Dwight Twilley Band’s second single to see how the song was doing. The person who answered the phone said, “The record company is not here anymore.”
Twilley returned to his hometown of Tulsa and built Big Oak Studio after a 1994 earthquake destroyed his residence in California. One of his songs (“Why You Wanna Break My Heart”) was covered by Tia Carrere for the multi-platinum “Wayne’s World” soundtrack in 1992 and royalties provided funds for him to build the studio. He continued to record albums at the home studio.
Twilley consented to a life-so-far interview with the Tulsa World prior to his 70th birthday. He said he was glad he was able to dream -- and make some of his dreams become real and convince other people to go along. He also said this: “As I age, it’s strange that so many of those people that were around in the beginning are no longer with us anymore.”
During the interview, he complimented the abilities of bandmates like Seymour, who died in 1993 at age 41, and guitarist Bill Pitcock IV, who died in 2011 at age 58.
In 2018, Twilley was invited to join Robert Plant, Neil Young, Jack White, Kings of Leon, Alanis Morissette, The Pretenders, The Bangles and others as performers at the Arroyo Seco Weekend Festival in Pasadena, California.
Twilley was asked in 2021 if there is something about performing that provides a rush unlike anything else. This was his response: “Performing isn’t quite like finishing a song, because a song comes from absolutely nowhere. It’s invisible. It’s very magic.”
An Edison High School graduate who briefly attended Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, Twilley was a lover and creator of art. His creations were displayed at art shows once he was established in the music business. He returned to Church Studio for an art exhibit and Q&A session in February of 2023.
Jan Twilley said her husband died surrounded by love. Among those at his side was music artist Susan Cowsill.
Church Studio’s Facebook post about Twilley’s passing said to expect further details in the days to come “as we honor and remember the remarkable life of Dwight Twilley.” For a Church Studio interview with Twilley, go here.
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Tulsa music artist Dwight Twilley dies - Tulsa World
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