Dwight Twilley Band, 'Sincerely' & 'Twilley Don't Mind'

By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World

Dwight Twilley Band
"Sincerely"
"Twilley Don't Mind"
(The Right Stuff)

Tulsa's own Dwight Twilley has more lives than your average
alley cat. The latest reissue of the Dwight Twilley Band's first
two albums is the fourth reissue for both since their original
pressings in '76 and '77, respectively. Every few years, someone at
an indie label discovers the records, their eyes grow wide as 45s
and they begin asking everyone they know, “Why isn't this stuff
hugely popular? Why isn't radio saturated with this guy?'' They
think they've found a pop music gold mine.

They have, of course. Trouble is, bad luck and delays caused
people to miss these records the first time around and, well, it's
hard to convince the masses of a second chance. Pity, because these
two records, particularly “Sincerely,'' are examples of everything
that is great about pop music. The songs are immediate but
timeless. They spark with youthful energy without being base. They
are utterly accessible but remain smart. “I'm on Fire,'' the
opener to “Sincerely'' and Twilley's greatest hit with partner
Phil Seymour, was recorded the night Twilley and Seymour first set
foot in the Church studio here in town — their first time in a
studio, period. “Let's record a hit record,'' Seymour said, and
they did. The chugging guitars, the layered vocals, the infectious
attitude — it's irresistible.

“Sincerely'' brims with that immediacy and remains one of the
most exciting records of my lifetime. “Twilley Don't Mind'' starts
with that same eagerness (“Looking for the Magic,'' featuring Tom
Petty's ringing guitar, is truly intriguing and unique) but slows
down before the flying saucer “Invasion.'' (This “Twilley''
reissue, though, features the best bonus tracks.) Still, these
records are more than mere echoes of Abbey Road — they are
diamonds lost in the rough, but they still shine.