Now and then, Jay would pitch a song to Conway that someone had left there, or play him a tune by an artist the agency had just signed, whatever. Usually the material was bad, but on this particular occasion, Twitty was enamored with the song he heard. He did some background research on “Happy Birthday Darlin’” and discovered that the first version of the tune had made the rounds with no success. Conway decided then and there to release his own rendition.
Looking back, one wonders why “Happy Birthday Darlin’” wasn’t pitched to Conway Twitty in the first place, instead of him having to hear the song by accident at a booking agency. It seemed the perfect follow-up to his 1970 megahit “Hello Darlin’” and that’s the way it belatedly turned out.
Under his updated contract with MCA Records, Conway had more freedom to improvise on his performances, so he re-arranged “Happy Birthday Darlin’” to suit his style and added the opening line of the 1970 hit at the beginning of the new song. It was a brilliant move. By connecting his past with a reinvigorated present, Twitty cinched the record’s number one peak on Billboard’s country singles chart December 25, 1979.