In 2002, Billboard magazine listed him at number 74 on its list of the Top 600 recording artists. ==Early life== Orbison was born on April 23, 1936 in Vernon, Texas the middle son of Orbie Lee Orbison (1913–1984), an oil well driller and car mechanic, and nurse Nadine Vesta Shults (July 25, 1913 – May 12, 1992).
Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads.
In 2002, Billboard magazine listed him at number 74 on its list of the Top 600 recording artists. ==Early life== Orbison was born on April 23, 1936 in Vernon, Texas the middle son of Orbie Lee Orbison (1913–1984), an oil well driller and car mechanic, and nurse Nadine Vesta Shults (July 25, 1913 – May 12, 1992).
He began singing on a local radio show at age 8, and he became the show's host by the late 1940s. In high school, Orbison and some friends formed the band Wink Westerners.
The family moved to Fort Worth in 1942 to find work in the aircraft factories. Roy attended Denver Avenue Elementary School until a polio scare prompted the family to return to Vernon, and according to Marcel Riesco's research on The Authorized Roy Orbison, they moved again to Wink, Texas in 1946.
The family moved to Fort Worth in 1942 to find work in the aircraft factories. Roy attended Denver Avenue Elementary School until a polio scare prompted the family to return to Vernon, and according to Marcel Riesco's research on The Authorized Roy Orbison, they moved again to Wink, Texas in 1946.
He toured music circuits around Texas and then quit performing for seven months in 1958. For a brief period in the late 1950s, Orbison made his living at Acuff-Rose, a songwriting firm concentrating mainly on country music.
Orbison's sons contributed instrumentation on the track along with Roy's vocals; it was produced by John Carter Cash. ==Style and legacy== Rock and roll in the 1950s was defined by a driving backbeat, heavy guitars, and lyrical themes that glorified youthful rebellion.
Johnny Cash toured the area in 1955 and 1956, appearing on the same local TV show as the Wink Westerners, and he suggested that Orbison approach Sam Phillips at Sun Records.
He was signed by Sam Phillips of Sun Records in 1956, but enjoyed his greatest success with Monument Records.
Johnny Cash toured the area in 1955 and 1956, appearing on the same local TV show as the Wink Westerners, and he suggested that Orbison approach Sam Phillips at Sun Records.
They recorded "Ooby Dooby" in 1956 for the Odessa-based Je–Wel label.
The song was released on Sun 242 in May 1956 and broke into the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 59 and selling 200,000 copies.
Orbison wrote "Claudette"—about Claudette Frady, whom he married in 1957—and the Everly Brothers recorded it as the B-side of "All I Have to Do Is Dream".
He toured music circuits around Texas and then quit performing for seven months in 1958. For a brief period in the late 1950s, Orbison made his living at Acuff-Rose, a songwriting firm concentrating mainly on country music.
The songwriter Joe Melson, an acquaintance of Orbison's, tapped on his car window one day in Texas in 1958, and the two decided to write some songs together.
In three recording sessions in 1958 and 1959, Orbison recorded seven songs at RCA Nashville.
"I'm Hurtin'", with "I Can't Stop Loving You" as the B-side, rose to number 27 in the US, but failed to chart in the UK. Orbison was now able to move to Nashville permanently with his wife Claudette and son Roy DeWayne, born in 1958.
In three recording sessions in 1958 and 1959, Orbison recorded seven songs at RCA Nashville.
From 1960 to 1966, 22 of Orbison's singles reached the Billboard Top 40.
Wesley Rose brought Orbison to the attention of the producer Fred Foster at Monument Records. == 1960–1964: Monument Records and stardom == ===Early singles=== Orbison was one of the first recording artists to popularise the "Nashville sound", with a group of session musicians known as The Nashville A-Team.
Starting in 1960, the charts in the United States came to be dominated by teen idols, novelty acts, and Motown girl groups. ===Top-10 hits=== ====1960–1962==== Experimenting with a new sound, Orbison and Joe Melson wrote a song in early 1960 which, using elements from "Uptown", and another song they had written called "Come Back to Me (My Love)", employed strings and the Anita Kerr doo-wop backing singers.
He had no publicist in the early 1960s, therefore he had little presence in fan magazines, and his single sleeves did not feature his picture.
His dark and brooding persona, combined with his tremulous voice in lovelorn ballads marketed to teenagers, made Orbison a star in the early 1960s.
He had suffered from duodenal ulcers since 1960 and had been a heavy smoker since adolescence. == 1980–1988: Career revival == In 1980, Don McLean recorded "Crying" and it went to the top of the charts, first in the Netherlands then reaching number five in the US and staying on the charts for 15 weeks; it was number one in the UK for three weeks and also topped the Irish Charts.
Peter Watrous, writing for the New York Times, declared in a concert review, "He has perfected an odd vision of popular music, one in which eccentricity and imagination beat back all the pressures toward conformity". In the 1960s, Orbison refused to splice edits of songs together and insisted on recording them in single takes with all the instruments and singers together.
Before that no one would do it." Orbison acknowledged this in looking back on the era in which he became popular: "When ["Crying"] came out I don't think anyone had accepted the fact that a man should cry when he wants to cry." ===Voice quality=== Orbison admitted that he did not think his voice was put to appropriate use until "Only the Lonely" in 1960, when it was able, in his words, to allow its "flowering".
Dylan marked Orbison as a specific influence, remarking that there was nothing like him on radio in the early 1960s: Likewise, Tim Goodwin, who conducted the orchestra that backed Orbison in Bulgaria, had been told that Orbison's voice would be a singular experience to hear.
He was aware of his unique performance style even in the early 1960s when he commented, "I'm not a super personality—on stage or off.
The composition of Orbison's following hits reflected "Running Scared": a story about an emotionally vulnerable man facing loss or grief, with a crescendo culminating in a surprise climax that employed Orbison's dynamic voice. "Crying" followed in July 1961 and reached number two; it was coupled with an up-tempo R&B song, "Candy Man", written by Fred Neil and Beverley Ross, which reached the Billboard Top 30, staying on the charts for two months.
Another son, Anthony King, would follow in 1962.
While Orbison was touring Australia in 1962, an Australian DJ referred to him affectionately as "The Big O", partly based on the big finishes to his dramatic ballads, and the moniker stuck with him thereafter.
The band changed their names to The Candy Men (in reference to Roy's hit) and played with Orbison from 1962 to 1967.
Also in 1962, he charted with "The Crowd", "Leah", and "Workin' for the Man", which he wrote about working one summer in the oil fields near Wink.
After leaving his thick eyeglasses on an aeroplane in 1963, while on tour with the Beatles, Orbison was forced to wear his prescription Wayfarer sunglasses on stage and found that he preferred them.
Orbison finished 1963 with a Christmas song written by Willie Nelson, "Pretty Paper" (US number 15 in 1963, UK number six in 1964). As "In Dreams" was released in April 1963, Orbison was asked to replace Duane Eddy on a tour of the UK in top billing with the Beatles.
Orbison felt a kinship with Lennon, but it was Harrison with whom he would later form a strong friendship. Touring in 1963 took a toll on Orbison's personal life.
When Orbison toured Britain again in the autumn of 1963, she joined him.
Orbison's success was greater in Britain; as Billboard magazine noted, "In a 68-week period that began on August 8, 1963, Roy Orbison was the only American artist to have a number-one single in Britain.
Orbison finished 1963 with a Christmas song written by Willie Nelson, "Pretty Paper" (US number 15 in 1963, UK number six in 1964). As "In Dreams" was released in April 1963, Orbison was asked to replace Duane Eddy on a tour of the UK in top billing with the Beatles.
A riff-laden masterpiece that employed a playful growl he got from a Bob Hope movie, the epithet mercy Orbison uttered when he was unable to hit a note, it rose to number one in the autumn of 1964 in the United States and stayed on the charts for 14 weeks.
He did it twice, with 'It's Over' on June 25, 1964, and 'Oh, Pretty Woman' on October 8, 1964.
The latter song also went to number one in America, making Orbison impervious to the current chart dominance of British artists on both sides of the Atlantic." ==1965–1969: Career decline and tragedies== Claudette and Orbison divorced in November 1964 over her infidelities, but reconciled 10 months later.
With the onset of the British Invasion in 1964–65, the direction of popular music shifted dramatically, and most performers of Orbison's generation were driven from the charts. While on tour again in the UK in 1966, Orbison broke his foot falling off a motorcycle in front of thousands of screaming fans at a race track; he performed his show that evening in a cast.
He was astonished to find that he was as popular there as he had been in 1964, and he was forced to stay in his hotel room because he was mobbed on the streets of Sofia.
His contract with Monument was expiring in June 1965.
It was now made public that the couple had happily remarried and were back together (they had remarried in December 1965). Orbison was fascinated with machines.
Wesley (born 1965), his youngest son with Claudette, was raised by Orbison's parents.
From 1960 to 1966, 22 of Orbison's singles reached the Billboard Top 40.
With the onset of the British Invasion in 1964–65, the direction of popular music shifted dramatically, and most performers of Orbison's generation were driven from the charts. While on tour again in the UK in 1966, Orbison broke his foot falling off a motorcycle in front of thousands of screaming fans at a race track; he performed his show that evening in a cast.
On June 6, 1966, when Orbison and Claudette were riding home from Bristol, Tennessee, she struck the door of a pickup truck which had pulled out in front of her on South Water Avenue in Gallatin, Tennessee and died instantly. A grieving Orbison threw himself into his work, collaborating with Bill Dees to write music for The Fastest Guitar Alive, a film that MGM had scheduled for him to star in as well.
The band changed their names to The Candy Men (in reference to Roy's hit) and played with Orbison from 1962 to 1967.
On March 25, 1969, Orbison married German teenager Barbara Jakobs, whom he had met several weeks before his sons' deaths.
Orbison and Barbara had a son (Roy Kelton) in 1970 and another (Alexander) in 1975. ==1970s: Struggles== Orbison continued recording albums in the 1970s, but none of them sold well.
His fortunes sank so low that he began to doubt his own talents, and several of his 1970s albums were not released internationally due to low US sales.
He never seemed like he was trying to sing, he just did it." His voice ranged from baritone to tenor, and music scholars have suggested that he had a three- or four-octave range. Orbison's severe stage fright was particularly noticeable in the 1970s and early 1980s.
He left MGM Records in 1973 and signed a one-album deal with Mercury Records.
Orbison and Barbara had a son (Roy Kelton) in 1970 and another (Alexander) in 1975. ==1970s: Struggles== Orbison continued recording albums in the 1970s, but none of them sold well.
He went an entire decade by 1976 without an album reaching the charts.
Bruce Springsteen ended his concerts with Orbison songs, and Glen Campbell had a minor hit with a remake of "Dream Baby". A compilation of Orbison's greatest hits reached number one in the UK in January 1976, and Orbison began to open concerts for the Eagles that year, who started as Linda Ronstadt's backup band.
He signed again with Monument in 1976 and recorded "Regeneration" with Fred Foster, but it proved no more successful than before. In late 1977, Orbison was not feeling well and decided to spend the winter in Hawaii.
Ronstadt herself covered "Blue Bayou" in 1977, her version reaching number three on the Billboard charts and remaining in the charts for 24 weeks.
He signed again with Monument in 1976 and recorded "Regeneration" with Fred Foster, but it proved no more successful than before. In late 1977, Orbison was not feeling well and decided to spend the winter in Hawaii.
He underwent a triple coronary bypass on January 18, 1978.
He experienced a resurgence in popularity in the 1980s following the success of several cover versions of his songs.
He had suffered from duodenal ulcers since 1960 and had been a heavy smoker since adolescence. == 1980–1988: Career revival == In 1980, Don McLean recorded "Crying" and it went to the top of the charts, first in the Netherlands then reaching number five in the US and staying on the charts for 15 weeks; it was number one in the UK for three weeks and also topped the Irish Charts.
Music critic Ken Emerson writes that the "apocalyptic romanticism" in Orbison's music was well-crafted for the films in which his songs appeared in the 1980s because the music was "so over-the-top that dreams become delusions, and self-pity paranoia", striking "a post-modern nerve".
He never seemed like he was trying to sing, he just did it." His voice ranged from baritone to tenor, and music scholars have suggested that he had a three- or four-octave range. Orbison's severe stage fright was particularly noticeable in the 1970s and early 1980s.
In 1981 he performed "Pretty Woman" on an episode of The Dukes of Hazzard.
In 1981, he and Emmylou Harris won a Grammy Award for their duet "That Lovin' You Feelin' Again" from the comedy film Roadie (in which Orbison also played a cameo role), and things were picking up.
Orbison was all but forgotten in the US, yet he reached popularity in unlikely places such as Bulgaria in 1982.
It was Orbison's first Grammy, and he felt hopeful of making a full return to popular music, In the meantime, Van Halen released a hard-rock cover of "Oh, Pretty Woman" on their 1982 album Diver Down, further exposing a younger generation to Orbison's music. Orbison originally declined David Lynch's request to allow the use of "In Dreams" for the film Blue Velvet (1986).
The song was originally recorded on a stereo cassette player around 1986.
Top 10 in nearly 25 years. Orbison's honors include inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.
I thought, 'What in the world ...?' But later, when I was touring, we got the video out and I really got to appreciate what David gave to the song, and what the song gave to the movie—how it achieved this otherworldly quality that added a whole new dimension to 'In Dreams'." In 1987, Orbison released an album of re-recorded hits titled The Greatest Hits.
Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads.
In 1988, he co-founded the Traveling Wilburys (a rock supergroup) with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne.
Orbison died of a heart attack in December 1988 at age 52.
He told Rolling Stone in 1988, "I liked the sound of [my voice].
It was very emotional." The concert was filmed in one take and aired on Cinemax under the title A Black and White Night; it was released on video by Virgin Records, selling 50,000 copies. It was also in 1988 that Orbison began collaborating seriously with Electric Light Orchestra bandleader Jeff Lynne on a new album.
1 (1988), was released on October 25, 1988.
In the final three months of his life, he gave Rolling Stone magazine extensive access to his daily activities; he intended to write an autobiography and wanted Martin Sheen to play him in a biopic. Orbison completed a solo album, Mystery Girl, in November 1988.
Elvis Costello, Orbison's son Wesley and others offered their songs to him. Around November 1988, Orbison confided in Johnny Cash that he was having chest pains.
A few days later, a manager at a club in Boston was concerned that he looked ill, but Orbison played the show to a standing ovation. ==Death and aftermath== ===Death=== Orbison performed at the Front Row Theater in Highland Heights, Ohio on December 4, 1988.
On December 6, 1988, he spent the day flying model airplanes with his bus driver and friend Benny Birchfield and ate dinner at Birchfield's home in Hendersonville (Birchfield was married to country star Jean Shepard).
His greatest recordings were quite simply perfect; not a word or note surplus to intention." After attending a show in 1988, Peter Watrous of The New York Times wrote that Orbison's songs are "dreamlike claustrophobically intimate set pieces".
Top 10 in nearly 25 years. Orbison's honors include inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.
He was buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in an unmarked grave. ===Aftermath=== Mystery Girl was released by Virgin Records on January 31, 1989.
Rolling Stone included it in the top 100 albums of the decade. On April 8, 1989, Orbison became the first deceased musician since Elvis Presley to have two albums in the US Top Five at the same time, with Traveling Wilburys Vol.
In the United Kingdom, he achieved even greater posthumous success, with two solo albums in the Top 3 on February 11, 1989 (Mystery Girl was number 2 and the compilation The Legendary Roy Orbison was number 3). Although the video for the Traveling Wilburys' "Handle with Care" was filmed with Orbison, the video for "End of the Line" was filmed and released posthumously.
In concert, Orbison placed the uptempo songs between the ballads to keep from being too consistently dark or grim. In 1990, Colin Escott wrote an introduction to Orbison's biography published in a CD box set: "Orbison was the master of compression.
In 2002, Billboard magazine listed him at number 74 on its list of the Top 600 recording artists. ==Early life== Orbison was born on April 23, 1936 in Vernon, Texas the middle son of Orbie Lee Orbison (1913–1984), an oil well driller and car mechanic, and nurse Nadine Vesta Shults (July 25, 1913 – May 12, 1992).
During Orbison's vocal solo parts in "End of the Line", the video shows a guitar in a rocking chair next to Orbison's framed photo. On October 20, 1992, King of Hearts—another album of Orbison songs—was released. In 2014, a demo of Orbison's "The Way Is Love" was released as part of the 25th-anniversary deluxe edition of Mystery Girl.
In 2002, Billboard magazine listed him at number 74 on its list of the Top 600 recording artists. ==Early life== Orbison was born on April 23, 1936 in Vernon, Texas the middle son of Orbie Lee Orbison (1913–1984), an oil well driller and car mechanic, and nurse Nadine Vesta Shults (July 25, 1913 – May 12, 1992).
In 2002, Billboard magazine listed Orbison at number 74 in the Top 600 recording artists. Grammy Awards * Best Country Performance Duo or Group (1980) ("That Lovin' You Feelin' Again", with Emmylou Harris) * Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Recording (1986) ("Interviews From The Class Of '55 Recording Sessions", with Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Sam Phillips, Rick Nelson and Chips Moman) * Best Country Vocal Collaboration (1988) ("Crying", with k.d.
Top 10 in nearly 25 years. Orbison's honors include inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.
During Orbison's vocal solo parts in "End of the Line", the video shows a guitar in a rocking chair next to Orbison's framed photo. On October 20, 1992, King of Hearts—another album of Orbison songs—was released. In 2014, a demo of Orbison's "The Way Is Love" was released as part of the 25th-anniversary deluxe edition of Mystery Girl.
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