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Roy Orbison -
The Man with the Glasses
The quiet man with the dark glasses
is how Roy Orbison can be described. Roy Orbison was born Roy Kelton Orbison on April 23, 1936 in Vernon, Texas.
Like Buddy Holly, he was shy and
reserved and often referred to as the shy Texan among fellow
musicians. His father gave him his first guitar at the age of
six. He learned how to play guitar copying his father who played
country guitar and from his uncle that played the blues. At the
tender age of eight, radio stations were playing his country
songs that could be heard throughout Vernon.
Orbison, who took after his father’s
musical taste, played country music throughout his teen years
enjoying his popularity as a country musician. While attending
North Texas State College, he became interested in Rock and Roll
music when he heard about the early pop success of a fellow
student named Pat Boone and a popular song called, “Pink
Cadillac” that had the girls screaming and crying.
He eventually found that the singer
of this popular song was Elvis Presley, so he decided he wanted
a piece of the action, he was envious of Pat Boone’s and Elvis
Presley’s success and popularity.
In June 1956, Orbison quickly reformed his band and they did a
cut of the song “Ooby Dooby”, which caught the ears of Sun
Records and eventually became a hit for Orbison. Although, Roy
enjoyed his new found fame he was uncomfortable among the other
stars and the manager at Sun Records.
His style was very much different
than Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis all of which found fame
with Sun Records, but Orbison’s uncomfortable feelings and his
uneasiness with Sun Records owner, Sam Phillips, was making Roy
unhappy. He thought Sam Phillips was very unprofessional.
Sam wanted Roy to sound a certain
way and it just wasn’t happening with Roy Orbison. Orbison
struggled to have another hit with Sun Records and he basically
would write songs for the other artists on the label. Finally,
Orbison decided to move on and eventually signed with Monument
Records in Nashville.
He recorded his first million dollar
record, “Only the Lonely” and soon Orbison found fame again and
this time the success and the good vibes lasted.
Orbison did
suffer a couple of tragedies in his life when his wife,
Claudette, died in an automobile accident and two of his
children died in a house fire this caused him to go in a
downward spiral. He dabbled in some unsuccessful movies and
recorded some uninspired songs but his fans remained loyal.
Orbison was known as the big “O” and his three octave vocal
range, dark glasses, lovesick songs, and unique falsetto made
him internationally famous. Roy walked quietly and sang with a
rich, subtle voice explained as a mixture of pop and country
music. Even though his looks and subtle sounds seemed more
Rockabilly than Rock and Roll,
Orbison blended different sounds
into his music including, Latin rhythms, subtle but distinctive
beats, and a consistent stream of guitar riffs. He helped
developed the use of strings and elaborate vocal melodies that
made his sound more Rock and Roll than Rockabilly.
Unlike many of the other rock pioneers from the 50’s, Orbison
kept making music well into the 60’s, he toured with the Beach
Boys and the Rolling Stones and his most popular and successful
song, “Pretty Woman, which sold more than seven million copies
broke the Beatles hold on the Top Ten and hit number one in
1964. In the 1980’s, Orbison found great success singing with
other artists, recording new songs, touring, and receiving a
number of awards.
Orbison had triple bypass surgery in
January 1978 and ten years later in December 1988 he suffered a
fatal heart attack at the age of 52. Roy Orbison’s career lasted
over 40 years. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame in 1987.
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