Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an
American singer-songwriter, best known for his distinctive, powerful
voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up
in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country and western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis.
His first single for Monument failed to chart, and its follow-up ‘Uptown’ only made it to #72 on Billboard’s Top 100 in 1959, but it was his next single, ‘Only the Lonely’ (turned down by both Elvis Presley and the Everly Brothers) that made him a star, reaching #2 in the U.S. and #1 in the UK and Australia. Engineer Porter experimented with a completely new recording strategy, creating the mix from the top down rather from the bottom up, beginning with the close-miked background vocals in the foreground and ending with the rhythm section soft in the background, a combination which became Orbison's trademark.
1. Crying | 1. Running Scared |
2. Only The Lonely | 2. Blue Angel |
3. Love Hurts | 3. Bye Bye Love |
4. I Can’t Stop Loving You | 4. Pretty One |
5. Candy Man | 5. Here Comes That Song Again |
6. Today’s Teardrops | 6. Paper Boy |
7. Cry | 7. Uptown |
8. Blue Avenue | 8. I’m Hurtin’ |
9. Come Back To Me (My Love) | 9. Jolie |
10. Raindrops | 10. With The Bug |
11. (I’d Be) A Legend In My Own Time | 11. This Kind Of Love |
12. 22 Days | 12. It’s Too Late |
13. I’ll Say It’s My Fault | 13. You’re Gonna Cry |
14. Go Go Go | 14. I Never Knew |
15. You’re My Baby | 15. Mean Little Mama |
16. Devil Doll | 16. Problem Child |
17. I Like Love | 17. Sweet And Innocent |
18. Seems To Me | 18. Almost Eighteen |
19. Sweet And Easy To Love | 19. I’ll Never Tell |
20. Chicken Hearted | 20. Ooby Dooby |
21. Rock House | 21. Trying To Get To You |