Photo: Jack de Nijs for Anefo / CC0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Roy Orbison remains, for me, the great anomaly of early rock and roll. While his contemporaries projected swagger, he stood motionless behind dark glasses and sang about loneliness with an operatic voice that seemed to come from somewhere else entirely. Songs like Crying and Only the Lonely still feel structurally daring, refusing verse-chorus convention and building instead toward emotional peaks. His willingness to sound vulnerable made him timeless where tougher acts dated badly. That he died in 1988, just as his late-career revival was blooming, is one of music's crueler ironies. I return to his records more than almost any from that era.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Roy Orbison
- Name (Japanese)
- ロイ・オービソン
- Reading
- ろい・おーびそん
- Born
- April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Rat
- Origin
- Vernon, Texas, United States
- Occupation
- singer / guitarist / composer / songwriter / singer-songwriter
2. Background
- University
- University of North Texas
Awards & achievements
- 1998 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
- 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Only the Lonely (Know the Way I Feel) | — | |
| Notable work | Crying | — | |
| Notable work | Oh, Pretty Woman | — |
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Roy Orbison born?
April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988.
Where is Roy Orbison from?
Roy Orbison is from Vernon, Texas, United States.
What does Roy Orbison do?
Roy Orbison works as singer, guitarist, composer, songwriter, singer-songwriter.
What is Roy Orbison known for?
Notable works include Only the Lonely (Know the Way I Feel), Crying, Oh, Pretty Woman.
Singer — see all → · Guitarist — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.