“The Caruso of Rock”, Roy Orbison, was born in Vernon, TX on April 23, 1936. He first recorded for Sam Phillips’ Sun Records in Memphis during the mid-1950s – the same era that saw Sun singles from Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis – but it was in the early 60s that he made his most successful recordings for Monument. Between 1960 and 1966, Orbison had over 20 Top 40 singles on the Billboard chart, writing many of his biggest hits including “Only the Lonely”, “Crying”, and “Oh, Pretty Woman”.

Orbison suffered a series of personal tragedies and setbacks beginning in the later part of the 1960s, including the loss of his wife in a motorcycle accident and two sons in a house fire. In the late 1970s he underwent triple bypass heart surgery due to severely blocked arteries. It had been over a decade since his last charting single.

Things began to pick up for Orbison in the early 80s. Van Halen recorded a version of “Oh, Pretty Woman”, he made an appearance on the hit TV show The Dukes of Hazzard, and his song “In Dreams” was used to great dramatic effect in the David Lynch film Blue Velvet. All of this helped introduce Orbison’s music to a new audience, spurring the creation of a new album of his older songs with T-Bone Burnett producing. In 1987, Orbison was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame, the same year a star-studded concert film was made with support from Bruce Springsteen, k.d. lang, Tom Waits, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, and others in Los Angeles.

The following year, while having lunch during a break in sessions for a new album with producer Jeff Lynne, Orbison was asked to contribute to a new single by George Harrison who was also creating a new album with Lynne. One thing led to another, and a new band – The Traveling Wilburys – was formed with Orbison, Harrison, Tom Petty, and Bob Dylan. An album of new songs was quickly written, recorded and released in the Fall of 1988, followed closely by a new solo album. By the end of the year, Orbison was gone, dead from a heart attack at age 52. His final studio album, Mystery Girl, was released in January of 1989, featuring the single “You Got It”. It was a Top 10 hit in the US.

Hear Roy Orbison’s music on Highway 61 Revisited this Saturday from 8 AM to noon (and re-broadcast Sunday at 8 PM).