On July 31st, 1961, the legendary Roy Orbison released the hit song ‘Crying.’ From 1960 through 1966, Roy had 22 singles reach the Billboard Top 40. His hits included ‘Only the Lonely’ and ‘In Dreams.’ Do you remember Roy’s iconic look?
Roy’s band is on stage in front of a studio crowd. He sings and plays the guitar with the band wearing matching black suits. Roy’s guitar strap has his name etched on it.
Roy sings the emotionally-charged lyrics, ‘I was alright for a while, I could smile for a while. Then I saw you last night. You held my hand so tight. When you stopped to say hello. You wished me well. You couldn’t tell that I’d been crying over you.’
Roy would typically perform standing motionless while wearing black clothes that matched his dyed black hair. He topped off the outfit with his signature dark sunglasses. He had to deal with stage fright his whole career, and it was believed that the glasses helped him stay calm.
‘Crying’ was written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson for Roy’s 3rd studio album of the same name. It became a number 2 hit in the U.S. and was covered in 1980 by Don McLean.
Roy was known as ‘The Caruso of Rock’ and ‘The Big O’ due to his operatic singing style. He conveyed vulnerability in his lyrics with his emotional ballads.
Roy is most associated with his signature song ‘Oh, Pretty Woman,’ which spent three weeks at number one in 1964. ‘Crying’ was ranked 69th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of ‘The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.’ Roy’s unique style and stage persona made him a legend in American music.
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