Roy Orbison's Sun Recordings Roy Orbison. Orbison, still in Texas began writing with Joe Melson, who led a group in Midland called the Cavaliers. Together they wrote the hit "Uptown," which sold better than any single since "Ooby Dooby". Looking for a follow-up, Melson showed Orbison a piece of a song he had been working on called "Only the Lonely". This song was the "first song that truly probed the frightening potential of Orbison's voice." In the early sixties Orbison reached his first peak period from 1961-1964. Despite the lack of commercial success Orbison looked back at his time at Sun Records as an
Roy Orbison discography With Foster, Orbison and his frequent songwriting partners Joe Melson and Bill Dees tailored many of Orbison's songs for his unique voice; his most popular songs were dramatic ballads ending with emotional crescendos that showcased his powerful vocals. After his biggest hit in 1964, "Oh, Pretty Woman", Orbison continued to record and chart intermittently in the UK, but it was not until 1987 that he again found the level of popular worldwide success he had known in the early 1960s, when his original recording of "In Dreams" was used in David Lynch's film "Blue Velvet". The following year, Orbison co-founded