The Late Great Roy Orbison“Only The Lonely” by Roy Orbison is one of those songs that grabbed me and never let go. It was another of those songs I first heard during those couple of weeks I was home sick from seventh grade. It has always been one of my all-time favorites.

From the first strains of that famous “dum dum dum dum dee doo wah” intro, it struck a chord that would set the criteria by which I’d judge what I considered good pop music for years to come. Add in Roy Orbison’s incredible vocal range and the emotion it both portrays and elicits, and “Only The Lonely” becomes an instant rock ‘n’ roll classic.

Now, I have to say that perhaps, beyond the greatness of the song itself, “Only The Lonely” may have affected me on another level. The particular night I first heard it, I was alone in the house. My parents and younger brother had gone out to a Cub Scout meeting of some sort. It was the first time in my young life that I’d been left alone at all, and here it was at night. They weren’t going to be gone long, of course. But when you’re twelve years old, at night, in a big, old three-bedroom house, it can be a little disconcerting.

Although the lyrics of the song are really about a guy who’s lonely in his love life, that night I was feeling lonely myself, and the song just seemed to be talking to me. It comforted me, and made me feel like I wasn’t really alone after all.

There’s a bit of a chuckle tucked away in this, too. I heard Roy Orbison before I’d ever heard Elvis Presley. The first time I did hear The King, my first thought was that he was a Roy Orbison sound alike! That probably sounds odd, since Elvis was all over the place in those days, but that’s how it worked out.

“Only The Lonely (Know The Way I Feel)” – the full title – was Roy Orbison’s first hit for the Monument Records label. Roy passed away on December 6, 1988.

Enjoy Roy Orbison:

  1. 1. The Essential Orbison (Purchase/Download)
  2. 2. Roy Orbison: 16 Biggest Hits (Purchase/Download)
  3. 3. Roy Orbison: A Black & White Night (Purchase/Download)
  4. 4. Roy Orbison: The Soul Of Rock & Roll (Purchase/Download)

Recommended Reading:

Roy Orbison: Invention Of An Alternative Rock Masculinity (Sound Matters)