There is one singer that Elvis Presley called “the greatest,” and it’s someone who might even display the likings of Presley himself. That person is Roy Orbison. And Presley isn’t the only singer who fell for the charms and talents of Orbison.
Other artists who called Orbison their biggest inspirations include everyone from U2 to Led Zeppelin and the Bee Gees. Even The Beatles said their song “Please Please Me” actually came to fruition after hearing Orbison on the radio.
What did Elvis say about Roy Orbison?
Of a concert Orbison attended back in ’55, he said, “I couldn’t overemphasize how shocking he looked and seemed to me that night… He told jokes that weren’t funny, and his diction was real coarse like a truck driver’s.
[There was] pandemonium in the audience because the girls took a shine to him and the guys were getting a little jealous.”
Orbison loved every minute of it. “I really loved hearing it and couldn’t wait for the next records to come out.”
