There’s no doubt that the influence of the late Roy Orbison can be heard in musicians wide and far, in country and rock genres, in young and old. However, Orbison’s signature style — his unearthly tenor and stoic stage presence — can’t be easily reproduced. Orbison biographer Peter Lehman has remarked, “Most of the singers who profess to have been influenced by Orbison sound nothing like him, write songs nothing like his, look and/or dress nothing like him, and perform nothing like he did.” That may be true, but that didn’t stop them from trying. Here are a select few who’ve very obviously been inspired by Orbison; tack on a few million more musicians and you’ll get a better idea of Orbison’s global impact.
The Beatles
Following his U.K. tour with the Beatles in 1963, Roy maintained a close relationship with the band, especially John Lennon and George Harrison (with whom he was a member of The Traveling Wilburys). During that first tour together, the famous story goes that Orbison was the headliner but by the time the tour was nearly over Beatlemania was so rampant that the two had to switch spots. Still, the crowd greeted opener Orbison so enthusiastically that the Beatles, worrying that they wouldn’t get to perform their set, yelled out jokingly from backstage: “Yankee, go home.”
Bob Dylan
The great Bob Dylan, another Traveling Wilburys member, admired Orbison for his tremendous voice. He has written, “Orbison transcended all the genres. With Roy, you didn’t know if you were listening to mariachi or opera. He kept you on your toes. [He sang] his compositions in three or four octaves that made you want to drive your car over a cliff. He sang like a professional criminal. His voice could jar a corpse, always leave you muttering to yourself something like, ‘Man, I don’t believe it’. There wasn’t anything else on the radio like him.”
The Rolling Stones
Mick Jagger has said, “From watching Roy, I learned how to sing a dramatic ballad.” Orbison toured Australia, where he was immensely popular, with the Stones in 1965. Wife Barbara Orbison has spoken of the deference the Stones felt toward her husband. “Keith [Richards] said everyone called him ‘Keith’ and they called Mick [Jagger] ‘Mick,’ but they called [Roy] Mr. Orbison,” she says.
Emmylou Harris
In 1980, fellow Gibson artists Orbison and Harris joined forces to record the tender ballad “That Lovin’ You Feelin’ Again,” for which they won the 1981 Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Bruce Springsteen
Springsteen reverently inducted Orbison into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987 and can be spotted in the Grammy-nominated videotaped concert Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night. Springsteen also namechecks Orbison in his hit “Thunder Road,” singing, “Like a vision she dances across the porch / As the radio plays Roy Orbison singing for the lonely / Hey that’s me and I want you only.”
Bonnie Raitt
In 1987, Raitt, too, took part in the historic Black And White Night concert, as a backup singer alongside k.d. lang and Jennifer Warnes. She also enjoyed a moderate hit when she covered Orbison’s “You Got It” on the Boys On The Side soundtrack.
Leonard Cohen
Cohen so idolized Orbison that he’d sometimes instruct his band to “Orbisize” certain songs. Cohen’s biographer wrote of Roy’s immense influence on Cohen, saying, “In rehearsal Cohen would tell the band to ‘make it like Roy Orbison would do it.’ The musicians had a picture of Orbison pasted into their chart folder.”
Tom Petty
A fellow member of supergroup the Traveling Wilburys, Petty wasn’t shy about expressing his awe over Orbison. In 1988 — the same year Orbison died — Orbison agreed to form a band with Petty, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne and George Harrison. Of the evening that Orbison accepted the invitation to join the band, Petty has said, “We watched Roy give an incredible concert and kept nudging each other and saying, ‘Isn’t he great? He’s in our band.’ We were real happy that night.”