The Big O

“There are two kinds of people: Elvis people and Beatles people.”

Ah, but this old chestnut is wrong. There are three kinds of people. Elvis people, Beatles people, and those who revere The Big O.

I grew up listening to my dad’s records (as many of us did). I listened to Johnny Cash, Buddy Holly, and Roy Orbison. Orbison changed music in so many ways. He ditched the entire concept of choruses, his songs slowly building, pausing, building, moving to a dramatic and climactic end. His arrangements, his style… before Cash became The Man in Black, there was The Big O, paving the way for him.

And then, there was his voice. His Voice.
All my life, all I’ve ever wanted was to be as cool as Roy Orbison.

He made it cool to be lonely. He made it cool to cry.