The Classic Roy Orbison
{{Infobox album
| name = The Classic Roy Orbison
| type = Album
| artist = Roy Orbison
| cover = ClassicOrbisonAlbum.jpg
| alt =
| released = July 1966
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Rock
| length = 27:58
| label = MGM
| producer = Wesley Rose, Jim Vienneau
| prev_title = The Orbison Way
| prev_year = 1966
| next_title = Roy Orbison Sings Don Gibson
| next_year = 1967
| misc = {{Singles
| name = The Classic Roy Orbison
| type = studio
| single1 = Twinkle Toes
}}
}}
The Classic Roy Orbison is the ninth studio album recorded by Roy Orbison, and his third for MGM Records, released in July 1966. The single taken from it, "Twinkle Toes", was Orbison's last US top-forty single during his lifetime, scraping in at No. 39. It reached No. 24 in Australia and No. 29 in the UK. The album spent eight weeks on the album chart in the UK, peaking at number 12.
The album was released on compact disc by Diablo Records on October 5, 2004, as tracks 1 through 12 on a pairing of two albums on one CD with tracks 13 through 24 consisting Orbison's 1967 album, Cry Softly Lonely One.{{cite web |title=Roy Orbison 1965-1973, Vol. 2 (The Classic Roy Orbison/Cry Softly, Lonely One) |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/roy-orbison-1965-1973-vol-2-the-classic-roy-orbison-cry-softly-lonely-one-mw0000372081 |access-date=16 September 2024 |publisher=AllMusic}} Classic Roy Orbison was included in a box set entitled The MGM Years 1965-1973 - Roy Orbison, which contains 12 of his MGM studio albums, 1 compilation, and was released on December 4, 2015.{{cite web |title=The MGM Years 1965-1973 - Roy Orbison |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-mgm-years-1965-1973-mw0002889027 |access-date=16 September 2024 |publisher=AllMusic}}
History
Some of the songs were leftovers from The Orbison Way sessions.{{citation needed|date=December 2024}}
Reception
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}{{Cite web |title=Roy Orbison – The Classic Roy Orbison: Review |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-classic-roy-orbison-mw0000809412 |access-date=2024-08-12 |publisher=AllMusic}}
| rev2 = The Encyclopedia of Popular Music
| rev3 = Record Mirror
}}
Bruce Eder of AllMusic felt that "Every song was cast in a familiar, classic Orbison vein, without any of the country piano sounds that showed a digression on recent releases, and most of it — especially "Just Another Name for Rock and Roll" — had a beat, this is stripped-down, back-to-basics Orbison", calling the album "the best album be ever did for the label"
Billboard described the album as "one of his best albums to date" with "dynamic Orbison performances"{{Cite magazine |date=1966-08-27 |title=Pop Spotlight; The Classic Roy Orbison |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KBIEAAAAMBAJ&dq=billboard%20august%2027%2C%201966&pg=RA1-PT1 |magazine=Billboard |pages=80 |language=en |volume=78 |issue=35}}
Cashbox gave a positive review, saying that Orbison "ranges from rhythmic danceables ('Just Another Name for Rock And Roll") to dramatic, emotional ballads ('Wait')."{{Cite magazine |date=August 27, 1966 |title=Cashbox Album Pop Pick Reviews: The Classic Roy Orbison |url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox28unse_4/page/58/mode/2up |magazine=Cash Box |pages=58 |volume=28 |issue=4}}
Variety mentions "He demonstrates his style on ballads".{{Cite magazine |date=September 21, 1966 |title=Record Reviews: Orbison, Mathis Nancy Sinatra, Kaempfert, Como, Harry James, Bernardi, Carla Thomas, Top LPs |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_variety_1966-09-21_244_5/page/52/mode/2up |magazine=Variety |pages=52 |volume=244 |issue=5}}
Record Mirror gave the album a positive review, saying Orbison "swings in the way of contemporaries"{{Cite magazine |last1=Jones |first1=Peter |last2=Jopling |first2=Norman |date=24 September 1966 |title=New albums reviewed by Norman Jopling and Peter Jones, New album: Atmsospheric New Orbison album |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Record-Mirror/60s/66/Record-Mirror-1966-09-24.pdf |access-date=12 August 2024 |magazine=New Record Mirror |page=8 |issue=289}}
Track listing
All tracks composed by Roy Orbison and Bill Dees, except where indicated.
{{track listing
|headline = Side one
|title1 = You'll Never Be Sixteen Again
|length1 = 2:50
|title2 = Pantomime
|length2 = 2:53
|title3 = Twinkle Toes
|length3 = 2:37
|title4 = Losing You
|length4 = 2:43
|title5 = City Life
|length5 = 2:47
|title6 = Wait
|length6 = 2:17
}}
{{track listing
|headline = Side two
|title1 = Growing Up
|length1 = 2:46
|title2 = Where Is Tomorrow
|length2 = 2:45
|title3 = (No) I'll Never Get Over You
|writer3 = Orbison
|length3 = 2:10
|title4 = Going Back to Gloria
|length4 = 2:46
|title5 = Just Another Name for Rock and Roll
|writer5 = Bill Dees
|length5 = 2:09
|title6 = Never Love Again
|writer6 = Rusty Kershaw, Doug Kershaw
|length6 = 2:10
}}
- Produced by Wesley Rose and Jim Vienneau
- Engineered by Val Valentin
Charts
= Album =
| class="wikitable"
!Chart (1966) !Peak |
| UK Albums Chart{{cite web |title=Roy Orbison |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/16272/roy-orbison/ |access-date=20 May 2024 |publisher=Official Charts}}
| align="center" |12 |
= Singles =
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Roy Orbison}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Classic Roy Orbison, The}}