Roy Orbison: the yin to Bono’s yang
My father clued me in to a special on the Documentary Channel tonight called “In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story,” and I’m so glad he did. (It’s from 1999, so some of you may have seen this already. But it was new to me.) Bono puts in a couple of appearances; his longest segment describes meeting Roy Orbison and how “She’s a Mystery to Me” came to be. If you don’t have the channel, you can see Bono’s segment on YouTube, which is actually a little longer than the one in the documentary:
But if you have access to the Documentary Channel and have even the slightest interest in Roy Orbison, I highly recommend watching the entire special. (It’s on again at 9 p.m. EDT Thursday.) I watched it because of Bono, but in the process, I gained a new respect for Roy Orbison and his amazing talent. That seems to be how U2 works for me. I watch and listen because I love our boys, but through that I’m introduced to something wonderful that I hadn’t given much consideration to before. And as a fan of such a demonstrative performer as Bono, it’s interesting to see the contrast in Orbison’s beautifully understated performances: the yin and yang of rock and roll.
scott said,
May 21, 2007 @ 11:50 pm
Great post! Thanks. I agree, U2 has always been a gateway to amazing music.
caravox said,
May 22, 2007 @ 4:56 pm
Very cool. I adore that song and the whole history behind it. Bono writing it in his sleep and Roy magically appearing. As ridiculous as it sounds and as big of a storyteller as Bono is, somehow you know this tale is actually true.
flyingfleet2000 said,
May 23, 2007 @ 9:02 am
U2 should have covered this themselves on the Million Dollar Hotel Soundtrack. It would have fit nicely.