Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 - December 6, 1988), nicknamed "The Big O," was an influential American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll whose recording career spanned more than four decades. By the mid-1960s Orbison was internationally recognized for his ballads of lost love, rhythmically advanced melodies, characteristic dark sunglasses, and his taut, powerful alto voice coupled with his occasional distinctive usage of falsetto.
