Customer Reviews

Sun Years

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Roy Orbison is best known for bathetic songs, and they are great ones. This album was recorded before he left Sun Records, where he never really fit in or felt comfortable with what Sam Phillips wanted him to do. However, listening to this, one would never know it. I had read two autobiographies about Roy Orbison, and in both, Roy was described as feeling out of place at Sun Records. I bought this album months later, and I was surprised to hear how great his rockabilly/Sun songs were. If Roy Orbison's short tenure with Sun was a rocky one, one would never know it from listening to this great rockabilly album. As for me, I loved it.

Most famous for his crooning and grandiose vocals on his early 1960s hits, "Crying," "Blue Bayou," "Oh, Pretty Woman," and "Only The Lonely," Roy Orbison actually got his first big hit at Sun Records, most famous for starting the careers of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. It was in fact Johnny Cash who brought Roy to the attention of Sun Records' owner Sam Phillips.

Orbison's first hit record was "Ooby Dooby," a rockabilly rocker which peaked at #59 on the Billboard charts in 1956. It was backed with another rockabilly tune "Go! Go! Go!" Orbison's second single for Sun Records, "Rockhouse" coupled with "You're My Baby," two more countryfied rockabilly tunes received good reviews but failed to chart.

Roy only had 4 singles released by Sun Records between 1956 and 1957 and was never fully appreciated by Sam Phillips, being only one of the minor young rockabillies and easily dismissed in the shadow of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. It wasn't until 1961, after Roy had become the newest hit sensation for Columbia Records, that Phillips hurriedly cashed in and assembled an album from Roy's Sun recording tapes.

Roy Orbison's "The Sun Years 1956-58" contains almost 64 minutes of enjoyable tunes of what might have been hits in an alternative 1950s universe. Along with "Ooby Dooby," "Rockhouse," "You're My Baby," and "Go! Go! Go!" are the other two Sun singles "Devil Doll" and "Chicken Hearted" as well as "Domino," "Mean Little Mama," "Claudette," and many more. This is not the collection to get for those who only like Roy's early 1960s hits, but is a must-have for rockabilly and early rock-n-roll collectors or hardcore fans of Orbison or Sun Records.

Before Roy Orbison had his great success with Monument Records, he recorded for Sun Records. His stint with Sun was not so successful. He only released four singles while he was with Sun, only one of which was a moderate success ("Ooby Dooby"). This CD features all the songs from his singles, plus a bunch of songs that were unreleased until after Roy hit it big with another record label. This material is definitely not as sophisticated as his later, more popular material. This is just basic rockabilly, but still quite enjoyable. Fans of "The Big O" should like it.

Buy it now for it's revelation into the early songs of a Rock & Roll giant.This is Roy Orbison When in terms of trying to find an artistic voice he was still a baby.

These are Roy Orbison's early recordings on the Sun label, done before he hit it big with Monument Records.

These are swinging rockabilly performances, and are my favorite Orbisons.

Production values are limited - It's just good rock 'n' roll.