"Roy Orbison: The Soul of Rock & Roll," the new exhibit honoring the singer at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles that opened April 29, is an tremendous look at the career of the legendary singer. We were able to preview it last week prior to its official start during a visit to the museum.
(You can see some of the pictures here, though, unfortunately, though some are marred by glare. We apologize for that.)
There's a lot packed into the compact area holding it and the exhibit has a wealth of vintage artifacts from thoughout his career.
His school yearbook is like any young student's, except that he would become a music legend. A concert program from the Surfside '64 tour shows him on the cover with fellow performers the Beach Boys, the Surfaris and Paul & Paula. A concert bill features him headlining a show with Freddie and the Dreamers, Brian Poole and the Tremeloes and the Searchers.
The Beatles, with whom he toured in Europe, figure strongly in the display. There is a concert program from their 1963 tour that says just two names on the cover: The Beatles on top and Roy Orbison on the bottom. There's also a poster advertising a show with Orbison, the Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers, plus others at the Capitol Cardiff from May 27, 1963. And a display includes a big picture of Orbison and John Lennon together.
There are artifacts from all throughout his career, including 78 RPM Sun Records from the early days of his career and a Traveling Wilburys case, one of his later projects.
And, of course, there are his trademark glasses. A video performance by Orbison runs constantly at one end feeding his music through the area.
Seeing the artifacts is a reminder that Orbison was an everyday guy with a great singing voice, responsible for such hits as "Ooby Dooby," "Oh, Pretty Woman, "Crying" and "In Dreams," among many others. He had a tremendous voice, but from the great collection gathered at the Grammy Museum, a wonderful heart as well.
"I am honored The Grammy Museum is remembering Roy, a man, who has so often been a total mystery. Now the world will have a glimpse into his life and a chance to know him through more than his music," Roy's widow, Barbara Orbison, has said, and her statement perfectly describes what the exhibit accomplishes.
The collection will be on view until Nov. 5.
The Grammy Museum is located at 800 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90015 at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Street. There are a lot of things worthwhile seeing there. This exhibit is certainly one of them.
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Steve Marinucci is the author of the Beatles Examiner, Paul McCartney Examiner, Vintage Rock 'n' Roll Examiner and TV on DVD Examiner columns on Examiner.com.
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