Roy Orbison - A Love So Beautiful: Roy Orbison & The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (2017)

This brand new Roy Orbison album infuses Orbison’s best original vocal performances, consisting of hits and fan favourites such as “Oh, Pretty Woman,” “Crying” and “Only the Lonely,” with the emotion and world class musicianship of the Royal Philharmonic, London’s most notable orchestra, plus additional instrumentation by Roy’s sons and grandson.

'A Love So Beautiful' features the timeless Roy tracks "Oh, Pretty Woman", "You Got It", "Crying" and more while breathing new life into fan favorites such as "Drove All Night" and the title track "A Love So Beautiful" making for a beautiful exploration into the mastery of Roy's vocals.

Additionally, the album will feature instrumental backing from "Roy's boys": his three sons Wesley, Roy Jr. and Alex; plus Roy's grandson Roy Orbison III. The spiritual collaboration between three generations of Orbisons makes A Love So Beautiful a truly special experience, not just for fans, but for Roy's sons as well. Having never had the opportunity to record with their father in his lifetime, this collaboration makes for an emotional homecoming for Wesley, Roy Jr., Alex and Roy III.

When made aware of the new recording of his "Pretty Paper," Willie Nelson commented, "Back in 1963, right after I wrote it, I brought the song to Fred Foster the head of Monument Records, the label I was with at the time. He really liked it and said 'It's perfect for Roy Orbison.' I was more than ok with that idea since I had wanted my tunes to be covered by big stars and Roy was certainly that. Fred told me he was going to play the song over the phone for Roy who was in London at the time and that's exactly what happened. I was glad that he liked 'Pretty Paper' enough to record it over there. It's kind of amazing that the same song by the same great artist, recorded again in London 54 years later, is now having a second life."

Nelson was inspired to write "Pretty Paper," when he remembered seeing a man with no legs selling paper and pencils in front of Leonard's Department Store in Fort Worth. The man, later identified by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as Frankie Brierton of Santo, TX, was hawking his offerings to passersby, calling out "Pretty paper!," referring to holiday wrapping paper. Like all the orchestral backing for the current project, Orbison's original vocal, as noted by Willie, was recorded in London. Ever the trouper, Orbison, suffering from a 102 degree fever at the time, entered Pye Studios there and put down the vocal track for the original record that would be released in November of 1963, a mere month after Nelson had written the song. It became a holiday classic and reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #10 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Nelson recorded his own version the following year.

The material covered on A Love So Beautiful is vast, ranging from the Sun Records era of Roy's career as a rockabilly musician in the 1950s ("Ooby Dooby"), through his early-mid 60s material on the Monument label where he hit his first commercial peak ("In Dreams," "Blue Angel," "Crying," "Dream Baby," "I'm Hurtin'," "It's Over," "Mean Woman Blues," "Only the Lonely," "Oh, Pretty Woman," "Love Hurts," "Uptown") up to his comeback in the late 80s before his untimely passing ("You Got It," "I Drove All Night," "A Love So Beautiful").

Tracklist:
01. In Dreams 03:46
02. Crying 02:58
03. I'm Hurtin' 02:46
04. Oh, Pretty Woman 03:07
05. It's Over 03:17
06. Dream Baby 02:53
07. Blue Angel 02:57
08. Love Hurts 02:39
09. Uptown 02:15
10. Mean Woman Blues 02:25
11. Only the Lonely (Know the Way I Feel) 02:30
12. Running Scared 02:47
13. I Drove All Night 04:13
14. You Got It 03:34
15. A Love So Beautiful 04:11
16. Pretty Paper 03:22
17. I Drove All Night 04:03

Personnel:
Roy Orbison, vocals, guitar
Alex Orbison, drums
Wesley Orbison, guitar
Roy Orbison Jr., guitar
Roy Orbison III, guitar, tambourine
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra