AMG Review of Rocker

Thom Jurek
All Music Guide

Simply put, these are the big titles from Roy Orbison's Sun years. This is the rockabilly Roy, before the strings and large arrangements took over and decorated his work. Not that those things were distractions from one of the greatest voices in the history of rock & roll or pop music in general, but these sides are more immediate, rawer, wilder, and less sophisticated. The truth is, while later material showcased Orbison's voice to greater effect, there is something utterly electric about these sides, something nearly juvenile and unwieldy, as if tracks like his reading of Johnny Cash's "You're My Baby" put the singer out of his element. He doesn't sing with authority but with the kind of vulnerability that puts the songs at odds with his voice. On his own tunes, such as "Devil Doll," the teenage theme belies the dark truth in what Orbison would encounter as his muse: brokenness, betrayal, and the kind of sadness that is nearly otherworldly. He doesn't have a grip on it yet as a powerful force to communicate, but he does engage it. A better example is "A True Love Goodbye," because while it's sung in the third person, one can almost visualizes the singer looking at himself in the mirror as he relates the story. If you dig Orbison but haven't yet heard this material, it's truly worthwhile.