ELVIS PRESLEY CALLED ROY ORBISON “THE GREATEST SINGER IN THE WORLD” — TO EVERYONE EXCEPT ROY. FOR 20 YEARS, HE NEVER SAID IT TO HIS FACE. They were both Sun Records boys — Elvis from Mississippi, Roy from Texas. They met in Memphis in ’55 and became what Roy called “kindred souls.” Elvis never recorded a single Roy Orbison song. Not because he didn’t want to — because he believed he couldn’t do them justice. Elvis told crowds, told friends, told anyone who’d listen: Roy Orbison had “the most perfect voice.” But he never told Roy directly. Not once in 20 years. In December 1976, Elvis walked on stage at Caesar’s Palace during Roy’s set. He hugged him. They talked about everything. Roy later said, “We hadn’t seen each other in years. He hugged me.” Eight months later, Elvis was gone at 42. Roy never heard those words from him — only heard them secondhand, from people who were in the room when Elvis said them. Some men find it easier to praise a voice to a crowd of strangers than to the man standing right beside them.
Elvis Presley Called Roy Orbison “The Greatest Singer in the World” — But Roy Orbison Never Heard It From Elvis…