“She’s a Mystery to Me”, Roy Orbison

This way: She’s a Mystery to Me

Roy Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Many critics described his music as operatic, nicknaming him "the Caruso of Rock" and "the Big O". While most male rock-and-roll performers in the 1950s and 1960s projected a defiant masculinity, many of Orbison's songs conveyed vulnerability. He performed standing still, wearing black clothes to match his dyed black hair and dark sunglasses.

Orbison began singing in a rockabilly and country-and-western band in high school. He was signed by Sam Phillips, of Sun Records, in 1956, but his greatest success came with Monument Records. From 1960 to 1966, 22 of his singles reached the Billboard Top 40, and he wrote or co-wrote almost all that rose to the Top 10, including "Only the Lonely" (1960), "Running Scared" (1961), "Crying" (1961), "In Dreams" (1963), and "Oh, Pretty Woman" (1964). Soon afterward, he was struck by a number of personal tragedies while his record sales declined.

In the 1980s, Orbison experienced a resurgence in popularity following the success of several cover versions of his songs. In 1988, he co-founded the Traveling Wilburys, a rock supergroup, with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne. Orbison died of a heart attack in December 1988 at the age of 52. One month later, Orbison's song "You Got It" (1989), co-written with Lynne and Petty, was released as a solo single and became his first hit to reach the U.S. Top 10 in nearly 25 years.

“She’s a Mystery to Me” is a song by Roy Orbison, written by Bono and the Edge of U2. It was released on Orbison's final (posthumous) album, Mystery Girl (also inspiring the album title). The song was received favorably by several music critics and is considered one of the highlights of the album.

[Spotify] She’s a Mystery to Me