Roy Orbison was born on the 23rd April 1936 in Vernon, Texas, USA, and was a musician and singer-songwriter, best known for his distinctive voice and dark love ballads. Orbison had over 20 songs that were placed in the Billboard Top 40, including such hits as “Only the Lonely” (1960), “Crying” (1961), and “”Oh, Pretty Woman” (1964). He has been a Rock ;n’ Roll Hall of Famer since 1987, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer, and the Songwriters Hall of Famer. Roy received six Grammy Awards, and since 2010 he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Orbison’s career started in 1953 and ended in 1988, when he passed away..
Have you ever wondered how rich Roy Orbison was at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Orbison’s net worth was as high as $15 million, an amount earned through his successful career in music.
Roy Orbison Net Worth $15 Million
Roy Orbison was a son of Orbie Lee Orbison, an oil well driller and car mechanic, and Nadine Shultz, a nurse. His father bought him a guitar when was six, and by the late ‘40s, Roy already hosted a show on local radio. He went to the Wink High School, where he formed a band with some friends, called the Wink Westerners, even performing on KERB radio station in Kermit. Later Orbison enrolled at the North Texas State College in Denton, but dropped out after a year to return home to Wink.
Roy then moved to Odessa, Texas, where he went to the Odessa Junior College, while the Wink Westerners changed the name to Teen Kings and performed on local TV stations. While in Odessa, Orbison saw live shows of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, and when Roy decided to make a living out of music, approaching Sam Phillips at Sun Records. Phillips offered a contract to the Teen Kings in 1956, but in 1961, Roy recorded his debut solo album entitled “Roy Orbison at the Rock House”. The first studio album that entered Billboard 200 chart was “Crying” in 1962, peaking in No. 21 place, while it reached No. 17 on the UK Albums chart.
In 1963, Roy released “In Dreams”, which reached No. 35 on the Billboard 200 and No. 6 on UK Albums chart; the singles “In Dreams”, “Dream”, “All I Have to Do Is Dream”, and “My Prayer” were among his most popular. Two years later, he recorded “Orbisongs” and the album peaked at the No. 136 on Billboard 200, and No. 40 on UK chart, while the single “Oh, Pretty Woman” became a worldwide hit, and is still one of the most recognizable songs of all time. This increased Roy`s net worth to a large degree.
Until 1987 and the release of “In Dreams: The Greatest Hits”, neither of Orbison’s albums made it to Billboard 200 chart. In 1988, the album called “Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1” – recorded with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne – achieved triple platinum status in the US, peaked at No. 3 on Billboard 200, and at No. 16 on the UK chart. His next release called “Mystery Girl” (1989) achieved platinum status in both US and the UK, adding further to his net worth.
Most recently, the posthumous album entitled “One of the Lonely Ones” came out in December 2015. Roy recorded almost 30 compilation albums which helped him to increase his net worth additionally.
Regarding his personal life, Roy Orbison was married twice to Claudette Frady until her tragic death in 1966, when she was killed in a motorcycle accident in Gallatin, Tennessee. Only two years later, his two sons died in a fire that took over his house in Hendersonville, Tennessee, while Roy was on tour in England. He married Barbara in 1969, and they were together until his death – Orbison suffered from heart disease for the most of his life, and on 6 December 1988, he died of a heart attack in Hendersonville, aged just 52.
