Roy Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer-songwriter who found the most success in the early rock and roll era from 1956 to 1964. He later enjoyed a resurgence in the late 1980s with chart success as a member of the Traveling Wilburys and with his Mystery Girl album, which included the posthumous hit single "You Got It". At the height of his popularity, 22 of Orbison's songs placed on the US Billboard Top 40 chart, and six peaked in the top five, including two number-one hits. In the UK, Orbison scored 10 top-ten hits between 1960 and 1966, including three number-one singles.

Born and raised in Texas, According to The Authorized Roy Orbison, Orbison's first release was in March 1956 on the Je-Wel label. He broke into professional music under Sam Phillips at Sun Records in the summer of 1956, but he found only marginal success there. After a couple years writing for other musicians (including "Claudette", recorded by The Everly Brothers), Orbison recorded several songs at Monument Records under producer Fred Foster starting in 1959. With Foster, Orbison and his frequent songwriting partners Joe Melson and Bill Dees tailored many of Orbison's songs for his unique voice; his most popular songs were dramatic ballads ending with emotional crescendos that showcased his powerful vocals. After his biggest hit in 1964, "Oh, Pretty Woman", Orbison continued to record and chart intermittently in the UK and Australia, but it was not until 1987 that he again found the level of popular worldwide success he had known in the early 1960s, when his original recording of "In Dreams" was used in David Lynch's film Blue Velvet. The following year, Orbison co-founded the supergroup Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan and Tom Petty. Lynne produced Orbison's final album Mystery Girl, which was released posthumously in February 1989.

This discography shows main official U.S. and U.K. releases. According to the discography in The Authorized Roy Orbison, there were numerous international single and album releases of importance (not released in the U.S. or U.K.) like the German "San Fernando" b/w "Mama" (London DL 20 726).

Albums Studio albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications US US Country AUS CANRoy Orbison album chart positions in Canada: Mystery Girl: Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1: The All-Time Greatest Hits: The Legendary Roy Orbison: A Black & White Night Live: King of Hearts: GER NL NOR NZ SWE UKLonely and Blue Released: January 1961 Label: Monument Formats: LP—————————14Roy Orbison at the Rock House Released: December 1961 Label: Sun Formats: LP—————————17Crying Released: January 1962 Label: Monument Formats: LP21————————17In Dreams Released: July 1963 Label: Monument Formats: LP35————————6There Is Only One Roy Orbison Released: August 1965 Label: MGM Formats: LP, reel-to-reel55————————10The Orbison Way Released: January 1966 Label: MGM Formats: LP, reel-to-reel128————————11The Classic Roy Orbison Released: July 1966 Label: MGM Formats: LP, 4-track—————————12Roy Orbison Sings Don Gibson Released: January 1967 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————Cry Softly Lonely One Released: October 1967 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————Roy Orbison's Many Moods Released: May 1969 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————The Big O Released: March 1970 Label: London Formats: LP Not released in the US until 2015——————————Hank Williams: The Roy Orbison Way Released: August 1970 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————Roy Orbison Sings Released: May 1972 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————Memphis Released: November 1972 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————Milestones Released: September 24, 1973 Label: MGM Formats: LP——————————I'm Still in Love with You Released: September 15, 1975 Label: Mercury Formats: LP, 8-track——————————Regeneration Released: November 23, 1976 Label: Monument Formats: LP, MC, 8-track——————————Laminar Flow Released: May 16, 1979 Label: Asylum Formats: LP, MC, 8-track——————————In Dreams: The Greatest Hits Released: May 28, 1987 Label: Virgin Formats: CD, 2×LP, MC Re-recordings of older hits——24————2—86 RIAA: Gold BPI: Silver RMNZ: GoldMystery Girl Released: January 30, 1989 Label: Virgin Formats: CD, 2×LP, MC51711411712 RIAA: Platinum ARIA: 3× Platinum BPI: Platinum BVMI: Gold GLF: Platinum MC: 3× Platinum NVPI: Platinum RMNZ: PlatinumKing of Hearts Released: October 20, 1992 Label: Virgin Formats: CD, LP, MC179—2561———18—23 ARIA: GoldOne of the Lonely Ones Released: December 4, 2015 Label: Universal Formats: CD, LP, digital download——40———————"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Collaboration albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications US US Country AUS CAN GER NL NOR NZ SWE UKClass of '55(with Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis & Carl Perkins) Released: May 26, 1986 Label: America/Smash Formats: CD, LP, MC8715————————Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1(as Traveling Wilburys) Released: October 18, 1988 Label: Wilbury Formats: CD, LP, MC3—11103322216 RIAA: 3× Platinum BPI: Platinum BVMI: Gold GLF: Gold MC: 6× Platinum RMNZ: Platinum"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Soundtrack albums Title Album detailsThe Fastest Guitar Alive Released: June 1967 Label: MGM Formats: LP

Live albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications US AUS CAN NL NZ SWE UKA Black & White Night Live Released: October 23, 1989 Label: Virgin Formats: CD, LP, MC123286368144551 ARIA: GoldCombo Concert: 1965 Holland Released: January 13, 1998 Label: Orbison Formats: CD———————Live at the BBC Released: February 1998 Label: Mastertone/BBC Formats: CD———————Authorized Bootleg CollectionRoy Orbison - Official Biography Retrieved 2017-01-27. The Rock and Country Encyclopedia and Discography - Roy Orbison Retrieved 2017-01-27. This box set includes 4 CDs: CD1: Live from Batley Variety Club, Batley, England, May 9, 1969 CD2: Live from Birmingham, USA, July 13, 1980 CD3: Live from the Fiesta Club, Stockton, England, Mar. 25, 1980 CD4: Live from Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch, England, Oct. 18, 1975. Released: October 26, 1999 Label: Orbison Formats: LP, MC, 8-track———————Live at Austin City Limits Released: April 2001 Label: Orbison Formats: 4×LP———————The Last Concert Released: August 10, 2010 Label: Eagle Formats: CD———————"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Compilation albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications US US Country AUS N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart. CAN GER NL NOR NZ SWE UKRoy Orbison's Greatest Hits Released: August 1962 Label: Monument Formats: LP13————————— RIAA: GoldMore of Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits Released: July 1964 Label: Monument Formats: LP19—————————Early Orbison Released: September 1964 Label: Monument Formats: LP101—————————Oh, Pretty Woman Released: November 1964 Label: London Formats: LP Only released in the UK and several other territories—————————5Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits Released: January 1965 Label: London Formats: LP Germany-only release————31—————Orbisongs Released: October 1965 Label: Monument Formats: LP136————————40The Very Best of Roy Orbison Released: June 1966 Label: Monument Formats: LP94—————————The All-Time Greatest Hits of Roy Orbison Released: November 1972 Label: Monument Formats: 2×LP, MC, 8-track—23—99—94—2639 RIAA: PlatinumThe Best of Roy Orbison Released: November 1975 Label: Arcade Formats: LP, MC, 8-track Europe-only release—————————1 BPI: Gold20 Golden Greats Released: July 1980 Label: Monument Formats: LP, MC Australasia-only release———————17——Golden Days: The Collection of 20 All-Time Greats Released: July 1981 Label: Monument Formats: LP, MC Europe-only release—————————63 BPI: GoldThe Very Best Of Released: November 1986 Label: Arcade Formats: CD, MC Netherlands-only release—————61————The Legendary Roy Orbison – The Greatest Hits Released: October 1988 Label: Telstar Formats: CD, LP, MC UK, Ireland and Canada-only release———53—————1 BPI: 2× Platinum MC: PlatinumFor the Lonely: A Roy Orbison Anthology, 1956–1965 Released: December 1988 Label: Rhino Formats: CD, 2×LP, 2×MC110—————————The Very Best of Roy Orbison Released: January 1989 Label: J&B Formats: CD, LP, MC Australasia-only release——20————22——The Collection Released: February 1989 Label: Arcade Formats: CD, LP, MC Netherlands-only release—————7————Pretty Woman Released: February 1989 Label: CBS Formats: CD, MC Europe-only release—————————— BPI: GoldMonumental Hits Released: February 1989 Label: Axis Formats: CD, LP, MC Australia-only release——133———————Blue Bayou – Seine 24 Schönsten Love-Songs Released: May 1989 Label: CBS Formats: CD, 2×LP, MC Continental Europe-only release————13—————Love Songs Released: 1989 Label: J&B Formats: CD, LP, MC Australasia-only release——137———————Ballads – 22 Classic Love Songs Released: October 1990 Label: Telstar Formats: CD, LP, MC UK and South Africa-only release—————————38The Very Best of Roy Orbison & Fats Domino(with Fats Domino) Released: August 1991 Label: Dino Music Formats: CD, LP, MC Australasia-only release——139————18——Super Hits Released: September 5, 1995 Label: Columbia Formats: CD, MC10454———————— RIAA: PlatinumThe Ultimate Collection Released: 1996 Label: Columbia Formats: 2×CD Australia-only release——123———————The Very Best of Roy Orbison Released: November 4, 1996 Label: Virgin Formats: CD, MC—2923—75—8—3318 ARIA: Platinum BPI: GoldBig O – The Original Singles Collection Released: November 2, 1998 Label: Monument Formats: 2×CD, 2×MD Europe and South Africa-only release—————————— BPI: Silver16 Biggest Hits Released: February 9, 1999 Label: Legacy Formats: CD, MC—47———————— RIAA: PlatinumThe Very Best Of Released: December 27, 1999 Label: Virgin Formats: CD Released in Europe with various alternate titles————77—4—1— GLF: PlatinumLove Songs Released: 2000 Label: WEA Formats: 2×CD Australia-only release——180———————20 Golden Hits Released: August 2000 Label: TeeVee Formats: CD, MC—69————————Love Songs Released: January 29, 2001 Label: Virgin Formats: 2×CD, 2×MC Europe and South Africa-only release————————84 BPI: GoldBig Hits from the Big 'O''' | Released: November 4, 2002 Label: Crimson Formats: CD Europe-only release |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— | BPI: Gold |- ! scope="row" |The Hits Collection| Released: September 15, 2003 Label: Crimson Formats: 3×CD |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |170 | BPI: Silver |- ! scope="row" |The Platinum Collection| Released: August 2, 2004 Label: Orbison/Virgin Formats: 3×CD |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |16 | BPI: Silver |- ! scope="row" |The Essential Roy Orbison| Released: March 28, 2006 Label: Orbison/Monument/Legacy Formats: 2×CD |— |62 |39 |— |— |35 |6 |— |5 |149 | ARIA: 2× Platinum |- ! scope="row" |The Very Best of Roy Orbison| Released: October 16, 2006 Label: Orbison/Monument/Legacy/Sony BMG Formats: CD |— |— |11 |— |— |— |— |3 |— |20 | ARIA: Platinum BPI: Platinum RMNZ: Platinum |- ! scope="row" |Playlist: The Very Best of Roy Orbison| Released: April 29, 2008 Label: Monument/Orbison/Legacy Formats: CD |— |50 |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |—

! scope="row" |The Monument Singles Collection (1960–1964)| Released: April 15, 2011 Label: Monument/Orbison/Legacy/Sony BMG Formats: 2×CD, 2×LP |— |55 |26 |— |— |— |— |32 |— |87

! scope="row" |The Monument Singles A-Sides (1960–1964)| Released: April 15, 2011 Label: Monument/Orbison/Legacy/Sony BMG Formats: CD |— |50 |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |—

! scope="row" |Opus Collection| Released: May 10, 2011 Label: Orbison/Legacy Formats: CD |65 |12 |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |—

! scope="row" |The Real... Roy Orbison| Released: April 10, 2015 Label: Sony Music/Legacy Formats: 3×CD |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |— |81