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The southerner Orbison, who was born in 1936 in the US state of Tennessee, became known in the 1960s with song gems such as “Pretty Woman”, “Only The Lonely” and “In Dreams”. He wrote almost all of his lyrics himself because foreign lyrics simply didn’t fit his special singing and haunting ballads. He always cut an elegant figure on stage, a friendly gentleman who did without airs and graces and could rely entirely on his voice. It was particularly popular in Great Britain, and Americans also felt most at home on the island.