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St. Paul, Minn.

50 years ago, Orbison's 'Oh, Pretty Woman' tops the charts

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Today's Morning Edition music is from 50 years ago today when the No. 1 song on the pop charts was "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison.

Orbison's songwriting partner Bill Dees says the inspiration for the song came one day when they were at Orbison's house. Orbison's wife Claudette announced she was going to town to buy something. When Orbison asked if she needed any money, Dees quipped "A pretty woman never needs any money."

That comment inspired Orbison to start singing "pretty woman walking down the street." By the time Claudette returned home, the song was finished. It was recorded a week later and released a week after that. The song was a worldwide success and spent three weeks at number one.