This article traces the friendship between Elvis Presley and Roy Orbison, focusing on a Las Vegas concert where Presley described Orbison as having the "perfect voice" and called him the "greatest singer in the world" — high praise given how sparingly Presley offered such compliments. The pair, both alumni of Sun Records, formed a bond after Presley's career slowed following his 1957-60 US Army service, at a time when rock 'n' roll had moved on and the British Invasion loomed.

The article recounts how Orbison hoped Presley would record his song "Only the Lonely" in 1960, only to be turned down, as was a similar approach to The Everly Brothers. Orbison released it himself in May 1960, and it reached number one in the UK and number two in the US, drawing praise from Bob Dylan for a voice that sounded like "singing from an Olympian mountaintop". Despite this rivalry of sorts, the two shared mutual admiration, with Orbison recalling how witnessing Presley perform in Odessa in February 1955 inspired him to pursue music himself.