PRETTY PAPER by ROY ORBISON. Story by Luke Davies

Warrimoo, New South Wales, early-1980s

Christmas rolls around again, although it’s hard to believe with the cold and wet weather we are experiencing in Victoria.  I am reminded of the only Christmas song that has really ever caught my attention. Pretty Paper was written by master songwriter Willie Nelson around 1963 and was recorded firstly by Roy Orbison.

I heard it for the first time on some Orbison greatest hits record back in the early 1980s.

That version is a bit –  for want of a better word – syrupy for my ears now. I do like the version of just Roy’s voice and guitar. It expresses the essence of this song.

The song is based on Willie’s observation of a man with a disability who sold paper and pencils outside a department store.

I was living in a share house in the lower Blue Mountains in NSW at a place called Warrimoo. It is probably more up market and trendy nowadays than when I was briefly there. Struggling to make ends meet, I lived a fairly bare bones existence. There I learnt how a packet of spaghetti could last several meals. My house mate was into ’50s and ’60s music and he loved Roy Orbison. Via our humble little record player I became a fan too.

Christmas songs and carols are often a reminder of the ideal family experience, but that is not the case for many. Mine, as a child was a little strange. We had watched the Brady Bunch on TV growing up, but our similarly put together family was unlike the version on tele. Looking back I can see many reasons Christmas songs aren’t on my playlist. I think Pretty Paper is a cool song; it is set in that Christmas period yet conveys a message deeper than what appears in the title.

StereoStory #690

lrdavies2

Luke R Davies and the Recycled String Band won the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia Folk Recording Award 2013 for their album Not A Note Wasted. A Wangaratta musician, Luke joined The Stereo Stories Band after seeing them at the Newport Folk Festival in Melbourne in 2014..