Who wrote and originally recorded 'Blue Bayou'?

"Blue Bayou" is a song written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson. It was originally sung and recorded by Orbison, who had an international hit with his version in 1963. It later became Linda Ronstadt's signature song, with which she scored a charting hit with her cover of "Blue Bayou" in 1977. The song has since been recorded by many other artists.

"Blue Bayou" was originally recorded by Roy Orbison at the end of 1961, but released by Monument as the double A-side track on a Monument Records single in the UK, yet was issued as the B-side single in the US, peaking at number 29; "Mean Woman Blues" was a US number 5, released in August 1963, written by Claude Demetrius and originally recorded by Elvis Presley in 1957.

In the UK both sides peaked at number 3 as a double A-sided single on London Monument, HLU 9777. The song also appeared on Orbison's 1963 full-length album In Dreams. According to the official Roy Orbison U.S. discography by Marcel Riesco, a rare different version of "Blue Bayou" was released only in Italy (London 45-HL 1499).

"Blue Bayou" reappeared on his 1989 posthumous album A Black & White Night Live, from the 1988 television special on Cinemax.