|
MOJO
July 2007, issue 164.
'The Traveling Wilburys Collection' is Mojo magazine's Reissue
Of The Month, with a full-page feature review by Phil Sutcliffe
and photo:
"If
you're game, The Traveling Wilburys show you a good time like
Ringo did in the early '70s. They're loveable, but not as dumb
as they look."
4-stars
RECORD
COLLECTOR
Issue 338 July 2007
Traveling Wilburys
The Traveling Wilbury Collection
****
Bob, a Beatle, the Big O and a brace of others
It's
remarkable that arguably the most high-calibre supergroup
of all time came about because one of its members needed a
throwaway song for the flipside of a single. Back among the
big sellers with his 1987 album Cloud Nine, George Harrison
had a half formed ditty called Handle With Care, which required
a little polish to bring it up to B-side standard. And though
it may be common for famous folk to have other famous folk
in their address books, even Harrison himself must have been
surprised by the ego-free A-listers who answered the call.
George
was old mates with Jeff Lynne, who was working with Tom Petty
on a comeback album for Roy Orbison, and thus four of the
five Wilburys hooked up. Tom's erstwhile touring buddy Bob
Dylan heard about the project, and the legend goes that he
asked if anyone minded him joining in. (That's worth repeating:
Bob Dylan gets wind of what's going down and asks if anyone
'minds him joining in'!)
|
|
Wilburys
Guitar
Model TW 200
|
|
| Handle
With Care became the group's calling card, the opening track
on their 1988 debut. What starts as a typically well-crafted
Harrisonesque lament is elevated to pop glory by Orbison's
voice on the bridge. But doesn't stop there. Dylan weighs
in on a second bridge, and it's plain to see that we're listening
to something very special. And let's not undervalue Lynne
or Petty's contributions; the former's mastery of vocal harmonies
plays an integral role throughout the Wilbury's music as does
the latters obsession with Byrds like guitar figures and innate
understanding of what makes for a cracking riff. |
 |
Though
Harrison is acknowledged as the de-facto chief Wilbury, it
was still an admirably democratic setup. Lynne gets to live
out his Sun Studios rockabilly fantasies on Rattled (backed
by in Orbison, a bona fide Sun legend), Orbison himself is
handed the operatic masterpiece Not Alone Anymore, easily
surviving any comparisons to his 60's classics, while Dylan's
Tweeter & The Monkeyman was, at the time, perhaps better
than anything he had done since Desire or Street Legal. Indeed
Dylan's career was at a pretty low ebb in the late 80's, and
it's not foolhardy to suggest that the Wilburys gave him the
kick-start to relocate the muse that had temporarily abandoned
him.
LEFT: A selection
of original promo items |
| By
the time the group's second album in 1990 (jokingly titled
Volume Three), Orbison had passed away, and though his absence
was clearly felt, there was still a vitality to these top
drawer troubadours. She's My Baby would have been a bogstandard
12-bar blues chug in lesser hands, but here perfectly recaptures
the spirit of the first record. Seven Deadly Sins is a shambolic
study in street corner 50's doo wop, Poor House a down-home
country stomper lifted by a trademark Harrison slide solo,
and Petty's Cool Dry Place is a lazy strut that could have
been borrowed straight from Bob's Highway 61 Revisited sessions.
|
This
magnificent package belatedly offers the listener a 'Volume Two'
in the form of a DVD of the original single promo clips, plus
a candid and charming home movie, shot by Harrison, of the making
of the first record. What comes across is five big stars forgetting
who the rest of the world thinks they are and just enjoying each
other's company. There are laughs aplenty, the occasional practical
joke, several cases of beer and oodles of goodtime vibes. It's
a touching portrait of a formidable collaboration, moving picture
snapshots to further celebrate the sounds that had already long-since
won us over.
Terry
Staunton
UNCUT
July 2007
The
Traveling Wilburys
Five legends roll together on memorable sidetrip
| If
it had taken place during the 1970s, the teaming of Bob Dylan,
George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and ELO mastermind
Jeff Lynne would have towered over supergroups like Blind
Faith and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. But in 1988, when
Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1 appeared, Dylan was perceived as
being in decline, Harrison was far removed from his post-Beatles
landmark All Things Must Pass, Orbison was ancient history
to most fans and Petty had yet to release the career-revitalizing
Full Moon Fever. On top of that, the assembled legends deliberately
downplayed the whole thing, adopting tongue-in-cheek fake
names and subsuming their instantly recognizable styles into
the leveling context of Lynne’s production. |
Uncut
ad |
The
formation of the Wilburys was practically an afterthought. Lynne
had just finished producing Cloud Nine for Harrison, and Warner
Bros. Records asked them to come up with a B-side for the first
single. Corraling their friends Petty, Dylan and Orbison, they
came up with “Handle With Care,” featuring the swapping
of lead vocals from one indelible voice to the next throughout
the song, topped off by a rousing blend of those voices in the
refrains. This sublime side brought the Traveling Wilburys to
life.
Recorded
in L.A. in just 10 days, the supremely accomplished Volume 1 now
seems like a boxful of revelations. Dylan submits to the novelty
of placing his unruly voice amid Lynne’s scrupulous, glossy
production on “Dirty World,” “Congratulations”
and the captivating “Tweeter and the Monkey Man”. Orbison
absolutely blows the roof off what would be his last rock aria,
“Not Alone Any More”. Petty’s “Last Night,”
suffused with bonhomie, and the synth-meets-horns production number
“Margarita” exemplify the extremes of his longstanding
partnership with Lynne. And the reinvigorated Harrison’s
“End of the Line” returns him to the form of his early
solo work, while coming off as both more poignant and more life-affirming
in retrospect.
Sunday
Times ad |
Orbison
died before the rest reconvened for the facetiously titled
Vol. 3, and, not surprisingly, it’s a less spirited
affair, with uniformly solid performance but only occasionally
inspired material, the standout being Dylan’s lilting
“If You Belonged To Me,” on which he updates his
Blood On The Tracks style, and Petty’s “You Took
My Breath Away,” a grand homage to their fallen comrade.
But those voices and presences transcend any limitations,
making the Wilburys one of rock’s most disarming aberrations.
BUD
SCOPPA
5
stars / 4 stars
|
FACE
THE MUSIC
TRAVELING WILBURY DVD REVIEW
The DVD that forms part of 'The Traveling Wilburys Collection'
is probably one of the finest music documentaries ever. Lots of
smiles, lots of fun, lots of great performances. And of course
the Wilburys.
| You've
seen some of this footage on black and white bootleg videos
or heavily edited as part of Warner Bros electronic press
kits and original TV coverage for 'Volume 1' but here it all
(almost) is, in glorious Wilbury-colour and with lots of previously
unseen material. Designed and authored by Abbey Road Interactive,
the DVD contains 'The True History Of The Traveling Wilburys'
documentary and promos for the four singles: 'Handle With
Care'; 'End Of The Line'; 'She's My Baby'; 'Inside Out'; and
'Wilbury Twist'. The promos have newly remastered sound though
'End Of The Line', 'Wilbury Twist', 'Inside Out' have been
needlessly edited and recut. |
US
Poster |
|
|
Most
of what was filmed for George Harrison's proposed Wilbury
movie is here but sadly not Jeff Lynne's playback to the Wilburys
of tracks from his then-work-in-progress solo album 'Armchair
Theatre' - but that's a minor point. Narrated by the Wilburys
themselves (Lucky Wilbury aside) the documentary also includes
brand new interviews from Otis Wilbury and Charlie T. Jnr.
Vol
1 Poster |
You
are literally led by the hand, track-by-track, through the creation
of 'Traveling Wilburys Volume 1'. As the Wilburys are making the
music, you are there, courtesy of George's hand-held camera: behind
the scenes at Wilbury Mountain with the engineers in the small
studio, recording in the kitchen (including the fridge), working
out and demoing tracks, chilling out and cracking jokes. ELO fans
especially listen out for the demo version of 'Not Alone Anymore'
and the spine-tingling performance by Lefty Wilbury - this is
worth the price of the boxset alone. All the Wilburys are relaxed
and its lovely to hear Otis talking candidly about performing,
writing and producing, especially when he and Nelson Wilbury escort
the 'Volume 1' tapes back from LA to George's home studio in England.
Watch
the DVD before the albums - it really will improve your listening
pleasure. 'The True History Of The Traveling Wilburys' is
a unique and privileged insight into a unique and very special
band.
Rob Caiger - Face The Music, June 2007
|
Vol 1 Poster |
DETROIT
FREE PRESS
June 10, 2007
Authentic rock 'n' roll, Wilburys style
By
Terry Lawson
Free
Press Columnist
So
let's get the embarrassing part of this over first: It was in
a Beatles fanzine that this rapidly approaching-middle-age writer
first read, in 1987, that George Harrison's record label, Warner
Brothers, delighted and shocked that his latest album, "Cloud
Nine," had become a success, had asked him to record a non-LP
B-side to pump up the release of a third single from the LP for
European markets.
'Handle
With Care' UK 7" Limited
Edition with folder & sticker |
According
to this fanzine exclusive, Harrison had enlisted "Cloud
Nine" producer and Electric Light Orchestra switch-thrower
Jeff Lynne, along with their mutual collaborator Tom Petty,
to accompany him in this effort.
That
pair got rock legend Roy Orbison to come along for the ride,
while Harrison called on his buddy Bob Dylan to lend them
his Santa Monica studio -- and, ultimately, his voice --
for the occasion.
|
So
was born a song, a collaboration titled "Handle With Care,"
which was entirely too vibrant and irresistible to become a B-side
collector's item.
Instead,
it became the leadoff track on an entire album credited to the
Traveling Wilburys, which was loose and lovely. To the surprise
of everyone, including the band, it became, along with "Handle
With Care," a chart topper in the very last of the days when
being a chart topper meant mass popularity.
A
hit and then another
It
was an acknowledgement of the talent involved and a fluke of Monty
Pythonesque proportion, and it was almost eerily poetic when Orbison
capped his own hit parade comeback by dying -- at precisely the
time "End of the Line," a second single from the album,
was being readied for release.
It,
too, was a hit, and it prompted the survivors to reconvene for
a follow-up album, which they mischievously labeled "Volume
3" despite there being no "Volume 2."
It
was a pale shadow of its predecessor, and would be forgotten by
all but Dylan and Beatles obsessives had it not now been remastered
and repackaged with the first album in a re-release from reissue
specialists Rhino, to be revived in retail on Tuesday.
That's
a lot of "re," but to those, I'll add reassess, retrospect
and rejoice, because this album now reveals itself to be so much
more than a bunch of Rolling Stone cover boys getting together
for a critic-proof lark.
Spontaneous,
organic, irresistible
| This
three-disc set (the third devoted to a look-back-documentary
and the MTV-era-required videos) contains some of the best
work any of these hale and hearty fellows ever laid down,
from the Orbison vocal showcase "We're Not Alone,"
to Harrison's religiously uplifting "Heading for the
Light," to Dylan's gorgeous break-up ballad "Congratulations."
|
Vol
1 Poster |
"Volume
3" is distinguished and redeemed by the myth-puncturing "Wilbury
Twist" and Lynne and Harrison's remake of the Del Shannon-Michigan
classic "Runaway," which might have included Shannon
as Orbison's replacement had the underrated singer-songwriter
not committed suicide before he could be drafted as a Wilbury.
It's
hard to imagine, 20 years later, that these records sold millions.
They are way too spontaneous and organic, even with the polish
of producer Lynne's glossy sheen. This is the sound of the authentic
rock 'n' roll as practiced by Orbison and the teenage pre-folkie
Dylan, revered by Harrison and Lynne, and revisited by Petty.
It
may, it seems, never die, as long as there is someone to remember
just how great it can make you feel.
TwinCities.com
Traveling
Wilburys Collection
The Traveling Wilburys, Wilbury/Rhino
****
Rejoice, Traveling Wilburys fans: It's here
After years of bidding warfare on eBay, those searching for the
Traveling Wilburys at last have an easier and less costly way
of getting the group's long-out-of-print CDs.
It's
still tough to fathom how a band that featured George Harrison,
Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne managed to end
up with both their CDs unavailable - at least on the mainstream
market - especially because the discs had sold millions of copies
when first issued. Chalk it up to licensing and complicated contractual
issues.
But
it's time to rejoice because both 1988's "Traveling Wilburys
Volume 1," and 1990's "Traveling Wilburys Volume 3"
are now being reissued together in several different formats.
There's a standard package and a deluxe edition. The latter includes
a 40-page book. Each contains bonus tracks and a bonus DVD. There
is also a vinyl edition and a digital edition bundle.
That
'88 disc included the wondrous "Handle With Care," originally
set as the flip side of a Harrison single from his "Cloud
9" album. But the brass at Warner Bros. rightly found the
song to be far too irresistible to relegate to the land of B-sides
and persuaded Harrison to get his mates to record a full album
together. They did, and songs like "Dirty World," Orbison's
spectacular vocal showcase "Not Alone Any More" and
Dylan's "Tweeter and the Monkey Man" all helped the
album sell more than 5 million copies.
Tragically,
Orbison died shortly after the album was issued, but there was
one more Traveling Wilburys release, which featured the four surviving
members. It was called "Volume 3," even though there
never was a "Volume 2." Consider it just one more oddity
reflecting the bandmates' offbeat sense of humor.
Kevin
O'Hare, Newhouse News Service
BC
MUSIC
The
Traveling Wilburys - The Traveling Wilburys Collection
Written by Nik Dirga
Published June 12, 2007
Pound for pound, the Traveling Wilburys contained more sheer musical
genius than a Lollapalooza of lesser bands. A Beatle, a Dylan,
a Heartbreaker, a legendary voice and an Electric Light Orchestrator?
It sounds like rock star fantasy camp, but it was reality nearly
20 years ago now.
The
combination of George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison
and Jeff Lynne made for one of the finest "supergroups"
of all time. Their first album, The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1,
and to a lesser extent, their second, teasingly labeled Vol. 3,
represent a shining high point in each of the artists' careers.
Shamefully,
these discs have been out of print and fetching high prices on
eBay for years now. Rhino Records has now repaired the situation
by reissuing the Wilburys' two discs, remastered and with bonus
tracks, and paired with a new retrospective DVD. All I can say
is, it's about time.
The
Wilburys sprang out of sessions for Harrison's 1987 comeback disc
Cloud Nine. In 1988, Harrison and Lynne were putting together
a B-side for the single "This Is Love" at Dylan's home
studio. Roy Orbison and Tom Petty just happened to be hanging
about, and the five slapped together a little song.
But
the result, "Handle With Care," was far from a mere
B-side – catchy, wistful, anchored by Harrison's sweet guitar
solos, the crooning chorus from Orbison, Dylan popping up to blow
a harmonica and croak a few lines like a subterranean oracle.
It had the ramshackle feeling of a road trip anthem, the universal
appeal of a forgotten classic rock tune, and it was way too good
to toss away as filler. The group reconvened to record an entire
album. Legend has it that "Wilburys" was coined by Harrison
and Lynne during the recording of Cloud Nine as a reference to
recorded "flubs" that could be eliminated during the
mixing stage (as in, "'We'll bury' them in the mix").
The
goofy in-jokes continued right into the album itself, where despite
their pictures being on the cover, the band members took on pseudonyms
as "Wilburys" – i.e. Dylan became Lucky Wilbury,
and so on. Although it was a loosely organized throwaway record
– written and recorded in just 10 days – the sum was
greater than the solo careers of some of the men at this time.
Even
Dylan, who one would imagine the least likely of the quintet to
take part in such a goofy lark, seemed to have a blast –
the charmingly lovelorn "Dirty World," or his "Tweeter
and the Monkeyman," a rollicking Springsteen-meets-Bob parody
that's light years above most of Dylan's other '80s output. Orbison
hadn't had a real hit in decades, and this disc helped launch
the career revival that came too late – he died suddenly
at age 52 in 1988 mere months after the recording of this set.
Some of his tracks here, like the lovely "Not Alone Any More,"
stand with the best of his work.
What
was so remarkable about Vol. 1 is that it's a "supergroup"
album almost entirely lacking in pretension – just simply
gorgeous, honest soundcraft, polished to a fine shine by Jeff
Lynne's typically slick production. Everyone takes turns on vocals
and songwriting, and the result is that no one artist pulls rank
on the others. The sonic touch was also present on the Lynne-engineered
albums of the time, Harrison's Cloud Nine and Petty's Full Moon
Fever In fact, both of those albums featured cameos by other Wilburys
and are almost continuations of the Wilbury sound.
Sadly,
Orbison died and the result was the Wilburys never quite measured
up to an outstanding debut. The remaining four did regroup for
1990's follow-up. With more of that quirky Wilbury humor their
second album was labeled Vol. 3, confusing fans forevermore. Vol.
3 unfortunately was more like what Vol. 1 could've been –
solid, but somewhat unmemorable, a lark without heft. The operatic
voice of Orbison was a key part of the first record's appeal,
lending a lovelorn grandeur to many of the songs. He's sorely
missed. Songs like "She's My Baby" or "Wilbury
Twist" are good-time rock 'n' roll, but there's something
missing. The relaxed spontaneity of the first album is a little
more forced here, proving that maybe you can't always repeat a
winner. Still, the Wilburys never embarrassed themselves.
The
reissue includes four new tracks – the benefit for Romanian
orphans "Nobody's Child," as well as Vol. 3 outtakes
"Maxine" and "Like A Ship," and the UK-only
B-side "Runaway."
The
DVD features the original five charming music videos, along with
a 24-minute documentary told in the group's own voices. There's
a variety of editions for fans to choose from – the standard
2-CD and DVD set, a "special edition" boxed set that
includes a 40-page book and more, and a vinyl set.
Even
if you own one of the original rare CDs, you'll want to make the
upgrade to this rewarding, long-awaited collection. There'll never
be a Wilburys reunion now that George and Roy are both up at the
juke box in the sky, but this is the next best thing.
OC
REGISTER
June
15, 2007
Reissue rack: The Traveling Wilburys get all boxed up by Rhino
It
started as little more than a B-side lark, the song "Handle
With Care" tossed together when Warner Bros. asked George
Harrison for a flip side to support "This Is Love,"
a final single from 1987's Cloud Nine. But that all-star gem -
laid down at Bob Dylan's studio with help from album producer
and E.L.O. main man Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and the
ol' bard himself - became the seedling that blossomed into the
Traveling Wilburys, a studio-bound supergroup to beat all supergroups
that, in its brief but (if you play along with the band's cheeky
liner notes) pseudo-mythic career, issued two wonderful assortments
of randy, almost goofy rock 'n' roll fun.
Looking
back it seems almost preordained something like this would have
happened, given Lynne's involvement with every most other Wilbury
(apart from Cloud Nine, he also helmed Petty's equally loose solo
album Full Moon Fever and Orbison's posthumous comeback Mystery
Girl around this time). The Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1 , the more
playful and successful of the band's sets, appeared in 1988, to
much critical acclaim; the slightly lesser Vol. 3 (minus Orbison)
surfaced two years later - the joke, of course, being that there
had never been a Vol. 2.
Long
out of print, the rights to the albums having reverted to the
Harrison estate, the whole shebang has now been remastered, repackaged
and reissued by Rhino Records as The Traveling Wilburys Collection,
a nifty three-disc set that arrived this week boasting a smattering
of bonus tracks (including a B-side cover of Del Shannon's "Runaway)
and a DVD featuring all of the group's videos ("End of the
Line," "She's My Baby," etc.) plus an engaging
documentary, "The True History of the Traveling Wilburys."
There's also a deluxe model available that features a 40-page
book.
The
original albums hold up surprisingly well, I think in part because
they were such modest endeavors - just a bunch of rock titans
palling around, banging out simple but fun ditties and letting
Lynne add his gleaming polish to it all. Neither album was a particularly
revelatory listen back then, because neither album aimed to be
anything more than a lark. Yet, as years go by and heroes fade
out (and gain even more in stature), both albums have developed
unexpected resonance. In retrospect they come across as snapshots
of classic figures who for the most part were in transitional
or culminative periods - Dylan and Petty finding new approaches
to old sounds, Orbison and (though not as immediately) Harrison
settling into the end of the careers.
It's
music that perhaps is more important than it often seems. Check
back decades from now and this unassuming Wilburys set could become
the stuff of legend.
...
Ben
M&C
MUSIC
June 15 , 2007
Music - Traveling Wilburys (2CD/1DV, Deluxe Edition)
The
Traveling Wilburys were one of the few supergroups that lived
up to their promise, because they didn't try to. Things started
inauspiciously when George Harrison, needing a B-side for a 1988
single, called in friends Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and
Roy Orbison for assistance. Two albums later--the second without
Orbison, who had passed away shortly after the first was released--the
loose-knit collective had recorded material that was as durable,
and occasionally eclipsed, the participants' legendary solo work.
The Wilburys succeeded due to a genial and contagious camaraderie
that permeates both discs. What could have been a train wreck
of ego clashes instead resulted in a frothy meeting of the minds.
These guys are having a blast, trading lead vocals and harmonies
on energetic folk-rock, quirky rockabilly, and Beatlesque pop
that shimmers with the respect and esteem the members clearly
hold for each other. Harrison and Lynne's rather slick production
polishes off edges that might better have been left unvarnished,
but there's no denying the loosey-goosey craftsmanship at work
in tunes such as "Handle with Care," "End of the
Line," and a striking Orbison performance on "Not Alone
Anymore" that ranks with any of his finest. Both albums were
million-sellers, but oddly went out of print for about a decade
until Rhino resurrected them, adding two rare tracks per disc
as well as a DVD of music videos and a band documentary. The resulting
package is a comprehensive overview of a once--well, twice--in-a-lifetime
project that, especially after Harrison's passing, will never
be repeated.
by
Hal Horowitz
Noise
To Signal
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Review: The Traveling Wilburys Collection
by
Philip J Reed, VSc
George
Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison. George
Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison. And
one more time for the folks in the back: George Harrison, Bob
Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison.
This
was the lineup for The Traveling Wilburys...perhaps the only band
in the history of rock music to really deserve the "supergroup"
label. It's amazing that this group of world-changing musicians
got together to record two albums in 1988 and 1990. A thousand
times more amazing, however, is that they've both been out of
print for over a decade. That all changed this past Tuesday.
At
last, The Traveling Wilburys Collection has been released...and
the fact that in all of these intervening years no major record
label that represented the artists involved thought it would be
worth releasing the recordings is just...mind-boggling. Rhino,
at last, stepped up to bat...Rhino, which, it should be mentioned,
represents none of the artists involved. Yes, I'm upset that I
had to wait this long to own the material legally. As well I should
be, as it's some brilliant, magical stuff.
The
coming-together of Harrison, Dylan, Petty, Lynne and Orbison is
discussed at great length in the booklet and DVD that accompany
the set, so it'd be pretty worthless for me to recount it for
you...suffice it to say it only happened because all five of them
were friends...they'd never have been able to convince any record
companies to set it up...not with the rights issues to contend
with. What they had to do, basically, was just record and mix
everything themselves, and then leave it lying around until someone
decided to do something with it.
Which
no doubt lends a lot of the Wilbury recordings their charm. There's
a real effortlessness to it...they're having a lot of fun, yes,
that's obvious, but it almost feels like they didn't have to do
anything at all...it feels almost like someone locked these five
brilliant musicians/singers/lyricists in a room together overnight
and opened the door the next morning to find the album there...magically...summoned
from the ether by the sheer combination of their creative forces...
The
Traveling Wilburys Collection is a set of two CDs and one DVD,
collecting both official albums (Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 and
Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3), four bonus tracks, all five music
videos and a documentary about the recording of the first album.
There's also a booklet that contains recording information, a
few personal reflections and the original liner notes. Which are
hilarious. I promise.
The
set itself isn't quite perfect...selling us a three disc set is
slightly greedy, I'd say, as the material from both original albums
can fit quite comfortably on a single disc. Of course bonus tracks
bump the running time up a bit...but since there are only four
of them total you are essentially paying for an additional disc
containing fifteen minutes of music.
That
said, there is such a difference in mood between Vol. 1 and Vol.
3 that, from a thematic and artistic standpoint, keeping them
separate does have its merits. It's a mixed blessing...and it's
hard to complain when you can finally hold in your grubby little
hands the official recordings that have been out of print for
years.
The
DVD is stored between the first and second discs...and, yes, I
know, it's funny because that makes the DVD Vol. 2, which never
existed before...but, well, I don't like that. I don't like the
CD - DVD - CD sequence. I want both CDs and the DVD on its own.
I don't like dividing up the music...especially when you're not
going to be reaching for the DVD nearly as often as the albums
themselves...have I bitched enough yet? I sure hope so...
The
real great stuff here, obviously, is the content. So let's deal
with the DVD first...
The
DVD contains a documentary that runs about a half hour, and it
touches on all of the songs on the first album...most of them
at great length. It consists almost entirely of archive footage
from the actual recording of the album...the songwriting sessions...the
early morning breakfast jams (when was the last time you saw Bob
Dylan, Tom Petty and George Harrison performing Ghost Riders in
the Sky in somebody's kitchen, anyway?)...it's fantastic, and
a brilliant capsule of the moment. Whoever decided to record this
stuff personally (I have a hunch it was George...) has done the
world a great service by the sheer existence of this footage.
Bad
points? Well, I'd like to have seen more about the songs...I'd
like all of them to get a good amount of time devoted to them,
rather than just most of the songs. Also, the second album deserves
an exploration as well...I understand that the archival footage
just might not exist...but why not stitch something new together?
Anything...interviews with the surviving band members maybe? It's
not impossible...and God knows Rhino's never been shy about stuff
like that before...
Then
we have all five music videos...none of which are particularly
mind-blowing, but that's okay. Other than Talking Heads and R.E.M.,
who's really speckled their career with consistantly brilliant
use of music videos?
The
Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 is the first album this band recorded...and
it's...let's face it...one of the absolute greatest albums in
the history of music. The sheer pleasure the oozes through every
note is irresistible. The two weakest songs on the album happen
to feature Orbison on lead vocals, but I think that's down to
their themes rather than their quality, and--honestly--they're
not half bad anyway.
But
much more fun is Bob Dylan's Dirty World, a raunchy love song
of sorts to a woman's pickup truck, and Tweeter and the Monkey
Man, the longest song in the set that sounds like absolutely nothing
any member of this band has ever been involved with before. It's
dark, it's absurd, it's obnoxious, and it's pure joy. There's
no shortage of recordings of Dylan dicking around in the studio,
but here he strikes a balance between comedy and quality that
he's never really matched otherwise.
On
the more serious side of things, George Harrison and Tom Petty
each turn in one of the best songs of their careers with Heading
for the Light and End of the Line respectively--the latter of
which is both dismal and triumphant at once...and contains probably
the best-delivered vocal in all of Petty history:
Maybe
somewhere down the road a ways
You'll
think of me and wonder where I am these days
Maybe
somewhere down the road when somebody plays
Purple
Haze...
The
entire song is an admittance that this group of musicians is...well...past
their prime. They all realize that their biggest albums are in
their past...that there's only so much left up ahead for them...but
it's fuelled by such a driving satisfaction with a life well-lived
that you can't help but smile...sing along...and, you know what?
Everything'll work out fine. It's all right. We're going to the
end of the line...
Dylan's
Congratulations is definitely one of the finest songs of his career...it's
an "I hate you but I love you but I hate you" song the
way only he can write one, and the fact that he could write something
like this overnight and record it the next day is one more testament
to his career-long quality-streak.
My
personal favorite is Margarita, which wears Jeff Lynne's influence
more obviously than any other song here, and finds every member
turning in a lyric or two that--intentionally or not--summarizes
their song-writing style beautifully. Compare Dylan's entire contribution:
It was in Pittsburgh late one night
I lost my hat, got into a fight
We rolled and tumbled 'til we saw the light
Went to the Big Apple. Took a bite.
with
Petty's:
She wrote a long letter
on a short piece of paper.
It's
James Joyce and Kurt Vonnegut, folks. And they're in the same
band...
The
second album, The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, is a bit more spotty...and,
yes, I'll say it, less magical. But that's only on the whole.
A good portion of the album stands up just as well as the songs
from the first...but this time around there was no more Roy Orbison...he
passed away soon after the first record was released. Perhaps
his sobering influence is what kept the first recording sessions
focussed, because Vol. 3 does seem--just a little bit--like they're
struggling to hold it together.
None
of which robs the resulting album of its masterpieces. Inside
Out is a pretty great choppy jam...Cool Dry Place is a Petty-driven
shuffle that'll make you disappointed that he's not always this
playful. And, on top of that, there are three genuinely beautiful
love-songs sprinkled throughout: Where Were You Last Night?, New
Blue Moon and You Took My Breath Away.
It's
a flawed album, but that's only significant because the first
was flawless. On its own it would have cemented the Wilbury magic,
but held in comparison to the first it's doomed to be a very slight
disappointment.
The
Traveling Wilburys were a twice-in-a-lifetime shot...no tours,
no nothing. They got together twice a few years apart, worked
their magic, and made it clear that every one of them was capable
of recording music offhand in somebody's kitchen that absolutely
blew away the bulk of the stuff being churned out by their musical
peers. If you let the initial releases pass you by, do not miss
this collection.
*****
The
Sunday Mail (Adelaide, South Australia)
June 17, 2007
by Paul Nassari
The
Traveling Wilburys Collection
(Rhino/Warner)
***
1/2
In
short: Maximum Wilburys for fans and completists.
Hot
on the heels of the new Sir Paul McCartney solo album comes this
solid Beatles offshoot which contains the collected works of supergroup,
The Traveling Wilburys.
Led
by the late George Harrison and featuring a who's who of the rock
world (Bob Dylan, the late Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and ELO's Jeff
Lynne), the Wilburys were one of those rare all-star collaborations
which actually worked. This three-disc set presents the remastered
versions of both Wilburys albums along with B-side (Del Shannon's
Runaway), Nobody's Child from the Romanian Appeal compilation,
two previously unissued tracks plus a DVD of video clips for five
songs and documentary The True History Of The Traveling Wilburys.
Rhino has done another terrific job with this updated, remastered
pack.
Copyright © 2007 News Limited
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