The Traveling Wilburys

The formation of this rock super group seems too good to be true. The story begins with Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison agreeing to help George Harrison record the B-side to one of his singles. The three decided to go to Bob Dylan’s home studio to record it where Harrison remembered that he left his guitar at Tom Petty’s house. Whether this story is completely accurate or not I do not know but either way the formation of this band must have been amazing. These five musicians were already very accomplished in their own right, either through their work with previous bands, Harrison being part of the Beatles, Petty the lead of the Heartbreakers and Lynne part of the Electric Light Orchestra or as solo artists like Dylan and Orbison. The addition of Jim Keltner on drums completed this supergroup.
I think the most amazing thing about this band is the way that the musicians were all able to contribute their individual sounds and have their sounds heard while still meshing so nicely. Even with each member already having been established before the formation of the Wilburys they were still able to learn from each other and grow musically. The band seems too good to be true. Imagining that five huge names in music could all work so coherently together is truly baffling. 
The band only released two studio albums together with the second being released after Orbison’s death, which occurred in 1988. The first album received both good commercial and critical success as one would imagine for a super band of this sort. However, the second album which was intentionally misnumbered by Harrison was met with much less success as the first. There was much talk of a Wilburys tour but some of the members expressed that touring would create responsibilities that didn’t exist while they were simply playing in the studio.
The Wilburys life span was very short, spanning over just two years. Whether it was because the band was not the same without Orbison, the band became too much like work or because record sales were not as good as expected, the Wilburys disbanded in 1990. Though short lived, a band like this satisfied so many rock fans dreams. The music these five individually spectacular artists created will exist forever in the hearts of current and future rock fans alike. The Traveling Wilburys will always be remembered the real-life rock and roll fantasy.  
Listening Recommendations: 
• Handle With Care
• End Of The Line 
• Wilbury Twist