The 1990’s Traveling Wilburys song Jeff Lynne thought of as the perfect tribute
While many people think of the Traveling Wilburys as the core group of five friends that first got together for their 1988 debut album, the extended world encompassed many more musicians who were tangentially involved with the group.
For starters, there’s a sixth Wilbury who appeared on all of the band’s recordings as their drummer, Jim Keltner. While he wasn’t given official status as a member of the band, given that his nom-de-plume was Buster Sidebury rather than being offered the Wilbury name, he’s still as vital to the band as the five more established figures who were present and handling the songwriting, vocals, and most of the rest of the instrumentation.
However, the unfortunate passing of Roy Orbison shortly after the release of the band’s debut album rocked the group, and while there was plenty of speculation as to how the remaining four members would move forward without their most senior and experienced figure, the quartet opted to go it alone and continue working under the Wilburys name for a short while.
That isn’t to say that other options weren’t considered, though, and despite denying that they auditioned a couple of notable artists as Orbison’s replacement, one figure whose name is repeatedly mentioned in conjunction with the Traveling Wilburys is American songwriter Del Shannon. He may not have had as much of an illustrious career as the other members of the group, releasing infrequently for long periods, but he was still inextricably linked to them as both a friend and collaborator whose influence was certainly felt by the rest of the group.
Jeff Lynne, in particular, was a noted fan of Shannon’s, having worked alongside him in the 1970s, so having him be recruited as the new fifth Wilbury wouldn’t have been completely out of the question had they opted to take this route. However, barely a year after Orbison’s death, Shannon would tragically take his own life, making any possibility of a collaboration with the Wilburys, no matter how speculative or in what capacity, completely impossible.
Evidently shaken by the loss of Shannon, a mere 14 months after they had mourned the loss of Orbison, when the band came together to record their second and final album together, they ended up recording a cover of Shannon’s most well-known song, his 1961 number one hit ‘Runaway’.
While it didn’t end up making the final cut for Traveling Wilburys, Vol 3, its inclusion as the B-side to ‘She’s My Baby’ was perhaps the most fitting way they could honour the passing of a dear friend, with Lynne and co’s interpretation of the song being an impassioned and faithful rendition. “It was just a tribute, really,” Lynne claimed shortly after the band had first recorded the track, “It was just great to see Bob Dylan playing ‘Runaway’ when we’re just sitting there playing, y’know.”
When questioned as to why they chose to have a stab at someone else’s material, Lynne’s response was straight to the point: “I just thought Del would have approved. ‘Cause I loved Del. He was a great guy. A very sad loss, that is”.
Shannon may not have ever found himself working alongside the Wilburys, but his presence and influence were so great on them that they simply couldn’t refuse to pay homage to someone who had quietly shaped them throughout their respective careers. As far as covers go, those that come from a place of genuine admiration for the original artist tend to be the best, and Lynne, despite the sadness he must have felt following Shannon’s death, absolutely nailed it.
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