Tom Petty’s favourite song by The Traveling Wilburys: “I was just happy to be there”
Often, supergroups are a much better idea on paper than they turn out to be in reality. However, Traveling Wilburys proved to be an exception to the rule, producing two albums of the highest quality that showed the biggest names in music could work together spectacularly.
For George Harrison, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne, Traveling Wilburys was an opportunity to have fun with friends. None of them entered the project with the desire to line their pockets; if that were the case, they would have embarked upon a lucrative tour.
However, the five horsemen of rock ‘n’ roll agreed that their friendship was too important to risk. The stresses of the road have made too many relationships turn to dust, and Travelling Wilburys valued having each other in their lives more than a potential paycheque. As the youngest member of the band, Petty was particularly delighted at his inclusion alongside musical giants. Therefore, he didn’t take a second spent for granted and soaked up every single session.
After all, Harrison was a pivotal reason why Petty became a musician in the first place. Seeing The Beatles’ US television debut on The Ed Sullivan Show was a life-affirming moment for Petty, making him fall in love with rock ‘n’ roll and placing Harrison on a pedestal.
More than two decades after his epiphany, he unexpectedly found himself a bandmate of a Fab Four member. Harrison was the project’s instigator, and the decision came from following his album Cloud Nine, which he made with Lynne.
The project lit a fuse within Harrison, who, thanks to Lynne, got his bug back for making music. As they continued to work on solo work, calls were made to a small group of Harrison’s famous friends, which culminated in Travelling Wilburys working together for the first time. However, at this stage, they were yet to be a band.
After the famous five put their skills together for one track, the innate chemistry they shared became clear to Harrison. Instantly, it became apparent to Harrison that it would be a waste if they simply went their separate ways after stumbling upon gold and suggested making a full album. When a former member of The Beatles proposes this idea, no artist would even consider rejecting the opportunity.
They released two albums in total, including one without Roy Orbison, who sadly passed away in 1988. No fallout or creative differences caused them to disperse; it was merely their very active careers outside of the band that took priority.
For Petty, the only regret was they didn’t make more together, which the late musician also claimed was a sentiment shared by Harrison. During an interview with Mass Live in 2007, Petty revealed: “He talked for the rest of his life about doing it again or maybe taking it on the road. It is one of my great regrets that I wasn’t a little more aggressive about getting that done. I always thought we’d have all the time in the world to do it.”
Naturally, Petty absorbed every second of his time as a member of Traveling Wilburys and was incredibly proud of their achievements, adding: “I was just happy to be there. I always felt I was blessed to be there at all, and if I helped at all, I was just grateful.”
In the same interview, Petty also revealed his favourite song by the group: “There’s one number, ‘The End of the Line’ – whenever I hear that it’s just very emotional for me. I really think that’s the Wilburys at their best, it was just a terrific time. How often do you write a song that’s for four or five people? It’s not very often that happens but we really collaborated and put our heads together and made those songs happen.”
The song in question is the band’s most popular track on Spotify, boasting over 200million listens on the platform alone. It’s a beautiful ode to joy that’ll raise a smile even on a gloomy day, epitomising their uplifting lustre as Harrison, Orbison, Lynne, and Petty share vocal duties.
Petty’s comment highlighting the band’s collaborative element is precisely what made Traveling Wilburys different from other supergroups. They left their egos at the door when they entered the studio and worked as a unit rather than as individuals. While it’s a crying shame they only made two albums and never toured, their magic is eternally bottled up in ‘The End Of The Line’.
