Traveling Wilburys
Updated: 12/20/2025, 12:29:32 PM Wikipedia source
The Traveling Wilburys were a British-American supergroup formed in Los Angeles in 1988, consisting of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty. They were a roots rock band and described as "perhaps the biggest supergroup of all time". Originating from an idea discussed by Harrison and Lynne during the sessions for Harrison's 1987 album Cloud Nine, the band formed in April 1988 after the five members united to record a bonus track for Harrison's next European single. When this collaboration, "Handle with Care", was deemed too good for such a limited release, the group agreed to record a full album, titled Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, released in October 1988. Following Orbison's death in December 1988, the Wilburys continued as a quartet and released a second album, incongruously titled Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, in 1990. The release of their debut album was much anticipated because of the stature of the participants. The band members adopted tongue-in-cheek pseudonyms as half-brothers from the fictional Wilbury family of travelling musicians. Vol. 1 was a critical and commercial success, helping to revitalise Dylan's career. In 1990, the album won the Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group. Although Harrison envisioned a series of Wilburys albums and a film about the band, to be produced through his company HandMade, the group became dormant after 1991 and never officially reunited, though the individual members continued to collaborate on each other's solo projects at various times. Harrison died in 2001, followed by Petty in 2017, leaving Dylan and Lynne as the only surviving members. After being unavailable for several years, the two Wilburys albums were reissued by the Harrison estate in the 2007 box set The Traveling Wilburys Collection.
Infobox
Tables
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications(sales threshold) | ||||||||
| AUS | AUT | CAN | NOR | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | US | |||
| Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 | Release date: 18 October 1988 (US) 24 October 1988 (UK) Label: Wilbury Records Formats: CD, vinyl, cassette | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 16 | 3 | AUS: 6× Platinum CAN: 6× Platinum UK: Platinum US: 3× Platinum |
| Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 | Release date: 29 October 1990 Label: Wilbury Records Formats: CD, vinyl, cassette | 14 | 22 | 6 | 3 | 19 | 5 | 18 | 14 | 11 | AUS: Platinum CAN: Platinum UK: Gold US: Platinum |
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications(sales threshold) | |||||||
| AUS | AUT | NOR | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | US | |||
| The Traveling Wilburys Collection | Release date: 11 June 2007 Label: Wilbury Records Formats: CD, vinyl, music download | 1 | 24 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 45 | 1 | 9 | AUS: 2× Platinum UK: Platinum US: Gold |
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||
| AUS | CAN | IRE | NZ | UK | US | US Main | US AC | ||||
| 1988 | "Handle with Care" | 3 | 2 | 12 | 4 | 21 | 45 | 2 | 30 | Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 | |
| 1989 | "End of the Line" | 12 | 8 | 14 | 11 | 52 | 63 | 2 | 28 | UK: Silver | |
| "Heading for the Light" | 88 | — | — | — | — | — | 7 | — | |||
| 1990 | "Nobody's Child" | 66 | — | — | 9 | 44 | — | — | — | Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal | |
| "She's My Baby" | 58 | 30 | — | — | 79 | — | 2 | — | Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 | ||
| "Inside Out" | 117 | 50 | — | — | — | — | 16 | — | |||
| 1991 | "Wilbury Twist" | 137 | 86 | — | — | — | — | 46 | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||||
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album |
| US Main | |||
| 1988 | "Last Night" | 5 | Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 |
| 1989 | "Tweeter and the Monkey Man" | 41 |
| Year | Project | Artist | Collaborators |
| 1970 | "I'd Have You Anytime" | George Harrison | Harrison, Dylan (as co-writers) |
| 1971 | The Concert for Bangladesh | George Harrison & Friends | Harrison, Dylan |
| 1985 | Porky's Revenge! soundtrack | Various (George Harrison) | Harrison debuts Dylan's song "I Don't Want to Do It" |
| 1986 | "Band of the Hand" | Bob Dylan with the Heartbreakers | Dylan, Petty |
| Knocked Out Loaded | Bob Dylan | Dylan, Petty | |
| Shanghai Surprise soundtrack | George Harrison | Harrison, Lynne | |
| 1987 | "Jammin' Me" | Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | Petty, Dylan (as co-writers) |
| Cloud Nine | George Harrison | Harrison, Lynne | |
| Duane Eddy | Duane Eddy | Lynne, Harrison | |
| 1988 | Rock and Roll Hall of Fame | Various | Dylan, Harrison |
| Land of Dreams | Randy Newman | Lynne, Petty | |
| 1989 | Mystery Girl | Roy Orbison | Orbison, Lynne, Petty, Harrison |
| Full Moon Fever | Tom Petty | Petty, Lynne, Harrison, Orbison | |
| "Cheer Down" | George Harrison | Harrison, Lynne, Petty (as co-writer) | |
| 1990 | Work It Out | Jim Horn | Harrison, Lynne, Petty |
| Hell to Pay | Jeff Healey Band | Harrison, Lynne | |
| Armchair Theatre | Jeff Lynne | Lynne, Harrison, Petty (as co-writer) | |
| Under the Red Sky | Bob Dylan | Dylan, Harrison | |
| A Tribute to John Lennon | Various (Ringo Starr) | Lynne, Petty | |
| 1991 | Back from Rio | Roger McGuinn | Petty, Lynne (as co-writers) |
| Into the Great Wide Open | Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | Petty, Lynne | |
| Rock On! | Del Shannon | Lynne, Petty | |
| "Hot Love" | Del Shannon | Petty, Lynne, Harrison | |
| 1992 | The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration | Various | Dylan, Harrison, Petty |
| "Christmas All Over Again" | Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | Petty, Lynne | |
| King of Hearts | Roy Orbison | Orbison, Lynne | |
| 1995 | "Free as a Bird" | The Beatles | Harrison, Lynne |
| 1996 | "Real Love" | ||
| 2001 | Zoom | Electric Light Orchestra | Lynne, Harrison |
| 2002 | Brainwashed | George Harrison | Harrison, Lynne |
| Concert for George | Various | Lynne, Petty | |
| 2006 | Highway Companion | Tom Petty | Petty, Lynne |
| 2023 | "Now and Then" | The Beatles | Harrison, Lynne |
References
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- Carl Perkins, Robbie Robertson and Gene Pitney were among the other musicians rumoured to be the new fifth Wilbury.
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- For its inclusion in the 2007 box set The Traveling Wilburys Collection, the video was re-edited to favour footage of th
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