Disco de Traveling Wilburys: “Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1”

This album is brilliant! This was definitely one of the most exciting music projects to come out of the '80s. There had been "super-groups" before, like the Yardbirds or Blind Faith, but it was unprecedented to have FIVE well-established rock 'n roll greats (Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty) form their own band and bring out two records, and it was a trans-Atlantic collaboration. The story goes that ex-ELO maestro Jeff was helping produce new albums by George and the others, when they decided, "Hey, why not try to bring out a whole album together?!"

Part of the beauty of Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 is that it is so under-stated. It's not like the five guys were saying, "Look at us, we're a super-group!" No, they got pure enjoyment from their collaboration, appearing almost mysteriously as five "Wilbury" brothers. You first had to figure out who those guys in sunglasses were on the album cover.

That notwithstanding, this album was also invaluable for the appreciation it gave the legendary Roy Orbison for a new generation. It made me interested in his songs from way back, even before the movie Pretty Woman gave him new exposure. Sadly, Orbison died soon after Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 was released. The band commemorated his passing in their music video for the single, "End of the Line." When Orbison sings, a guitar is shown in an otherwise empty rocking chair.

But the first song I heard from this album was the catchy story-song, "Tweeter and the Monkey Man." It was Bob Dylan, but it was more. What a great song! It got a lot of airplay in South Africa, where I grew up. The first single, "Handle With Care," is also excellent, with Harrison leading the vocals and the other guys chiming in.

Bob does a great job on "Dirty World," which has some really funny tongue-in-cheek lyrics, e.g., "I love her big refrigerator." "Rattled" is fine rockabilly sung by Jeff Lynne and with Roy adding his trademark growls. "Last Night" with its reggae beat is probably my favorite track, a humorous story of misguided love as sung by Petty and with a fine bridge by Orbison. Roy himself shines on the track written for him, "Not Alone Anymore." "Margarita" on side two is also an excellent song with the guys trading lead vocals.

Jeff Lynne's production, as well as familiar vocals by the parts of the whole, gave continuity to the Wilburys' solo albums: George's Cloud Nine, Petty's Full Moon Fever, Orbison's Mystery Girl and Lynne's own Armchair Theatre. I think of these albums as collectively being the missing Vol. 2.

We await the re-issue of Vol. 1 and Vol. 3 on CD. Warner Brothers, are you listening?

Since this particular Cd arrived, I have not yet taken it out of the player. The content is pure gold, real infectious music. If you haven't yet purchased a Wilburys Cd, this is the one to get. Both Volume one and three, plus a rare Europe only released Single "Nobody's Child". Released for the Romanian Angels Appeal. The only reason I gave it a four star rating was due to the low volume level on Volume One, but this in no way detracts from the actual content of the songs themselves.

Every track has that unique blend of rythmn, vocals, and gritty Rock ,n Roll, that can only be delivered by Messrs Harrison, Orbison, Petty, Dylan and Lynne together.

"Tweeter and the Monkey Man" is pure genius in verse. Dylan's vocals, as he tells the story of two dropouts on the run from the "undercover cop" is just superb. Other tracks I've picked out are "Not Alone Anymore" and "She's My Baby" with Gary Moore guesting on guitar.

Every track is a joy to listen to. It sounds so crisp and fresh, it could have been recorded yesterday.

If your collection doesn't include the "Wilburys", there's a big gap in it, and this is the perfect Cd to fill it!!!

When a lineup like Roy Orbison, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne get together, one would expect something amazing, and on Vol. 1, it is so much more than that. To me, this album is better than any of these guys solo work by far. This one is constantly in my cd player, and to me is the best rock and roll album of all time. My personal favorite song is End of the Line, but the other songs on here are not even close to being worse. If you find this anywhere, pick it up because its been out of print and is getting harder to find.

If you don't own a copy of this album, then you should seriously consider getting one.

Almost 17 years after its release, I'm still amazed at how incredible the music is on here. Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison, and George Harrison - each of them are justifiably legendary musicians. Here you get all of them together, sounding even better than you'd expect them to.

Several reviewers here have commented on how it sounds like the band is having a total blast on these songs. I totally agree and think that's one of the reasons this music is so incredibly fun to listen to. It's obvious that these guys just checked their egos at the door and set out to make great music and have a great time doing it.

Handle With Care, Last Night, Rattled, Heading For The Light - all fantastic songs! Actually, there's not a song on here that isn't great in some way - and that's a rare feat for any performer to accomplish.

Two of my personal favorites on here are Not Alone Anymore and Margarita. On Not Alone Anymore, Roy Orbison's voice is absolutely magical. It's no wonder that he was regarded as highly as he was! As for Margarita...geez...what can I say? The music is addicting within the first few seconds. Then the harmonies kick in - and these 5 guys sound like they were born to be singing with each other. The lyrics are very entertaining and the guitar riffs are great. This is a VERY fun song!

I meant for this to be a short review, but I'm listening to this CD as I'm typing. Listening to this cd, soaking in each great song...well, it got hard for me to not rave and rave about how great this album is.

If you love rock and roll and have this album, then you already know what I'm talking about above. If you love great music and don't yet have this album - get it soon. You'll be glad you did.

Regardless of anything else, the Traveling Wilbury's line up of George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison & Jeff Lynne made the group a major musical landmark. And, unlike most similarly "stellar" combinations, this one really worked. With no name checks and no individual writing credits anywhere in sight they clearly meant business in integrating themselves into a genuine "group" structure, and it shows because they play & sing as a tight, wholly complementary unit. But above all, what makes their first album so good is the sheer quality of its songs. With only a couple of exceptions they lay down an excellent set of "good time" rock music that really does bring out the best in the huge array of talent on offer, including the superb "Handle with Care", "End of the Line" & "Not Alone Anymore".

Unique, brilliant and in the end short-lived, "Volume 1" is their only recording that includes Roy Orbison's wonderful vocals. Find it, buy it and revel in one the best albums of the 1980's.