The Traveling Wilburys
The Traveling Wiburys Collection

When artists decide to open their chests full of treasures and pearls made into unreleased songs, remastered pieces, out-takes, and more, they can't even imagine the joy a fan feels upon hearing the news. Often, one might feel disappointed after purchasing, but in this case, "The Traveling Wilburys Collection", released in June 2007, certainly meets the criteria of what can be defined as a fairy-tale box set. The box set includes a host of rarities: the two discs released back then, titled "Volume 1" and "Volume 3" with added unreleased and remixed tracks, a fabulous DVD, a genuine 40-page hardcover book with bibliography and various illustrations of the band, and a small envelope containing real photos, postcards, stickers, and even a certificate of authenticity.

In short, everything one could desire from the super-group founded back in 1988, when one evening the good George Harrison was having dinner with Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison, and upon parting, invited them to Bob Dylan's studio in California the next day to record a track that would eventually end up on a b-side of one of his singles. Thus they gathered, and George remembered one small detail: he had left his beloved guitar at the great Tom Petty's house! So, just as he went to retrieve the precious jewel, the Wilbury travelers' group was complete: originally just for one song, but practically for two albums.

There is already a nice review of the first album, "Volume 1", (go read it!!), but I still feel obliged to talk about it... because the true essence of the group is given precisely by this album! "Volume 1" opens with "Handle With Care", perhaps the most famous and beautiful piece of the Traveling Wilburys, where the fantastic intertwining and succession of the grand voices is surprising. The album continues with tracks of very high quality, such as "Last Night" and "Heading For The Light," all songs that are easy to listen to with a cheerful and at the same time energetic rhythm. Roy Orbison's performance in "Not Alone Anymore" is laudable, and the fantastic "Tweeter And The Monkey Man", a Dylan-esque song at 110% where charge and swing are the main characteristics in this mock-song dedicated to Bruce Springsteen. The successful "End Of The Line" is the original ending, where the chorus parts are entrusted to Petty, while the verses are magically interpreted by Harrison, Lynne, and Orbison.

So it's time for the two never-before-released bonus tracks: "Maxine" and "Like A Ship". The first is signed and interpreted by George Harrison, and you can feel it very well: it's a piece that vaguely recalls the extraordinary ballads of the Fab Four... a precious ornament for an already fantastic work. The second piece is by Dylan, but the characteristic choruses are inevitably present. It's overall a good piece, but not as striking as the others, so the choice to exclude it from the album was a good one.

Moving from listening to viewing, the enthusiasm remains nonetheless. The DVD, lasting around 45 minutes, contains practically everything that was recorded. It starts with a very well-done and real documentary titled "The True Story Of The Traveling Wilburys," where the artists are filmed throughout the workweek while the voices of the Traveling Wilburys themselves narrate the story of the project. Initially, they are each presented with their own pseudonym, appearing as half-brothers from the same father, Truscott Wilbury, from whom they took their name.

Among the various stories and anecdotes, the saddest is undoubtedly Roy Orbison's death in 1988 due to a heart attack: the passion and emotion of the interviewees recounting the band's sad end seems not to have faded over time. The documentary leaves room for the video clips: we find "Handle With Care" again, where the Wilburys sing in a circle around a microphone, and "End Of The Line", where they sit on a train, everyone but the poor Roy Orbison (who passed away before the video recording), remembered with his guitar resting on a rocking chair, and a photo shown during his sung part. The other three videos are songs from the second album, namely "She's My Baby", "Inside Out" and the amusing final "Wilbury Twist", and in all three, the four surviving songwriters are seen lip-syncing on a colorful stage. Viewing the clips has always had a particular charm, in my opinion.

So we move on to the last album, "Volume 3", presumably called so because Tom Petty's album "Full Moon Fever" was considered a sort of Volume 2, although there are many "Volume 2" in circulation, none of which are official. At the time, it achieved much less success than the unbeatable first album, and it is certainly far inferior, although of excellent quality: Tom Petty's influence is increasingly strong. The album opens with the aforementioned "She's My Baby", a fine hard rock'n'roll, reminiscent of the typical sounds of the Heartbreakers, and inevitably, a succession of voices dominates the piece. "Inside Out" and "If You Belonged To Me" are tracks so characteristic of the prodigious cooperation between Dylan and Petty, respectively for the first and the second, are "Deadly Sins" and "Poor House", which could easily be included in an Infidels or a Damned The Torpedoes. The influences of George and his enchanted ukulele make pieces like "The Devil's Been Busy" and "Where Were You Last Night?" unique, as only he can!

As I said earlier, Tom Petty's style is the most striking on the album, and the last three songs of the album, "Cool Dry Place", "New Blue Moon" and "You Took My Breath Away", are a clear example of this: the vocals are mostly entrusted to him, and since even in his solo career he often draws from Dylan and Harrison's styles, in these pieces it is felt even more. The last song is the amusing "Wilbury Twist", a fun boogie that engages from the first notes, where the rhythm sections are entrusted to hits of a refrigerator and shutters!

The bonus tracks on this album are decidedly more beautiful than those on the previous album: the very sad "Nobody's Child", dedicated to the many orphaned children in Romania, is truly moving both for the lyrics and the sad and suffering melody. "Runaway", the last track, finally gives space to Jeff Lynne's great talent, who gives vent to his needs by writing this crazy piece in the ELO style of "Out Of The Blue". In short, what to say... Perhaps you may have noticed that I'm a bit biased, having great esteem for each of them: but I believe I'm not the only one, as over the past month, the box set has risen to first place in the English and Australian charts, ninth in the American one, and most importantly, it has reached first place in the United World Chart. And this means that time passes but great music remains.