Let us turn to the Way Back Machine and take a trip back to the grand ol' age on 1988. Compact discs outsold vinyl records for the first time, both Nine Inch Nails and Milli Vanilli were formed (taking both ends of the spectrum here...), the most excellent Megaman 2 video game was released, and Magnum P.I. drove off into the sunset in his red Ferari for the last time. But, most importantly (at least as far as today's post is concerned...), the supergroup Travelling Wilburys released their album 'Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1' to great critical and public success...
A little history first: if you are not aware of who the Traveling Wilburys were, they were a supergroup (in every sense of the word...) formed by Roy Orbison ('Oh, Pretty Woman'...), George Harrison (The Beatles...), Bob Dylan ('Blowin' in the Wind'...), Tom Petty (The Heartbreakers...), and Jeff Lynn (Electric Light Orchestra [ELO...]...) by chance that they all happened to be in close proximity to each other and were doing some separate side projects. Someone (who knows...) said something to the effect of, 'Hey, let's cut a record, guys', and so the Travelling Wilburys were born. Let's look at this a moment: You have one of the great rockabilly musicians, a Beatle, an icon of 60's and 70's counterculture, a highly successfully musician of the Americana variety, and the lead of one of the most successful prog rock bands of the 70's and 80's. How could this fail? Thankfully, for the world at large, it did not fail and proved that there are musicians who are in it for the love of playing music with your friends and not (just...) the cash. Either that or they are great actors as well...
It turns out that I love this album and never knew it. I picked up the album at Salvation Army (my one-stop shop for cds...) because I found the song 'Margarita' a couple years back and really got down on it. So, I thought, 'I bet the rest of the album is pretty good too, what with that lineup and all'. I got the surprise of a lifetime as I began to realize that this album wasn't an unknown to me. About three songs in, it dawned on me that I had heard this whole album before, but nearly 20 years ago. A wash of nostalgia hit me and I was transported back to a small town in Ohio when I was just a lad. I even called up my mother and asked about it. Apparently, this is one of the soundtracks of my childhood. It also may explain why I cling so vehemently to classic rock over many modern rock styles; it's in my blood, plain and simple. I was programmed at an early age do enjoy most music pre-1990 and I guess it worked (thanks, Mom and Dad...)...
The album content is definitely greater than the sum of its parts (and the parts are fantastic on their own...). 'Handle with Care' is reminiscent of Tom Petty's 'Learning to Fly' (actually, that analogy is backwards...), but allows you to really get the power of Roy and George as well as their combined power in the bridges. 'Dirty World' is mostly done by Dylan and is quirky, sexually laden song that is just fun to sing (what does he mean by 'He loves your bottled water'?). 'Rattled' is a throwback to the days of rockabilly (I could see Elvis doing this one...) and Jeff Lynn sings it expertly, though I'd have loved to hear Roy do it. 'Last Night' is a Roy/Petty number, with the rest backing them up. It's a story, literally, about a nefarious woman the singer met up with 'last night'. It's a bit repetitive, but still pretty good. 'Not Alone Anymore' is an Orbison ballad and suits his singing style (always good to hear from the Big O...). 'Congratulations' is mostly a Dylan number about loss and probably my least favorite on the album due to the repetition and Dylan's voice (not much of a Dylan fan here...). However, because of its slightly annoying distinctiveness, it tends to be the most memorable song on the list. 'Heading for the Light' starts out like an ELO number but you can almost feel the Beatle undertones. If the Beatles (the band...) had lived past 1970, I can imagine that this is where their sound would have headed. I'm not sure exactly where 'Margarita' fits in the genre list, but it's a pretty cool song. It builds in intensity and has a quirky mix of folk, country, surf, and rockabilly rock. Very catchy. 'Tweeter and the Monkeyman' is...indescribable, but is apparently a poke at Springsteen (Click
here to experience it...). The last song, 'End of the Line', is a sweet, on-the-move number with a touch of melancholy as this is one of the last songs Roy Orbison put down. The music video shows a rocking chair with a guitar in it in Roy's place and is a little sad without him there...
Where I a divinely powered being, I would have created a universe where there is ALWAYS a Traveling Wilbury band. As members get too old to do it or move in different directions or what have you, other rock artists should take up the Wilbury banner and keep the tradition alive. Were I to reform the Traveling Wilburys today, I would use the following artists in various incarnations in the future:
-Paul McCartney to replace George/Roy...
-Eric Clapton...
-keep Tom Petty...
-Joe Walsh and/or Don Henley from The Eagles...
-Dave Grohl to represent the 90's...
-Jack White...
-The Edge from U2...
-Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top...
I don't know about many artists from the 90's and 2000's that would mesh with this more classic rock sound, but I'd be up for some suggestions to add to this grouping...
I highly recommend this album if you are a fan of any of the artists who contributed to 'Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1' or are just a fan of classic American rock. This is a very fun album (though I bet it was more fun to make...) and definitely is on my top 25 album list, if not higher. All the songs are very catchy and easy to get into. In recent times, there seems to be a resurgence of artists getting together to lay down some fresh tunes (Jack White and Dave Grohl have been notorious for this...) for the sake of doing something different and just playing some rockin' music. I feel they are continuing a tradition is older than they imagine. Rock on, everybody...
2 comments:
Interesting "modern" list. Why The Edge but not Bono? And here I thought you weren't on to Jack White... ;-)
If you notice, each of the original members of the Traveling Wilburys are guitarists. Now, I know I've seen Bono play in some concerts in the 80's, but The Edge (I believe...) is more appropriate for this kind of situation. Beyond his abilities as a musician, he doesn't carry the ego that Bono does and I really feel that ego shouldn't factor into this and would ruin a good thing...
I think Jack White is a good musician; I'm just not convinced of his godliness that so many others are. I like quite a few White Stripes songs, but he always strikes me as just a good, modern musician; even better than most. But there are others who I like a lot more and who do a lot more for me that I would put in front of Jack White. That, I think is for another post, though...
It's the same feeling I have about other 'genius' pop culture individuals in recent times, like Mitch Hedburg(?). He's got some funny bits, but he's like a lot of my friends who like to get drunk/high and spout off stuff. Yeah, he's got good timing and some funny bits, but he's no genius nor is on par with comedians I prefer...
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