Rock has had a lot of so-called supergroups, but I think the superest of them all is an easy choice. The Traveling Wilburys featured Beatle George Harrison, Nobel Prizewinner Bob Dylan and Hall of Famers Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne, all of whom were in awe of their fifth member, Roy Orbison.
Orbison’s career started while Dylan and the Beatles were still teenagers. He signed with Sun Records and had his first hit in 1956 with “Ooby Dooby.” In 1960 changed labels and recorded a string of hits highlighted by “Only the Lonely” through the middle of the decade; the Beatles opened for him on his tour of Britain in 1963.
Like a lot of early rock ‘n’ rollers his career declined precipitously in the ’70s, then started to recover in the ’80s. When Harrison put together the Wilburys in 1988, he named Dylan as the person he most wanted in the band. Lynne, who was his producer at the time, picked Orbison.
The band, which had less than two weeks to write and record the album, turned out a song a day during their time together. Lynne, seeking a showcase for Orbison’s soaring voice, wrote most of “Not Alone Any More,” though all five are credited as songwriters. Years later Petty recalled “that was really Jeff and Roy’s song. I mean, we all contributed a little bit, but in the end, they had the handle on that one … the rest of us kind of backed off and let them go.”
Orbison died later that year of a heart attack. He was only 52.
