Well, it's all right...

We're going to the End Of The Line...

I should be disgusted at marketing tactics which induce me, Joe Consumer (my alter-ego), to shell out more bucks for something that's been in my music collection for YEARS. After all, to get the consumer excited, there are 4 bonus tracks and a DVD; this is the 'golden carrot' that's being dangled yet again to lovers of old music who've already GOT that old music. But this time around, it's WORTH it. After all, the group represented here is the TRAVELING WILBURYS, which consist of Jeff Lynne of ELO, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Roy Orbison. The group made two albums, "Traveling Wilburys" and "Volume 3". (There was no volume 2; the 'Vol. 3' title was a George Harrison joke.)

This newly-packaged old music by the Wilburys comes to us in the form of two CD's and a DVD. Each CD contains two bonus tracks, and it's nice to have 'em. The DVD is the real surprise. It's only just over 40 minutes long, but it's great anyway. When you zap it into your player, you'll see a 20-minute "True History of the Traveling Wilburys", along with MTV-type videos made to promote their various singles. Now, I've always firmly believed that Music Videos are Unnecessary; if a song is good, it doesn't need a video to get across. At the same time, a video can dress up and render marketable a totally awful song. These Wilburys videos, though, have some historical significance. After all, this group consisted of five REALLY BIG NAMES in music. Something that doesn't happen every day.

...as always, with CD's, "Handle With Care"...

The Wilburys' first music video ("Handle With Care", 1988) featured all five members of the group. Tragically, though, Roy Orbison passed away before their second video ("End Of The Line") was made. The song was a single, and they must have mulled over how to make a tasteful video of it. I'd never seen this 1989 video before, and when I saw it last night, it absolutely BLEW ME AWAY...

The "End Of The Line" video features footage of the band members inside a railroad passenger car as they sing their various parts of the song, and when it comes time for Orbison's verse, the camera pulls back to reveal the entire group playing their guitars and singing. In Orbison's place is a rocking chair, in which sits an old guitar similar to the one he'd played; the chair is ROCKING BY ITSELF, as if Orbison, from the great beyond, was among his bandmates as they sang. Eerie, yet unabashedly sentimental. Before Orbison's vocal part ends, the camera briefly reveals a shelf in a corner of the room, on which sits a small framed picture of Orbison. So, he wasn't there, yet he WAS. I was absolutely stunned. Wow. How poignant!

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Also on that DVD is footage of Roy Orbison laying down vocals for his featured track on the first Wilburys' album, "Not Alone Anymore". Near the end of his life, his voice was STILL amazing. As was the music he and his cohorts made on the Traveling Wilburys' two albums. And with that, I'll close...this post has the End Of The Line.