Formed: 1988-1990

The lineup: George Harrison (The Beatles), Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne (Electric Light Orchestra), Tom Petty (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)

The story: Lynne, Harrison and Orbison were sharing a meal and planning to record a B-side for Harrison's 'Cloud Nine' album when they decided to cut it at Dylan's Malibu home. The only trouble was Harrison left his guitar at Petty's so he ended up tagging along to the infamous recording sessions as well, unintentionally creating a supergroup in the process.

The song that resulted was 'Handle With Care', which they agreed was far too good for B-side album filler, so they recorded an additional track each day for 10 days, as Dylan had touring commitments to attend to. Orbison died shortly after the 1988 release of 'Volume 1', but a follow-up album, the intentionally confusing 'Volume 3', was released before they disbanded.

Album to buy: The Traveling Wilburys Collection (2CD + DVD)