How Tom Petty accidentally joined the Traveling Wilburys: “Strange coincidences”.

It’s difficult to avoid thinking of Tom Petty as the new kid among legends among The Traveling Wilburys. Although he had enough hits to be regarded as a legend in his own right, few performers could have competed with the likes of Bob Dylan and George Harrison. But there’s a good chance Petty would have been left out of one of the best supergroups ever if Harrison had kept track of where all his instruments were.

However, the band’s entire formation was entirely accidental. Harrison only originally came up with the concept while collaborating with Jeff Lynne on the album Cloud Nine. Up until they required one more B-side, everything appeared to be going smoothly, so Harrison assumed he would record the song in Bob Dylan’s studio.