Tom Petty Said George Harrison Made ‘Bob Dylan Bootlegs’ Because He Was So ‘Reverent of Bob’

Bob Dylan and George Harrison established a strong friendship after meeting in the 1960s. The pair collaborated on a few songs and formed a supergroup known as the Traveling Wilburys. While Harrison spent plenty of time with his idol, he never lost his awe for his music, and Tom Petty said he would sometimes record Dylan playing music and create “Bob Dylan bootlegs.”

George Harrison would secretly tape Bob Dylan and listen to the recordings later

Dylan was an influential musician for The Beatles, especially Harrison and John Lennon. His introspective and honest songwriting led to meaningful, deep lyrics that spoke to many artists. Harrison brought this style to his solo career, where he shined with songs like “My Sweet Love” and “All Those Years Ago”. 

However, Harrison briefly put his solo work to the side to form the Traveling Wilburys. This supergroup was formed in 1988 with Harrison, Dylan, Petty, Jeff Lynne, and Roy Orbison. Unfortunately, it only lasted a few years, as Orbison died suddenly in 1988. Still, Harrison took advantage of his time with the Wilburys. 

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Petty said Harrison loved Dylan and would often tape the “Blowin’ in the Wind” singer while playing piano. He turned the tapes into “bootlegs” and would listen to them later. 

“Bob really adored George, too,” Petty shared. “George used to hang over the balcony videoing Bob while Bob wasn’t aware of it. Bob would be sitting at the piano playing, and George would tape it and listen to it all night. Essentially, George made his own Bob Dylan bootlegs because he loved Dylan so much.”

Sometimes, Harrison got creative with how he recorded Dylan and came close to being a Peeping Tom. 

“One day, George was hiding in the hedge at the house where we were recording,” Petty added. “As everybody flew off, George would rise up out of the bushes with his video going. And he did that with Bob. I think George frightened Bob.”

Harrison said Dylan made ‘Shakespeare look like Billy Joel’

George Harrison was an avid admirer of Bob Dylan and his music. It was an honor for the “Quiet Beatle” to meet Dylan, let alone be in the same group with him. Petty said Dylan had a mutual respect for the other Wilburys, but maybe not on the same level Harrison had for him.

“When the Wilburys started, George was so reverent of Bob,” Petty explained. “At the end of the first say, he said, ‘We know that you’re Bob Dylan and everything, but we’re going to just treat you and talk to you like we would anybody else.’ And Bob went, ‘Well, great. Believe it or not, I’m in awe of you guys, and it’s the same for me.’ I said to George, ‘That is really amazing, how you said that to Bob.’ George goes, ‘I can say those sort of things. But you can’t.’ George adored Bob Dylan, like ‘Dylan makes Shakespeare look like Billy Joel.’”

Petty added that Harrison “adored” the Wilburys and considered himself a Wilbury for the rest of his life. 

“And George absolutely adored the Wilburys,” Petty continued. “That was his baby from the beginning, and he went at it with such great enthusiasm. The rest of his life, he considered himself a Wilbury.”