Music / ↳ Poor House

Poor House

Written by: Jeff Lynne (primary) Lead vocals: Full band Length: 3:16 to 3:17 Album: Vol. 3, track 6

A catchy, bluegrass-flavored stomp, "Poor House" pairs deliberately goofy, exaggerated vocals with something genuinely lovely underneath: George Harrison's wistful slide guitar, working as a quiet counterpoint to all the silliness happening on top of it. It's a good example of how Vol. 3, for all the criticism it caught next to the debut, still had real musicianship dressed up as a joke.

Jeff Lynne takes the primary songwriting credit here, continuing his pattern of reaching for classic American genre exercises (rockabilly on "Rattled" back on Vol. 1, and now bluegrass) and using the format as a vehicle for the band's collective sense of humor rather than a straight genre pastiche. The song doesn't ask to be taken seriously, and that's precisely the point.

It's a minor entry in the Wilburys catalog by most rankings, but a genuinely pleasant one, and Harrison's slide work alone makes it worth a revisit for anyone who's only heard the album's singles.

Previous track: 7 Deadly Sins. Next track: Where Were You Last Night?. Or see the full Vol. 3 tracklist.