with producer Kevin Shirley
(Iron Maiden, Journey, Dream
Theater), the new album’s vocal
harmonies, glimmering guitar
tones, and grinding bass prove
the group is still firing on all
cylinders.
We recently asked Sheehan
and his 6-string cohort, Paul
Gilbert (see p. 104), about
recording What If ... and the
gear they used to get their
much-emulated sounds. Both
players are veteran clinicians
with a lively sense of humor
and a generous inclination to
share what they’ve learned.
BILLY SHEEHAN’S GEARBOX
Basses
Yamaha Attitude Ltd. II 4-string basses
Amps and Cabinets
Hartke LH1000 head driving a Hartke
AK410 4x10 cabinet, Hartke HA5500C
head powering a Hartke AK115 1x15 cab
Strings and Picks
Rotosound Billy Sheehan Signature
stainless-steel roundwound strings
(.043–. 110), Real Rock stone picks
Effects
Ashly Audio SC- 50 compressor,
Pearce BC1 preamp
Miscellaneous
DiMarzio Stereo Guitar Cable,
DiMarzio M-Path Interconnect,
DiMarzio Jumper Cable, and
DiMarzio High Definition and
Super M-Path speaker cables
What If ... is Mr. big’s first
studio record in nearly 10
years. What’s different this
time around?
With age, there is wisdom... I
hope [laughs]. I think we’ve all
learned to be better communica-
tors, so the whole atmosphere
is completely different. The
priority was to reestablish the
relationships in the band, and
I think we succeeded. We’re
friendlier now than we ever
to do it. This way we all have
a stake in every song and work
to make each song great.
have you changed your playing
approach this time around?
I’m literally working harder
than I have in my entire life,
and I’m re-energized on bass.
I’m not working on being a
faster player, but I’m trying
to have supreme command
over everything I play. I’m try-
What was the band’s approach
to recording the new record?
Almost everything is a live take.
The producer refused to give
us the opportunity to go back
and replay our parts, so there
are almost no bass overdubs—
there are maybe 45 seconds of
bass fixes on the record. On
one hand, the energy of a band
performing together is the way
a record should be, but doing
it that way is scary. It can lead
to a lot of takes. I worried that
I wouldn’t be able to pull off
some of the difficult technical
parts sitting next to a drum
set and a guitar amp and playing by feel instead of listening
to every note in the control
room. Sometimes music has to
be precarious—if it’s too easy
and too automatic, then it’s
not art to me.
with the band, and doing it
right. I tore my hands to pieces,
because I play really hard. I love
that, because it shows me that
I’m working. When there are
flecks of skin flying around,
that’s when I know real work
is happening.
When there are flecks
of skin flying around,
that’s when I know real
work is happening.
Judging by online video clips
of you playing, it looks like
you play really hard.
I dig in really hard. Bass is a
strength instrument, and I try
to teach people at clinics to get
as much sound off that string
as they can and to not rely so
much on the pickups and amps.
To get that string sound, you
have to hit it hard.
were, and I’m more pleased
about that than any sales figures.
If we never sold another record
or made another five cents, I’d
still consider that a success.
have those behind-the-
scene relationships affected
the music?
They have, for one main rea-
son: We decided we were going
to evenly split the songwriting
credits. In a band situation—
especially when everyone is a
writer—it really is the best way
ing to make my playing not
something that I can gener-
ally pull off—but sometimes
not—I’m trying to push myself
as far and as hard as I can. It
seems like most people will
ride on what they’ve already
done, but I think this is a great
opportunity to use this ride as
a stepping-stone to something
better. Every time I sit down
with my bass, I come up with
a few things that I never knew
before—things like lines or
how to connect notes together.
Which part on the record really pushed your boundaries?
There’s a tricky part on “Around
the World” that Paul and I play
together. We modified it with a
whole new part the day before
recording it. Not only did we
have to articulate the new part,
we had to remember it and play
it together as a band, because
the way we were recording
wouldn’t allow us to punch it in
piece by piece. We stuck with
actually performing it together,
Do you have a special setup
to help you with your heavy
attack?
Not really, but I constantly
tweak my bass. When I’m on
tour, I start with a light action,
but after a week I get stronger
and I start to overwhelm the
low action. I end up not getting notes—just fret buzz—so
I keep raising the action as the
tour continues. By the end of
a tour, my bass’s action is set
pretty high.
Back in the day, we had
to figure out how to set up
our instruments by ourselves.
I’m glad I learned how to set
