Billy Sheehan thinks Mr. Big need drummer with full lead singer vocal range
Photo by Joe Schaeffer Photography
Billy Sheehan thinks Mr. Big need drummer with full lead singer vocal range
Mr. Big and The Winery Dogs bassist Billy Sheehan was recently interviewed by Andrew Daly for Metal Sucks. Sheehan was promoting The Winery Dogs‘ new studio album III, which was just released earlier this month. Back in late December 2022, singer Eric Martin revealed that Mr. Big, which includes Sheehan on bass and Paul Gilbert on guitar, would be reuniting with a mystery drummer.
Photo by Joe Schaeffer Photography
In terms of what made this a good time to fire up Mr. Big‘s engine once again, Sheehan indicated: “Well, there’s no definite booked situation with Mr. Big yet. I think we’re gonna take a little break from the Winery Dogs and then go back again with the Winery Dogs in the fall, so we might take a small break in there to do a couple of shows with Mr. Big. We’re not sure exactly what, when, where, and how yet. We’re still putting those details together. We want to do a proper tribute to Pat [Torpey]. We had decided after we stopped playing some years back to just let things rest for a while. But I think enough time has passed that we would like to get together again in Pat’s honor and do some shows. That won’t be an extensive tour, but it’s always enjoyable to play in Mr. Big. We’ll have to see exactly what it’s going to entail.”
On whether Mr. Big will be doing one-off shows or creating new music, Sheehan revealed: “We don’t really know yet. It’s still so early, and we’ve only just started to chat about the beginning phases of this. We’re not ruling it out, but we haven’t decided on any of that yet. We’ll see.”
With respect to finding a replacement for Mr. Big‘s original and now deceased drummer Pat Torpey, Sheehan stated: “It’s not easy. Matt Starr did a great job, but we need a guy with a full lead singer vocal range. So, that’s what we’ve been looking for and what we’ll be going with. If we didn’t have that in our drummer, we’d honestly have to hire an extra person to stand up there and sing Pat’s parts. So, for Mr. Big, a drummer who can sing is essential.”
On whether Mr. Big have ch0sen a new drummer yet, Sheehan indicated: “We’re on the edge of it. We’re pretty close to being able to make an announcement. He has other obligations, so we’ve refrained from saying anything yet. But it’ll come pretty soon.”
You can read the rest of the interview with Billy Sheehan at Metal Sucks‘ website.