简介：by Greg Prato\n \nOften called the Eddie Van Halen of the bass, Billy Sheehan just happened to catch his big break playing with former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth. Although Eddie Van Halen gets the lions share of credit for popularizing the two- handed tapping technique on guitar, its been rumored that Sheehan began utilizing the same technique around the same time, albeit on his bass, resulting in a debate during the 80s (among guitar geeks, at least) as to who was the true originator. Hailing from the chilly locale of Buffalo, New York, Sheehan spent much of the 70s and early 80s as the leader of Talas, a bar band that first started by playing covers before focusing primarily on original material (that sounded quite similar to Van Halen). The Van Halen connection grew stronger when the band took Talas out on the road for a smattering of arena gigs in 1980 (despite the fact that Talas wasnt even on a major label at the time). According to Sheehan years later, Eddie Van Halen supposedly made overtures to Sheehan to replace Michael Anthony in Van Halen, but Sheehan remained in Talas. Several indie releases followed, 1980s Talas: Featuring Billy Sheehan, 1982s Sink Your Teeth into That, and 1983s Live Speed on Ice, as Sheehan began to be recognized for his exceptional bass talents in national guitar publications. Just as Talas was about to sign their much-sought-after major label contract in 1985, Sheehan received a call from his old pal, David Lee Roth, inquiring if the bassist would like to join his solo band (Roth had just exited Van Halen). Sheehan accepted, and along with guitarist Steve Vai and drummer Gregg Bissonette, David Lee Roths band was born. Although this lineup would last for a single album (1986s Eat Em and Smile) and tour, the group managed to do a fantastic job of balancing their instrumental technical prowess with penning anthemic arena rockers (a Talas-era Sheehan composition, Shy Boy, would be included on the album and serve as a concert opener). Despite the accolades and success the group received, the union would sadly prove to be short-lived, as Sheehan was forced by Roth to tone down his playing style on the next release, 1988s Skyscraper — resulting in Sheehans exit from the band prior to the supporting tour. Sheehan didnt take long to appear again, as he followed in the Roth bands commercial hard rock sound with a new band called Mr. Big, comprising ex-Racer X six-string shredder Paul Gilbert, former solo recording artist Eric Martin on vocals, and drummer Pat Torpey. The bands debut, Mr. Big, debuted in 1989, but it wasnt until 1991s Lean into It that the group experienced commercial success in the U.S. (albeit brief), with a pair of hit ballads, To Be with You and Just Take My Heart. Although Mr. Big would continue issuing albums throughout the 90s, their U.S. fan base dwindled (they remained an arena headliner in Japan, however), resulting in the groups demise by the early 21st century. Sheehan has since kept himself busy with a variety of other projects, including a power trio named Niacin (along with keyboardist John Novello and drummer Dennis Chambers), a collaboration with ex-Frank Zappa drummer Terry Bozzio (Nine Short Films), as well as backing old pal Vai on several G3 U.S. tours. 2001 finally saw the release of Sheehans first true solo album, Compression. Additionally, Sheehan has guested on numerous recordings by other artists over the years, including those of Glenn Hughes, Glenn Tipton, Explorers Club, Tony MacAlpine, and Richie Kotzen, in addition to various tribute albums. 简介：全宇宙最牛的贝斯手BillySheehan，出生于1955年3月20日，他在纽约州的水牛城里长大，八岁开始学习钢琴，十岁开始对吉他和贝斯产生兴趣，曾经连续五年被日本Burrn杂志封冠，在德国、韩国、意大利、美国、英国等地亦被票选为最佳贝斯手。早在 70年末Billy就游走于北美摇滚乐坛，他以灵巧的轮指弹奏和双手点弦，改变当今贝斯的演奏方式。 80年初Billy曾经客串英国知名硬摇滚乐团UFO贝斯手，之后更和吉他手Mitch Perry组成Talas这个概念性前卫金属乐团。 85年Billy Sheehan和吉他教父Steve Vai、鼓王Gregg Bisonette一起被前Van Halen主唱David Lee Roth召募，录制"Eat Em &Smile"和"Skyscraper"两张专辑，并在 89年和吉他神童Paul Gilbert、摇滚歌手Eric Martin共组Mr.Big乐团，更以一首"To Be With You "红遍世界五大洲。 演奏风格：2001年九月Billy发表首张个人专辑"Compression"，邀请电吉他教父Steve Vai、鼓神Terry Bozzio特别客串。2005年二月推出第二张作品"Cosmic Troubadour"，依旧由Billy亲自担任主唱、贝斯、吉他的工作，这张长达72分钟的作品里，收录了十七首歌，我们可以在歌曲之中听到精湛的吉他和贝斯对位，花俏却又沉稳的鼓点，还有Billy精彩动人的歌声，当然专辑里的所有曲子，以硬式摇滚(Hard Rock)为基础，适时的添加放克(Funky)和蓝调(Blues)，乐器的表现固然十分精彩，Billy的嗓音更令人着迷，不只弹的一手好琴，歌声更是具有磁性。一首首动听的歌曲，就在Billy的口中唱出，当然Billy的看家本领"轮指"和拿手绝活"点弦"，在多首演奏曲中依旧表现的可圈可点。Billy现在参与老搭挡Steve Vai的全球巡回演出，当然在G3的行程中，他也是绝佳的贝斯手。Billy另外参与三人团体Niacin的五张专辑录制工作，这个以纯演奏为主的爵士摇滚乐团，也广被大众所喜爱，并横跨摇滚、爵士、蓝调三个领域。<br/> Billy Sheehan改变了贝斯的弹法，他绝对是大师中的大师。虽然他和Stuart Hamm、T.M. Stevens、Victor Wooten、Randy Coven、Kevin Chown、Michael Marning这几位大师为同辈，但是Billy Sheehan似乎更胜一筹，因为在乐迷的心中，他已经和Jaco Pastorius、Marcus Miller、Jeff Berlin这些前辈齐名，并享有相等的地位。