BILLY SHEEHAN: 'Once You Stop Learning, You Basically Have Died'

Journey Of A Frontman recently conducted an interview with legendary bassist Billy Sheehan (THE WINERY DOGS, MR. BIG, TALAS, DAVID LEE ROTH). A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Journey Of A Frotnman: You've been in Japan many times throughout your career, what do you love about Japan that you wish would be brought over to the States?

Billy Sheehan: I would just say the general pride that the people have in their country. There's no litter, graffiti, you rarely see homeless people, it's safe, kids can walk around the streets at eleven o'clock and never have to worry about anything, and I believe it's how the United States was in the Fifties and Sixties. People didn't just scrawl graffiti over everything, every square inch of space. American cities are covered with filth and litter and graffiti. Nothing is broken in Japan. In the guardrails, there's no screws missing. Everything is fixed and right. Kids don't take the potted plants from houses, kick them down or smash them. You can leave your home without a lock and everything's there when you return. It's an incredible, safe, wonderful experience. But, of course, we have freedoms in America that I don't believe they have. But we also have the freedom to be idiots and litter everything.

Journey Of A Frontman: Regarding you as a person, what do you feel is important about staying humble?

Billy Sheehan: Well, it's just the truth. There's always something greater. Always something better. Always more to learn. No matter who you are, no matter what field you're in, no matter what you do. If you're the greatest photographer on planet Earth, there's probably more to learn about photography than you'll ever know. As a musician, I can listen to a piece by Chopin or Debussy and I know there's so much more music that I don't know yet. It's an important thing for people to understand. Once you think you know it all, you stop learning. That's always a major, major problem. Once you stop learning, you basically have died, in my humble opinion.

Journey Of A Frontman: With your live shows, what goes through your head on stage? And also, how do you prepare for shows?

Billy Sheehan: Nothing goes through my head on stage. I'm a firm believer in not thinking. If you're thinking, you're probably stinking. That's my thing. I'll think when I'm in rehearsals or practicing or writing songs, and when you're on stage, you gotta forget all that. Speak for the people and perform for the people. It's like having a conversation with someone. While you're speaking, you know they're not listening, they're thinking about what they're gonna say next. Similarly, I don't like to think when I'm playing music. I like to look at it as a conversation that has to come from the heart. To prepare for the show, warm up my bass, warm up my voice, maybe have a little coffee before. Then the greatest part of my day and the greatest part of my life is to perform on stage.

Journey Of A Frontman: You're very active on Twitter. What do you enjoy about being on there and connecting with your fans?

Billy Sheehan: When I post to Twitter, it also goes to my Facebook and MySpace, if MySpace is even still around. I use that as the launch for all my posts for all the sites. It's good because I have to keep it down to the minimal amount of letters allowed in a Twitter post, I have to get right to the point. It makes it precise and easy for people. I do enjoy everything about the Internet revolution in that it's easy to stay in touch with people and always find out what's going on. And also for me to hear from people. I proudly give out my e-mail address and I encourage people to write to me. I read everything I get, I don't always get a chance to respond, but everything I get, I read. I try to answer a lot of e-mails. When I'm doing a seminar or a clinic, I'll say, "Anybody here get an e-mail from me?" About eight or ten hands go up. So it's a good way to keep in touch with people and let people know what's going on. The more communication we have with each other, the better.

Read the entire interview at Journey Of A Frontman.