Stu Hamm recently chatted with Ultimate Guitar about Dave Mustaine’s comments on the bass as an instrument by giving an example through Megadeth’s former bassist Billy Sheehan. Hamm shared what he thought about Mustaine’s opinions by saying:
“Personally, I don’t care. No, I mean, personalities… There’s a reason why Dave Mustaine is a guitar player and not a bass player. Because no bass player would say that. Well, no, I rip on guitar players nonstop, so I take that back.”
Even though Mustaine’s words were from 2008, when he criticized the then-Republican Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, who played the bass guitar during his campaign, his words captured the attention of many guitarists and bassists in the industry. Jeff Berlin, who agreed with the rocker, said:
“He’s right! It kind of is [like the kazoo]! What makes things interesting are the notes that we choose to play on this kazoo.”
During the interview, Hamm also said that even if someone is the best bass player, it doesn’t mean they can fit into any band. He then gave Megadeth’s former bassist Billy Sheehan as an example and claimed he would never fit into Van Halen:
“I think a mature bass player… If you’re playing in Megadeth, that’s what you’re going to be doing. I love Billy [Sheehan]; Billy’s a good friend of mine. Billy’s one of the most incredible forces of nature, but it would have sounded awful in Van Halen, right?”
You can watch Stu Hamm’s interview with Ultimate Guitar below.
