Billy Sheehan worked with David Lee Roth as his bassist following the singer’s departure from Van Halen. During a recent interview with Talkin’ Rock With Meltdown, Sheehan looked back on his tenure with Roth and revealed that they had an unreleased recording session. However, it seems like fans won’t be listening to it anytime soon.
After his 1985 departure from Van Halen, Diamond Dave decided to pursue a solo career to make the music he always wanted. He then formed a virtuoso supergroup consisting of Steve Vai, Billy Sheehan, and Gregg Bissonette. Soon, Roth released his debut solo LP ‘Eat ‘Em and Smile,’ which received widespread commercial success.
The success of his debut was followed by ‘Skyscraper,’ which he co-produced along with Steve Vai. However, due to creative differences, Billy Sheehan decided to leave Roth’s band after the album’s release. Speaking in a new conversation, the bassist reflected on those times and expressed his feelings about working with DLR.
Sheehan started by praising Steve Vai’s exceptional guitar-playing talent. He then said his tenure with Vai and Roth was like a fantastic adventure. Afterward, the musician revealed they had a video or audio recording of one of their sessions. However, the bassist stated they didn’t have any plans to release it in the near future.
Here is what Billy Sheehan said:
“Steve Vai, pretty tough to compare him to anybody. He’s really a phenomenon of nature, like a brother to me. I love him completely. All these guys, I have nothing but love for all of them. Steve is quite a phenomenon; it’s unbelievable.
We had a riot; it was quite an adventure. On this huge stage, me and Steve were running back and forth, flying around. And a lot of times, on the other side of the stage, I can’t hear any bass at all. I’m playing by visual; I hope I’m on the right note. What an adventure; what an amazing thing, geez!
We sit around, have a couple of glasses of wine, and the stories start coming hot and heavy. It’s a riot. I got a videotape or audio record of one of our hanging-out sessions one time. Well, I don’t think we’re going to release it. We’re going to wait till a few more people pass away before we release that. So, we’ll see.”
So, it looks like Billy Sheehan, Steve Vai, and David Lee Roth entered the studio to hang out and record some tunes, and the bassist had a video or audio recording of one of their sessions. Sadly, he doesn’t think they will release it anytime soon.
