Bass player Matt Bissonette recently opened up about how he ended up joining REO Speedwagon on tour. He shared the full story in an interview with Made in Metal.
Bissonette explained how an unexpected series of calls from REO Speedwagon guitarist Dave Amato pulled him off a planned break at home. The temporary role turned into something much longer than anticipated.
“I had just come off the road with Elton John and I was in my studio and kind of going, ‘I’m never going to go on the road again. This is great. I’m home,'” Bissonette said. “And then one day, Dave Amato, the guitar player for R.E.O., called me, goes, call me, call me, call me. He left me like 10 texts, call me.”
He went on to describe the circumstances that brought him into the band. It started as a temporary arrangement to cover for Bruce Hall during his recovery.
“And they needed me to sub for Bruce Hall, the bass player, because he was having back surgery and they needed to have someone do the gig in Vegas and to keep working till Bruce came back,” he continued. “It was one of those things that I never thought, you know, I thought I was going to be staying home. But then I went and rehearsed with them, did the gig, and then they asked me to stay out with them. So it kind of kind of unexpected, like a lot of the gigs I’ve done, they kind of came out of nowhere.”
Bissonette also reflected on his personal connection to the band’s music. He recalled memories of listening to REO Speedwagon as a child.
“And I mean, I remember listening to REO Speedwagon when I was a kid, you know, I was like 12 years old,” he said. “I was just telling Kevin on the bus that I would put my headphones on and a tennis racket like a guitar and play Golden Country and Riding the Storm on all those songs. So it’s funny every night when we play those songs, it’s like I’m looking over, I’m going, that’s the guy who’s saying, you know, singing on these songs, and the band is a bunch of great guys.”
He wrapped up by speaking warmly about the atmosphere within the group.
“Everybody’s really cool and really friendly and fun. And we go to movies on off days. And it’s just like a family, really, really good, good people,” Bissonette added.
What began as a short-term fill-in gig gradually revealed itself to be part of a much larger and more complicated chapter in REO Speedwagon’s history. It would ultimately reshape the band’s future on the road.
Bruce Hall has been REO Speedwagon’s bassist since 1977, making him one of the longest-serving members in the band’s history. His November 2023 back surgery was initially expected to sideline him for only a limited period. The band publicly expressed confidence that he would return to the stage as soon as he was ready.
Hall confirmed months after his surgery that he had recovered sufficiently to return to touring. However, disagreements over the timing of his return and other internal issues created a rift within the band that proved difficult to resolve.
Those tensions eventually led to a significant announcement. REO Speedwagon declared it would cease touring after January 1, 2025. The decision marked the end of an era for a band that had been a fixture of the classic rock touring circuit for decades.
Bissonette brought considerable credentials to the role. A seasoned session and touring bassist, he had built a reputation working alongside some of rock and pop’s biggest names before the REO Speedwagon call came in. He had most recently completed a lengthy run on the road with Elton John. His ability to step in seamlessly and earn an extended invitation to stay with the band speaks to both his musicianship and the chemistry he found with the group.
