Who Billy Sheehan Thinks Is ‘Probably the Greatest’ Bass Player

Billy Sheehan is one of the more celebrated modern bassists, but who does he think is the greatest bassist of all-time? While appearing on the Mistress Carrie Podcast (heard below), Sheehan championed the legendary Paul McCartney of The Beatles, noting that he was “probably the greatest” bassist ever.

Why Billy Sheehan Thinks Paul McCartney Is The “Greatest”

It didn’t take long for Sheehan to sum up his feelings. “Almost anything McCartney did is just brilliant,” remarked the bassist.

Sheehan understands that McCartney may sometimes get overlooked in the greatest bassist discussion, but he’s up to the challenge of explaining his stance.

“Some people don’t get it. I think if I give me enough time, I’ll get them to get it,” says Sheehan. “I’ve been lucky to sit down with somebody, and they would explain a piece of music to me, and then I’d hear it, and go, ‘Oh, I get it now.’ A buddy of mine sat me down, ‘Okay, this is Stravinsky, and it’s called ‘The Rite of Spring.’ And this was so controversial, there were riots on the streets of Paris when it debuted.’ I said, ‘Wow.’ And then [I go], ‘Oh, I get it now.’ If I would have just heard it, I would have thought, ‘I don’t know. It’s just some classical music that I don’t like.’ So sometimes you need to explain.”

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“I would be happy to explain to anyone why Paul McCartney is probably the greatest — really, just a really great, great player,” offered Sheehan. “James Jamerson, of course — anything by The Temptations or any Motown [recordings] that he played on, very similar. The bass was all over the place. McCartney’s bass is all over the place, but it’s so musical and woven in so well with what’s going on with every other component of the song and the music, it’s quite amazing.”

Billy’s Beatles Bass

As a side story to Sheehan’s championing of McCartney, the Mr. Big bassist also shared a story of receiving an instrument from another bass legend that ties into his Beatles and McCartney love.

“I don’t know if I’ve told the story in public, but a friend of mine worked with — I hesitate to say, ’cause I don’t want to blow his cover — AC/DC bass player Cliff Williams. And a buddy of mine went to do some business with him. He was getting rid of some old gear. And I don’t know any of the AC/DC guys, and I’m the biggest AC/DC fan of all time. I love that band with every cell of my heart.

“[My friend] came back to Nashville. He goes, ‘Bill, are you home?’ I go, ‘Yeah.’ He goes, ‘What’s going on? I gotta come over.’ ‘Oh, okay.’ He comes over and he brings a case. And I go, ‘What’s that?’ He goes, ‘Open it up.’ It’s a Höfner 1973 Beatle bass. And he said, ‘Cliff wanted you to have it.’ I had tears in my eyes. Just amazing. Apparently, [Cliff] knew that I was a big Beatles fan. I didn’t even know he knew who I was. It’s one of my most valued treasures ever to get a gift from that man. And he, as a bass player too — man, what a great, great player. AC/DC, the sound of those records and his bass playing on it, just so amazing. But you could have knocked me over with a feather. I had tears in my eyes.”

Sheehan says he later extended a thank you: “[My friend] was kind enough to give me [Cliff’s] number, so I thanked him in person. And what a wonderful guy and what an incredible player. And wow. I was completely blown away. [It was] one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for me. And as I mentioned, I still float up to the moon — just the idea of it. And the thing is just perfect.”

The bassist concluded, “Playing McCartney on that is just so enriching and so cool. I will sit down with that bass, I think, on my next birthday and have a bottle of wine and put Sgt. Pepper’s on and play the whole thing on that bass. It’ll be so great.”

Billy Sheehan Guests on The Mistress Carrie Podcast

More on Billy Sheehan’s Love of Paul McCartney

Back in 2020, Sheehan spoke in our Loudwire Gear Factor series about some of the influences that made him want to pick up the bass. After initially shouting out The Yardbirds’ Paul Samwell-Smith, Sheehan turned his attention to McCartney.

“Paul McCartney from The Beatles, of course, was a huge thing for me. The song ‘Rain,’ a really great bass line,” he remarked, then adding, “And McCartney was quite an aggressive player too, he played a lot of notes, but that’s how pretty much I started and just came through and got into everybody and everything.”

Billy Sheehan and Bumblefoot Guest on Loudwire’s Gear Factor