Special report by Aaron Small

Already available in Japan, the new solo album from bass legend BILLY SHEEHAN, entitled Holy Cow, is being lined up for a February/March release in North America. Compared to his two previous solo efforts, 2001's Compression and 2005's Cosmic Troubadour, Sheehan considers Holy Cow "an evolution; a further advancement." It features a few guest appearances, most notably Dug Pinnick from KING'S X and Billy Gibbons from ZZ TOP.

"Having Dug and Billy come to my house was supremely cool of course," recalls Sheehan. "Working with Dug as a vocalist, with me showing him what I wanted was a really interesting experience. The guy's got quite an instrument built in. You push him a little bit and you get more than you ever expected. Not only is he one of my favourite people in the world, he's a wonderful guy and his bass playing is awesome. I was so excited about the track; I forgot to have him sing the whole second part of it! I had to go to the hotel, pick him up and bring him back. It was hilarious."

The song Dug sang on is called 'Turning Point'. A tune Sheehan "had for a long time as music. I loved the music so much that I was hesitant to write lyrics that didn't match up to it. I had it for the first solo record and I said, nah, I don't have anything good enough for this. I threw at it a few more times and finally this time I couldn't deny that I really wanted this to be on the record. I had a few experiences in life that were... some really good and some really tough, some really upsetting and frightening too. But all of them led to me thinking very differently about a lot of things. 'Turning Point' was a working title, but that was the sentiment that was occurring in my life at the time. That's exactly what led to the lyrics being born out of actual life experience. Once I really launched on a real concept of what this song meant to me personally, it wrote itself in about half an hour. That's a good sign. Dug came in and I'm so glad he sang it. Those first two Kings' X records (Out Of The Silent Planet and Gretchen Goes To Nebraska), and everything else they've done too, but especially those first two are my favourite records in many, many years. They mean a lot to me. They were the only two CDs in my car. I would just cycle back and forth all the time. I love them so much. I'm upset that King's X is not bigger than U2. I believe they certainly should be. They really had the goods. Having Dug's voice on there gave me a huge boost in the actual depth and meaning of the song."

As far as the bearded Billy goes, Sheehan admits, "it's kind of a mindblower for me. I wrote a song with him in mind and hoped I could get him. Sure enough, I did - Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top. I freaked out! I couldn't believe it. I did it the right way. I emailed management, but I wasn't getting any response. So I wrote him directly and asked if he would mind playing on my record? He said, 'sure' and he fucking came over to my house! I couldn't believe it. He's one of the greatest guys you could ever meet, on top of being a supreme legend. The moment he launches on the song, the moment you hear his guitar, you instantly know it's him. It means a lot to me. I remember seeing ZZ Top open for ALICE COOPER on New Year's Eve in Buffalo in 1974. That was pretty cool."

Gibbons also - albeit unknowingly - had a hand in the decision to title the album Holy Cow. Sheehan relays the story. "I told somebody that Billy Gibbons came and played on my record and they replied, 'Holy Cow.' And MEATLOAF - 'Paradise By The Dashboard Light' - it's Phil Rizzuto from the Yankees doing the play by play of the guy making out with the girl. 'Holy Cow I think he's going to make it.' That was his famous thing. Holy Cow has always been an interesting phrase to me because it also references the sacred cow, yet in fact it's just an expletive. Combine all those things together and I Googled to see if anyone else had a record called Holy Cow; amazingly no one did. I couldn't believe it. So that was the record."

Will Holy Cow be supported by the first ever Billy Sheehan solo headline tour? "I hope so. I'm going to try for spring or summer. Hopefully Ray (Luzier, who played drums on Holy Cow and Cosmic Troubadour) will be free. I would probably want to get another guitar player who can also play bass and sing, 'cause I'll switch between guitar and bass. There may be a keyboard or a third guitarist; a fourth guy on stage with us for whatever else happens. That's my plan on paper. Hopefully we can get in onto four wheels and rolling out of here. I've got a lot of stuff to pick from now: the solo records, TALAS, UFO, MR. BIG, DAVE ROTH. I think it would be a good night. I would really like to pay tribute to those bands and those songs. It would be cool."

The audience reaction to master bassist Billy Sheehan playing guitar would be interesting. "Yeah (chuckles). I approach it in a different way. I generally play baritone 12-string, which is a monster beast. I use a stone pick so it's kind of a different attack. I can't play the things I play on bass on guitar. Nowhere nearly can I play as many notes on guitar as I can on bass. They're really two different animals for me. There's a solid brick wall between those two instruments in my musical mind so to speak, which I'm glad of. Most of my guitar playing is more Neil Young, with a couple speedy things in there."