Mr. Big, the hard rock supergroup that formed in the 1980s and yielded the hits "To Be With You" and "Green Tinted Sixties Mind" has reunited.
The band is comprised of bassist Billy Sheehan (of Talas and David Lee Roth Band fame), guitarist Paul Gilbert (formerly Racer X), drummer Pat Torpey (formerly of The Knack) and singer Eric Martin.
The group debuted with their eponymous album in 1989. This album laid the groundwork for their distinct sound: crunching, shredding guitars, precision-pounded drums, booming bass, and raspy melodic vocals. Soaring choruses combined with crunch delighted fans of the band the world over.
Wait. This sounds like almost every other band that blossomed out of the 80s under the rock/heavy metal genre.
What differentiated Mr. Big from other bands of their time was the fact that all of the members had previous successful careers in their own right and that all of them had a knack for writing pop-sensible songs. Eric Martin's (who had a semi-successful solo career beforehand) vocals were rough but really melodic, as if he could pass off as Steven Tyler's younger brother. Pat Torpey was renowned as an excellent session drummer in his own right, outside of the rock circles. Sheehan and Gilbert in particular, known for their work as guitar virtuosos, had a chance to show their songwriting skill, and it showed. Their follow-up album Lean Into It (1991) yielded the number one hit (albeit acoustic) "To Be With You."
With the onset of grunge, the band's popularity waned in the United States; however they maintained their popularity in other parts of the world, most notably in Japan, where their fan base is tremendously huge. Paul Gilbert left the band in 1997, replaced by another guitar virtuoso, Ritchie Kotzen (ex-Poison).
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