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SKID ROW |
Submitted By Cassie on 06/10/06
Link to Skid Row Discography
Skid Row was formed in New Jersey in 1986 by bassist Rachel Bolan and guitarist Dave "the Snake" Sabo. The pair added guitarist Scotti Hill, drummer Rob Affuso, and vocalist Sebastian Bach, who replaced original singer David Fallon, to the lineup by early 1987. The band began playing shows in clubs throughout eastern United States.
With the assistance of friend Jon Bon Jovi, Sabo secured a record deal for Skid Row with Mercury. In 1989, the band released their first album, Skid Row, which was an instant success. The record went multi-platinum and produced the hit singles "18 and Life", "I Remember You", and "Youth Gone Wild."
Ironically, Bach's flamboyance and wild behavior, which played a critical role in helping to give the band its profile, also led to its ultimate downfall. The band is best known for the antics of Bach (motto: "If you think, you stink"), who tended to have "incidents" brought on by his loud, in-your-face attitude.
In what is referred to as "The Bottle Incident" by fans of the band, Bach was arrested and tried on charges of assault and battery for jumping into the crowd at a concert in Springfield, Massachusetts where Skid Row was opening for Aerosmith on December 27, 1989. Bach claimed he had been hit with the bottle (which he later threw back, hitting a bystander girl in the face), thrown onstage from the crowd, which is why he pursued the person he saw throw it. After the fight, Bach returned to the stage to finish the show, antagonizing the crowd all the while. The incident was captured on video and can be seen on a tour video released by Skid Row called Oh Say Can You Scream? in 1990.
Shortly thereafter, Bach wore a t-shirt proclaiming the anti-gay slogan "AIDS Kills Fags Dead" in a magazine photo shoot. He first joked about it on MTV, then later apologized.
Skid Row's sophomore effort, Slave to the Grind (1991), was the first metal album to debut at Number 1 in the American charts, despite the bad publicity generated by Bach. Slave to the Grind was a big hit, and it sent Skid Row on a worldwide tour with several other famous bands, including Pantera and Guns N' Roses. Slave to the Grind was a departure for the band; where Skid Row was filled with pop metal fluff, Slave to the Grind was a more heavy sound, even verging on thrash. It was released in two versions, with a "Clean" version replacing the track "Get The F**k Out" with another, "Beggars Day". The album received strong critical praise, but quickly disappeared from the charts. After the tour, the band took a 3 year hiatus, pondering breakups. Skid Row returned in 1995 with the album Subhuman Race (1995), which surprisingly charted in the top 40. The album generated a few hits, but the videos were rarely played on MTV.
Eventually, Bach's brashness grew to be too much for his bandmates, and he was kicked out in 1997. Although Skid Row never officially finished, the remaining members went on to play briefly in a band called Ozone Monday.
Skid Row reformed in the late 1990s with new vocalist Johnny Solinger, formerly of Solinger, and new drummer Phil Varone, formerly of Saigon Kick. Original drummer Rob Affuso had other commitments that prevented him from staying in the band at the time, but he remains friends with Bolan, Sabo and Hill. After reforming, they opened for KISS on their farewell tour, and have also played with other 1980s metal bands such as Poison. However, they have been on tour every summer. In 2002 they were part of the Rock Never Stops Tour.
Skid Row finally released their fourth album Thickskin in 2003 which is their first album to feature Solinger (as Bach's replacement) and Varone (as Affuso's replacement). It marks their first album with original material since 1995's Subhuman Race. After the release of the album Varone left the band and has been replaced by current drummer Dave Gara.
According to Skid Row's Myspace page, the band has confirmed that they are now working on their fifth album possibly due in mid-2006. The album will be produced by Michael Wagener, who produced two of their critically acclaimed albums Skid Row and Slave to the Grind.
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