Skid Row (heavy metal band)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Skid Row | ||
|---|---|---|
 The classic line-up: Dave "The Snake" Sabo, Scotti Hill, Rachel Bolan, Rob Affuso and Sebastian Bach
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| Background information | ||
| Origin | New Jersey | |
| Genre(s) | Hard rock Heavy metal |
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| Years active | 1986-1996 1999-present |
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| Label(s) | Atlantic Records (1988-1996) Skid Row Records (2002-2005) SPV Records (2005-present) |
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| Website | Official Website | |
| Members | ||
| Johnny Solinger Scotti Hill Dave "The Snake" Sabo Rachel Bolan Dave Gara |
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| Former members | ||
| Sebastian Bach Rob Affuso |
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Skid Row is an American heavy metal band which became the hair metal prototypes of the late 1980s metal scene and were reasonably successful until they were eclipsed by the Seattle grunge bands in 1991.
Skid Row has released five full-length albums, an EP, a compilation album and a live recording. Their first two albums, Skid Row (1989) and Slave to the Grind (1991), are considered the band's best known works to date. Their last full-length album, Revolutions Per Minute, came out on October 24, 2006.
They are often associated with hair metal, partly due to their appearance and their sound on their debut album, Skid Row which spawned the hits "18 and Life" and "Youth Gone Wild" for the band.
They would eventually go on to make music more akin to Thrash metal with Hard rock leanings. Some are of the opinion that during their later years with Sebastian Bach as vocalist, the band resembled Lääz Rockit in sound and image. The band bought the name Skid Row from Gary Moore's first band Skid Row.
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[edit] History
[edit] Early career and mainstream success (1986-1990)
Skid Row was formed in Toms River, 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 Matt 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 Atlantic. In 1989, the band released their first album, Skid Row, which was an instant success. The record went 5x 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 had been hit with a bottle thrown onstage from the crowd. Bach threw the bottle back and pursued the person he saw throw it. After the fight, Bach returned to the stage to finish the show, and says he was antagonized by the crowd. [1] 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, but in a sort of mocking way stating "My grandmother had recently died of cancer, I guess I would be pissed too if I saw someone wearing a "CANCER Kills Grandmothers Dead" shirt"[citation needed]. In later years Bach apologized seriously for wearing the shirt, and made a substantial donation to an AIDS charity.
[edit] In the 90s and hiatus (1991-1998)
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, or perhaps because of, the bad publicity generated by Bach. Slave to the Grind became a big success, and Skid Row once again went out 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 an album that followed the typical hair band formula, Slave to the Grind had a heavier sound, even verging on thrash with the songs "Mudkicker" and the title track. It was released in two versions, with a "Clean" version replacing the track "Get The Fuck Out" with another, "Beggars Day". The album received strong critical praise, but quickly disappeared from the charts. After the tour, the band took a three year hiatus, pondering breakups.
In 1995, Skid Row returned with their third album Subhuman Race, which surprisingly charted in the top 40. The album generated a few hits, but at that point, their videos were rarely played on MTV.
Eventually, Bach's brashness grew to be too much for his bandmates, and he was fired in 1996. Although Skid Row never officially finished, the remaining members went on to play briefly in a band called Ozone Monday, which also featured singer Shawn McCabe.
[edit] The new Skid Row (1999-present)
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.
The band's fifth and latest album, Revolutions Per Minute, was released on October 24, 2006, from SPV records. The album was produced by Michael Wagener, who produced two of their critically acclaimed albums Skid Row and Slave to the Grind.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Studio albums
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[edit] Compilation / Live albums
[edit] Singles
| Year | Title | US Hot 100 | US Mainstream Rock | UK singles | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | "Youth Gone Wild" | 99 | 27 | 42 | Skid Row |
| 1989 | "18 and Life" Gold | 4 | 11 | 12 | Skid Row |
| 1989 | "I Remember You" | 6 | 23 | 36 | Skid Row |
| 1991 | "Monkey Business" | - | 13 | 19 | Slave to the Grind |
| 1991 | "Slave to the Grind" | - | - | 43 | Slave to the Grind |
| 1991 | "Wasted Time" | 88 | 30 | 20 | Slave to the Grind |
| 1991 | "In A Darkened Room" | - | - | - | Slave to the Grind |
| 1992 | "Youth Gone Wild" / "Delivering the Goods" | - | - | 22 | B-Side Ourselves |
| 1995 | "My Enemy" | - | - | - | Subhuman Race |
| 1995 | "Breakin' Down" | - | - | 48 | Subhuman Race |
| 1995 | "Into Another" | - | 28 | - | Subhuman Race |
[edit] Videos / DVDs
 Platinum |
[edit] Band members
[edit] Current members
- Johnny Solinger - lead vocals (1999-present)
- Dave "The Snake" Sabo - guitar, backing vocals (1986-1996, 1999-present)
- Scotti Hill - guitar, backing vocals (1987-1996, 1999-present)
- Rachel Bolan - bass, backing vocals (1986-1996, 1999-present)
- Dave Gara - drums (2004-present)
[edit] Past members
- Sebastian Bach - lead vocals (1987-1996)
- Rob Affuso - drums, percussion (1987-1996)
- Phil Varone - drums (1999-2004)
- Matt Fallon - lead vocals
- Keri Kelli - guitar
- Steve Brotherton - guitar
- Kurtis Jackson - guitar
- Charlie Mills - drums
- Tim DiDuro - drums
[edit] Related artists
[edit] Influenced by
- Judas Priest
- KISS
- AC/DC
- Mötley Crüe
- Whitesnake
- Dokken
- Iron Maiden
- Guns N' Roses
- Scorpions
- Aerosmith
- Rush
- Alice Cooper
- Led Zeppelin
- Twisted Sister
- Van Halen
- Ozzy Osbourne
- Quiet Riot
- Metallica
- UFO
- Ramones
- Jimi Hendrix
[edit] Similar artists
[edit] External links
| Skid Row |
| Johnny Solinger | Scotti Hill | Dave "The Snake" Sabo | Rachel Bolan | Dave Gara |
| Former members: Sebastian Bach | Rob Affuso | Phil Varone |
| Discography |
|---|
| Studio albums and EPs: Skid Row | Slave to the Grind | B-Side Ourselves | Subhuman Race | Thickskin | Revolutions Per Minute |
| Live and compilation albums: Subhuman Beings on Tour | 40 Seasons: The Best of Skid Row |
| Singles: "Youth Gone Wild" | "18 and Life" | "I Remember You" | "Wasted Time" | "Monkey Business" | "In A Darkened Room" | "Slave to the Grind" | "My Enemy" | "Breakin' Down" | "Into Another" |
| Videography |
| Videos: Oh Say Can You Scream | No Frills Video | Road Kill | Under the Skin |
