SKID ROW (HEAVY METAL BAND)

'Skid Row' is an American heavy metal band which became the glam metal prototypes of the late 1980s metal scene and were successful until they were eclipsed by the Seattle grunge bands in 1991.
As of 2007, Skid Row has released five full-length albums, an EP, a compilation album and a live recording. The band became popular with their first two albums, ''Skid Row'' (1989) and ''Slave to the Grind'' (1991), which are often considered their best known works to date. Their last full-length album, ''Revolutions Per Minute'', came out on October 24, 2006. The group has sold 20 million albums worldwide, according to then-singer Sebastian Bach.
They are often associated with glam metal, partly due to their appearance and their sound on their debut album, ''Skid Row'' which spawned the hits "18 and Life", "Youth Gone Wild", and "I Remember You" for the band.
They would eventually go on to make music more akin to thrash metal with hard rock leanings. The band bought the name Skid Row from Gary Moore's first band Skid Row.

Contents

History

Early career and mainstream success (1986-1990)

In the 90s and hiatus (1991-1998)

Post-Bach period (1999-present)

Band members

Current members

Former members

Discography

Studio releases

Compilation / Live albums

Singles

Videos / DVDs

External links

History

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".
In what is referred to as "The Bottle Incident" by fans of the band, Bach had been hit with a bottle thrown onstage from the crowd at a concert in Springfield, Massachusetts where Skid Row was opening for Aerosmith on December 27, 1989. Bach threw the bottle back; although he was injured, he continued the show.[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 put on, during a concert, a t-shirt proclaiming the anti-gay slogan "AIDS Kills Fags Dead". The shirt was thrown onstage by a fan, and Bach, without looking at it, put it on. After the concert Sebastian apologized, 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" . In later years Bach apologized seriously for wearing the shirt, and made a substantial donation to an AIDS charity.

In the 90s and hiatus (1991-1998)

Skid Row's second album, ''Slave to the Grind'' (1991), debuted at Number 1 in the American charts. ''Slave to the Grind'' became a big success, and Skid Row once again went out on a worldwide tour which lasted over a year, including a leg supporting Guns N' Roses in 1991 and an appearance at the Castle Donnington Festival in 1992. ''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 despite the fact that it disappeared from the charts, received 2X Platinum from RIAA certifications.
After a four year hiatus, Skid Row returned with their third album, ''Subhuman Race'' (1995), which surprisingly charted in the top 40. Although the album did not achieve the success of ''Skid Row'' and ''Slave to the Grind'', it generated a few hits, but at that point, their videos were rarely played on MTV.
Eventually, Bach was fired by the band in early 1997, just after turning down a show with Kiss. Although Skid Row never officially broke up, the remaining members went on to play briefly in a band called Ozone Monday, which also featured singer Shawn McCabe.

Post-Bach period (1999-present)

Skid Row reformed in 1999 with new vocalist Johnny Solinger, formerly of "Solinger", and their original drummer Charlie Mills (who was a member of the band for a short time in the 1980s before Rob Affuso replaced him). Mills soon left the band and was replaced with then-new drummer Phil Varone, formerly of Saigon Kick. After reforming, they opened for KISS on their farewell tour, and have also played with other 1980s metal bands such as Poison. They have been on tour every summer. In 2002 they were part of the Rock Never Stops Tour.
Skid Row released their fourth album, ''Thickskin'', in 2003, which would be their first album to feature Solinger (as Bach's replacement) and Varone (as Affuso's replacement). It would also be their first album with original material since 1995's ''Subhuman Race''. After the release of the album Varone left the band and was replaced by current drummer Dave Gara.
The fifth (and most recent) Skid Row album, ''Revolutions Per Minute'', came out on October 24, 2006 through SPV Records. It was produced by Michael Wagener, who produced their first two highly acclaimed albums ''Skid Row'' and ''Slave to the Grind''.

Band members

Current members

Band member	Instrument(s)	Dates	Albums recorded
Johnny Solinger	vocals	1999-present	''Thickskin'' and ''Revolutions per Minute''
Dave "The Snake" Sabo	rhythm guitar	1986-present	all
Scotti Hill	lead guitar	1987-present	all
Rachel Bolan	bass	1986-present	all
Dave Gara	drums	2004-present	''Revolutions per Minute''

Former members

Band member	Instrument(s)	Dates	Albums recorded
Matt Fallon	vocals	1986-1987	Never recorded with the band
Sebastian Bach	vocals	1987-1997	''Skid Row'', ''Slave to the Grind'' and ''Subhuman Race''
Steve Brotherton	lead guitar	1986	Never recorded with the band
Kurtis Jackson	lead guitar	1986	Never recorded with the band
Charlie Mills	drums	1986, 1999	Never recorded with the band
Tim DiDuro	drums	1986	Never recorded with the band
Rob Affuso	drums	1987-1997	''Skid Row'', ''Slave to the Grind'' and ''Subhuman Race''
Phil Varone	drums	1999-2004	''Thickskin''

Discography

Studio releases

Album information
'''Skid Row''' ★ Released: January 24, 1989 ★ Label: Atlantic Records ★ Chart Positions: '#6' (U.S.) ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: '5x Platinum' ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: "Youth Gone Wild", "18 and Life" and "I Remember You"
'''Slave to the Grind''' ★ Released: June 11, 1991 ★ Label: Atlantic Records ★ Chart Positions: '#1' (U.S.) ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: '2x Platinum' ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: "Monkey Business", "Slave to the Grind", "Wasted Time" and "In a Darkened Room"
'''B-Side Ourselves''' (EP) ★ Released: September 22, 1992 ★ Label: Atlantic Records ★ Chart Positions: '#58' (U.S.) ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: 'Gold' ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: "Delivering the Goods"
'''Subhuman Race''' ★ Released: March 28, 1995 ★ Label: Atlantic Records ★ Chart Positions: '#35' (U.S.) ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: N/A ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: "My Enemy", "Breakin' Down" and "Into Another"
'''Thickskin''' ★ Released: August 5, 2003 ★ Label: Blind Man Sound ★ Chart Positions: N/A ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: N/A ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: N/A
'''Revolutions per Minute''' ★ Released: October 24, 2006 ★ Label: SPV Records ★ Chart Positions: N/A ★ U.S. Sales: N/A ★ RIAA Certification: N/A ★ WW Sales: N/A ★ Singles: N/A

Compilation / Live albums

★ ''Subhuman Beings on Tour'' (1995)

★ '' (1998) '2x Platinum'

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"	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''

Videos / DVDs

★ ''Oh Say Can You Scream'' (1990) 'Platinum'

★ ''No Frills Video'' (1993)

★ ''Road Kill'' (1993)

★ ''Under the Skin'' (2003)

External links

★ SkidRow.Com: Official

★ Skid Row Online

★ Skid Row BR

★ Skid Row Offical Myspace