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 [hide] 1 History 1.1 Early career and mainstream success (1986-1990) 1.2 In the 90s and hiatus (1991-1998) 1.3 Post-Bach period (1999-present) 2 Band members 2.1 Current members 2.2 Former members 3 Discography 4 External links

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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 the 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 was 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 1996, 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. Skid Row is overseas, currently on A European Tour.

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	1987-1996	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	1987-1996	Skid Row, Slave to the Grind and Subhuman Race
Phil Varone	drums	1999-2004	Thickskin

Discography

Date of release Title Record label

January 24, 1989	Skid Row	Atlantic
June 11, 1991	Slave to the Grind	Atlantic
September 22, 1992	B-Side Ourselves	Atlantic
March 28, 1995	Subhuman Race	Atlantic
August 5, 2003	Thickskin	Blind Man Sound
October 24, 2006	Revolutions per Minute	SPV Records