Skid Row

Skid Row enjoyed monster success with the release of their debut, self-titled CD in 1989. Bon Jovi helped put Skid Row on the map, by letting Skid Row open for them on tour. The first contained some whopping melodic Hair Metal hits in "I Remember You", "18 and Life", and "Youth Gone Wild". Though this first album attracted a wide-variance in its audience, the next album 'Slave to the Grind' would prove that Skid Row could be more than a pop-metal act. The Sophomore effort was much heavier, both musically and vocally and contained some in-your-face songs, such as "Monkey Business", "Slave to the Grind", and "the Threat", as well as some solid ballads. The explicit version (featured here) included the song "Get the Fuck Out", which was replaced on the clean version with "Beggar's Day". In '92, the Row released an EP of classic Hard Rock cover tunes.

Skid Row were well known for their outstanding and energetic live performances, as well as the wild antics of Sebastian Bach, including performing the "farmer blow" on Saturday Night Live, spitting on crowds, and of course, the infamous Bottle Throwing Incident. The Bottle Throwing Incident occurred in Springfield, MA in '89 when an alleged fan chucked a bottle on stage, hitting Bach on the mellon. Obviously, Bach didn't take too kindly to such an act and proceeded to sling the bottle back. Unfortunately, it was a wild pitch that ended up missing the target and hitting a female fan square in the face. This pissed Bach off even more, so he jumped off the stage into the crowd feet first at the perpetrator ...a fight ensued and Bach ended up with probation once the mess was settled. This incident was even caught on video by some lucky bootlegger and was passed in the trading circles over time. It's pretty decent footage. While the incident was in progress, the band attempted to keep playing the song, hoping no one would notice the mayhem taking place.

I was lucky enough to see Skid Row in '92 on the Slave to the Grind Tour. Ironically, Soundgarden (who were later partly responsible for putting the nail in the Hair Band coffin) opened a few select dates for Skid Row, including the show I attended. Soundgarden put on a splendid performance; however, it left people with quizzical looks on their faces, wondering how this band got matched up with the Row. Anyhow, when Skid Row went to take the stage, Bach announced the band in his usually foul-mouthed way, as the band struck into "Youth Gone Wild", which proved to be quite prophetic as the crowd was in complete bedlam for the remainder of the evening.

Despite all their success, Bach was jettisoned from the band after the release of Subhuman Race and formed his own solo career, releasing 'Bring 'Em Bach Alive!', which contained some pretty good live versions of some Skid Row classics. Skid Row would return in 2003 with a new studio album 'Thickskin'; however, this release would not feature Sebastian Bach, but rather Johnny Solinger on vocals. While 'Thickskin' is a solid effort, it's certainly not the same as the old Skid Row.

For those who want to check out a little bit of Skid Row to get acquainted may want to look at 40 Seasons, a best of compilation, which contains a ton of great songs and a few previously unreleased tracks.