Richie Sambora On His Split With Bon Jovi, Working With Orianthi + New Music by Matt Wardlaw January 20, 2015 11:37 AM Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Looking back on his impressive run with Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora is quick to acknowledge that it was a really satisfying experience. “You have your first No. 1 record, your first hit single and then we had the second one and the 10th one and then you play all of the stadiums,” he tells us. “It’s just insane. It was an insane ride. Thirty years is a good run for anything. Keeping a band together for 30 years is not the easiest thing to do in the world, and we worked really hard at it.” While plenty of bands faltered as new musical trends came and went, Bon Jovi kept a secure lock on popularity, continuing to play sold-out shows around the world. As one of the primary songwriters for the group — Sambora and collaborator Jon Bon Jovi were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009 — he believes that there’s a pretty simple reason that the group was able to maintain that intense level of global popularity. “I think [it was about] good songs and the authenticity didn’t really change. You know, you can’t all of a sudden [be] Bon Jovi and turn into f–in’ Pink Floyd! Some bands try that and it doesn’t work. Stick to who you are and be authentic — I think that was a big part of it — and then just go out there and work,” Sambora says. “I don’t care what band you’re in — you’re a live band, you’ve got to go out there and prove it every night, and we did. We kept on working really, really hard. It was all hard work and that work ethic never stopped. We’re blue-collar kids at heart.” Eventually, Sambora came to a point where he wanted to explore different musical paths. He started that journey in 2013 when he stepped away from his duties with Bon Jovi and came home. “I just needed some kind of change,” he says. “It’s not about money; it’s about music.” He found an important musical ally when he met Orianthi, the flashy Australian guitarist who has been turning plenty of heads with her fretwork, notably working with Michael Jackson and Alice Cooper. As he told Ultimate Classic Rock, the pair have been inseparable since they met and began working together a year ago. Recently, they filmed an appearance together on the public television series ‘Front & Center,’ which captured Sambora’s first New York solo appearance in nearly 25 years. The performance finds Sambora performing tracks from his 2012 solo album, ‘Aftermath of the Lowdown,’ some select favorites from the Bon Jovi catalog and also paying tribute to his longtime mentor and friend, the late Les Paul. We spoke with Sambora about the show, which was recorded at the Iridium, and he also gave us the inside details on the new music that he and Orianthi are currently working on … Read More: Richie Sambora On His Split With Bon Jovi, Working With Orianthi + New Music | ultimateclassicrock/richie-sambora-interview-2015/?trackback=tsmclip
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 00:33:52 +0000
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