Scotti Hill of Skid Row joined the August 7th episode of Another FN Podcast to tell stories about his youth, learning to play guitar, how Skid Row got together, Dimebag Darrell, the KISS Farewell Tour, and more, but eventually the elephant in the room made itself known, and the topic of Sebastian Bach, came up.
It had been rumored for years that the reason Bach was relieved of his duties fronting the band had to do with the fact that Skid Row turned down the KISS Reunion Tour in 1996. Hill confirmed this with a story that he doesn’t think had ever been told.
“That caused a giant uproar is what it did, and he did something to Snake Sabo, that was unacceptable. He called Snake on Thanksgiving and said some horrible things into his answering machine and Snake said ‘you know what? I’m not going to be in a band with you anymore.’ It’s as simple as that.”
Replacing a guy with the talents of Sebastian Bach was not easy. He remembers, when that came up after a long vacation from Skid Row, and remembers thinking about how the fans would freak out. Additionally, the road back, would not be an easy one.
“We did that KISS (Farewell) tour and that was a 140 something shows, of all of which I watched, and after that, it was a battle to get to where we’re at now” he said.
For the past couple of years rumors have been circulating of a possible reunion with their former front man, but once and for all, any chance of that happening has been laid to rest.
“That door is closed. There was talk about it, the two camps went back and forth, and it was not to happen. So, that door is now shut” Hill said.
When asked if that meant forever, and that was the last nail in the coffin of any Skid Row/Sebastian Bach reunion? He responded, “Yeah. I believe so. I tell you what, our singer, ZP Theart…just call him ZP. He’s a brother. He’s a great f–king singer, he’s a great front man, he’s a guy I look forward to seeing, a guy I look forward to hanging out with. We trust him with the band that we’ve been in all this time and that is precious to us. We can go out and play and enjoy ourselves.”
Of course it is something the fans want to see? Fans wax nostalgic about the originals that created the magic being on stage together, but as we all know in this crazy rock n’ roll world isn’t always the fairy tale that we wish it could be. How did Hill respond about doing it for the fans?
“Not at the expense of my happiness, no. I’m sorry. It ain’t fucking happening.
We appreciate fans, we do. We’re probably the most fan friendly band you will every meet. We will go out in the cold, we’ll hang out with them, but what we won’t do is put ourselves in a volatile situation and be unhappy and destroy what we have now.”
While shutting down any hope the fans may have of a reunion ever happening, he did have this to say about Bach, “He’s not a rockstar, he’s a superstar. He’s great. I’ll speak for myself. He is a guy who will cut his own throat to do a good show. He puts it all out there. He’s a great singer and a great front man; one of the all time greats, but we’re not working together. To replace a guy like that? You realize what you’re up against. The records he did with Skid Row were great and he was a huge part of that.
Everybody is like ‘Oh, we’re on Skid Row’s side’ or ‘we’re on Sebastian’s side.’ No, you gotta be on the side of rock n’ roll. When Sebastian plays in your town, go see him, because he’s great. When Skid Row plays in your town, go see em, because I’m great (laughs), no because we will f–king blow your ass away”.
Skid Row are currently in the process of writing and demoing new songs for an upcoming record featuring ZP Theart on vocals. No time frame has been given for the release.
Listen to the interview below
13 Responses
Makes sense.
Since reunions happen only if it means more money for everyone involved, Bach re-entering SR would mean less money for everyone else but him. He said in his recent autobiography that his requirement for the reunion is to get royalties for the songs, arguing that his vocal interpretations of the lyrics make him a “co-writer”.
This isn’t too far from Sharon Osbourne’s justification for Ozzy claiming to “write” all the pre-Zakk material. She also insists that Ozzy’s vocal delivery makes the lyrics come alive.
But given that Bach didn’t have a Sharon, SR and The Beatles may very well be the two bands that never reunited in any form.
Tyger,
I just finished reading Bach’s book, about a month ago.
As for the Beatles, depending on the plethora of books out there, one would imagine that McCartney hiring his own lawyer during financial negotiations, and Yoko, were two of the main reasons why the band never got back together.
D 🙂
I know…what a far fetched argument huh? actors getting a co-writing credit? it’s called acting you dipstick….
Kudos to Scotti and the boys for staying true to their convictions and not reuniting the business of Skid Row with Sebastian Bach. While the band knows any reunion with Bach could result in a financial windfall (ala Dokken), the band has not let money be the motivator in the decision to reunite.
I enjoy Bach’s voice and the classic songs he recorded with Skid Row and i can’t imagine another vocalist singing them. But from my perspective, Bach seems like he is full of himself, an egomaniac, and has a severe case of LSD (Lead Singer’s Disease). Often “high maintenance” people aren’t worth the trouble having in the work environment.
…Bach has a better argument on performance royalties…points….a retroactive royalty rate based on his star status….bring on the reunion….only a few more years left before Bach won’t be able to do it….Bach and Skid Row! are synonymous with each other…Skid Row the perfect example of 90s existentialism v. Faith No More the satirical, ironic view….lets have the tour with this double bill…and let’s do it now…and let me get my “finder’s” fee …
Life is too short to make yourself unhappy for a paycheck! The guys in Skid Row are right to make the decision they have concerning a reunion. If they aren’t reuniting because they have resolved the issues that led to Sebastian Bach leaving the band, they shouldn’t reunite, period! The whole Dokken reunion thing was a joke! They did it for a paycheck, and it showed! Skid Row had two GREAT records with the original lineup, and I as a fan would love to see the original lineup together again. But only for the right reason.
I, for one, am waiting eagerly for when Skid Row (featuring ZP Theart, or as we fans call him, “ZP”!) hits the road and comes to perform at my local Elk’s Lodge!