They got ghosted. Jon Bon Jovi opened up in a new interview about his pal and former bandmate Richie Sambora’s unexpected departure from Bon Jovi.
Chatting with Good Morning America’s Michael Strahan for a pretaped segment that aired Friday, October 14, the rock star, 54, candidly discussed Sambora, 57, and his sudden exit from the band three years ago.
“Everyone says, ‘Well, what happened?’ We were in Calgary. The last album was entering the charts at No. 1. We're sold out every single night,” the “It’s My Life” crooner said. “It's show No. 21, and the short of it is, Ritchie just didn't show up at the show.”
As previously reported in the spring of 2013, Richie — Bon Jovi’s lead guitarist — did not announce his decision to bow out of the legendary rock band’s Because We Can tour. "Due to personal issues, Richie Sambora will not be performing on this upcoming leg," a statement on the band's website read that April. "All shows will go on as scheduled."
According to Bon Jovi, there has been no communication with Sambora since he left them high and dry.
“And we haven't seen him in person since. There was no fight. There was no money,” he shared with Strahan, 44. “There was nothing I swear in my whole career, and he'll tell you the same thing. So we went on.”
Sambora has moved on too. He recently formed a new band named RSO with girlfriend and fellow musician Orianthi and the duo embarked on an Australian tour this past summer. During an August 30 interview with MusicFeeds.com, Sambora — who was previously married to Heather Locklear from 1994 to 2007 — opened up about his new gig and still performing his old hits.
“I wrote them, they’re my songs too,” Sambora said of playing his old Bon Jovi material on the road. “I get to play them, I get to do them the way Ori and I do them now. It’s a different incarnation but when you write a good song, if you’re fortunate enough to write something that gets to a global audience you really can’t mess it up too bad. You can’t mess ‘Livin’ on a Prayer,’ ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ or ‘I’ll Be There for You’ up.”
