Former Bon Jovi member Richie Sambora reflects on his regrets about how he was suddenly left the band During the Because We Can Tour in 2013.
The 64-year-old musician, who joined Bon Jovi in 1983 as the band’s lead guitarist, suddenly exited the group without warning just hours before they were to perform at a show in Calgary. In an Instagram post on Thursday, Sambora shared a clip he wrote “from the cutting room floor” of the new Hulu documentary, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story.”
In the video, Sambora was wearing a red shirt, black pants and a brown cowboy hat while speaking to the camera from the living room.
He said, “I listened to everything, and I was the one who really struggled to make it a band.”
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Richie Sambora reflects on his departure from Bon Jovi. (Getty)
“It’s really hard to be married to four people,” Sambora said with a laugh. “And we stayed as close as we were. As my daughter came into adulthood, my wife’s mental health was really taking a toll, and she needed me.
“And I needed her,” he said, referring to his ex-wife. Heather Locklear, 62.
Sambora and Locklear tied the knot in December 1994 and welcomed their daughter Ava, now 26, in October 1997. In 2006, the “Melrose Place” alumnus filed for divorce from Sambora, citing “irreconcilable differences.” Their split was finalized in April 2007.
Locklear has publicly struggled with mental health and substance abuse problems for years. In 2008, she entered rehab to treat anxiety and depression. The actress has since sought treatment in rehab several times and has faced numerous legal problems.
Despite their divorce, Sambora and Locklear have remained close, and the rocker previously told People magazine that he will “always be there” for her and their daughter.
Sambora has also been open about his battle with substance abuse. He entered rehab for alcohol addiction in 2007 and again in 2011.
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Sambora apologizes in clip shared from documentary bon jovi fans and his former bandmates.
He said, “I don’t regret leaving this position, but I do regret how I did it.” “So, I would like to apologize to the fans right now, especially to the people because my legs and my spirit weren’t letting me walk out the door.”
However, Sambora said that he felt he “didn’t get a lot of compassion” in relation to the circumstances he was dealing with at the time.
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He said, “I was in this organization for 31 and a half years, and everyone has their own personal tragedies and things like that, but coming back to what I was going through, I didn’t get a lot of compassion.”
He further added, “I believe everyone has their own perspective on how fame and fortune are.” “Everyone experiences it at different speeds. So from one person to another it can ruin a person’s life and blah blah blah.”
Sambora and Locklear were married from 1994 to 2007. (Jeffrey Meyer/WireImage)
Sambora was one of the pioneers Jon Bon Jovi’s The most frequent songwriting collaborators, and the pair wrote some of the band’s biggest hits. In the video, Sambora reflected on his relationship with John during their time in the band.
He said, “I was important because I spent more time with John than his wife and I was more honest.” “Even in the early stages of writing and recording the material, we spent a lot of time in a room with no windows.
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“I think I had a good view,” Sambora recalled. “I was a fan, too. I could be a fan of John’s and say, ‘I don’t want to hear you sing this’ if I’m a fan in the audience. That kind of thing.
“I think that was one of my primary roles besides being his right hand and an accurate mirror.”
Sambora, Alec John Such, Jon Bon Jovi, Tico Torres, and David Bryan are pictured in 1985. (Paul Natkin)
During a recent interview with Fox News Digital, Jon Bon Jovi shared his thoughts on Sambora’s exit from the band.
He said, “If I could plead guilty to trying too hard, I would.” “But it was never anything malicious, and there was never any fight between us. And there was never any animosity.
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“Richie had issues publicly and privately with substance abuse and some anxiety and being a single father. But we had to keep doing what we do, and he decided not to do it anymore.
“So, unfortunately, for him and for us – you know, being in a rock band There is no punishment for life imprisonment. And so they decided not to do it anymore.”