David Michael Sabo (born September 16, 1964), nicknamed The Snake, is an American musician best known as one of the guitarists of heavy metal band

Skid Row A skid row, also called skid road, is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to people who are poor or homeless, considered disre ...

Biography

Pre-Skid Row

Sabo was born in

Perth Amboy, New Jersey Perth Amboy is a city (New Jersey), city in northeastern Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the New York metropolitan area, New York Metro Area. As of the 2020 United States census, the city' ...

and grew up in nearby Sayreville, in the same neighborhood as childhood friend

Jon Bon Jovi John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and Lead vocalist, frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was fo ...

. His mother, Dorothy, raised him and his brothers as a single mother. Inspired by the likes of

Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Judas Priest have also been referred to as one of the p ...

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene, Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and the virtuosity of their guit ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...

, as well as

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

, Sabo began playing guitar at the age of 14 on a $40

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co., commonly known as Sears ( ), is an American chain of department stores and online retailer founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosen ...

guitar his mother had purchased for his older brother years earlier. His guitar teacher was Al Parinello, who also taught Jon Bon Jovi. Sabo was also a promising athlete, even being professionally scouted while a high school baseball player. Seeing Kiss play live as a teenager was the catalyst for Sabo to give up sports and focus on music full time."Snake Sabo (Skid Row) 2013 Interview on the Signals of Intuition". The Signals of Intuition. 99.1 CJAM-FM. May 28, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2013. Sabo's friendship with Jon Bon Jovi led to him becoming the original lead guitarist for

Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...

in 1983. Sabo took part in a short three-week tour to support a demo version of Bon Jovi's debut single " Runaway" which became a surprise New York City-area hit in 1983. Sabo's time in Bon Jovi was brief, and he was soon replaced by Richie Sambora as the band's lead guitarist. While working in Toms River, New Jersey, Sabo met local bassist Rachel Bolan and the pair agreed to form a band which would eventually become famous American rock band Skid Row.

Skid Row

Bolan and Sabo recruited guitarist Scotti Hill, drummer Rob Affuso and vocalist Matt Fallon and christened the new band Skid Row. Fallon was replaced by Sebastian Bach in 1987 and the band began playing shows in clubs throughout the eastern United States. With some help from childhood friend Jon Bon Jovi, Sabo was instrumental in securing a record deal for Skid Row with

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

. In 1989, the band released their debut album, ''

'', which was an instant success. The record went multi-platinum and produced the hit singles " 18 and Life", " I Remember You" and " Youth Gone Wild". Skid Row turned in a heavier direction on their double-platinum follow-up, the 1991 album " Slave to the Grind".

Other work

Sabo played lead guitar on "Trial of the Soul", a track by the band Kryst the Conqueror featuring former members of the Misfits as well as

Jeff Scott Soto Jeff Scott Soto (born November 4, 1965) is an American Rock music, rock singer of Puerto Rican descent. He is perhaps best known for being the vocalist on Yngwie Malmsteen's first two albums, and the lead vocalist for Journey (band), Journey i ...

of the

Yngwie Malmsteen Yngwie Johan Malmsteen (; born Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck, on 30 June 1963) is a Swedish-American guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical metal, neoclassical playing style in heavy metal music, heavy metal, and has ...

band. Scott is credited under the pseudonym "Kryst the Conqueror" as he was under contract to Malmsteen and forced to remain anonymous. Sabo was briefly a touring guitarist for

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...

during their "Attack of the Killer A's" tour in early 2000.

Family

Sabo is the uncle of former

Association of Tennis Professionals The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits – the ATP Tour and the ATP Challenger Tour. It was formed in September 1972 by Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, and Cliff Drysdale to p ...

player Matt Sabo.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sabo, Dave 1964 births Bon Jovi members Skid Row (American band) members American heavy metal guitarists American people of Italian descent Living people American lead guitarists Entertainers from Perth Amboy, New Jersey People from Sayreville, New Jersey American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists