Richie Sambora Talks About Bon Jovi’s Vocal Issues

Richie Sambora recently visited Absolute Radio and addressed what was ahead for him, as well as whether he had intentions to reconcile with his old colleagues from Bon Jovi and whether he was open to future performances. After that, the guitarist couldn’t help but make a few comments regarding the chemistry inside the band, explaining why Jon Bon Jovi needed to get his voice together and how the vocalist wasn’t the primary songwriter for the band’s songs.

Sambora earlier responded to Jovi’s complaints about his departure by saying that Richie needed to get his life together. As the lead singer had been having vocal difficulties, the guitarist seemed to return the favor by claiming he needed some time to ‘breathe’ and recover.

“Jon was having a hard time with his voice a little bit there, and he needed to take a little bit of a breather,” he told Absolute Radio. “I don’t know when Jon’s going to get his voice together and [when the Bon Jovi reunion is] going to happen, but we have to get out there and do it for the fans, really. I feel a second obligation.”

He continued by saying that people in the crowd usually assumed he would merely provide guitar riffs and assist with the show’s musical direction. Nonetheless, the rocker saw songwriting as an art form focused on narrative, and throughout his time with the group, Richie was the one with the most interesting anecdotes to share. Thus, he did a lot of work in the music industry.

“Actually, I did write that other [Bon Jovi] stuff, too. It’s a misnomer when people go just because his name [Jon Bon Jovi] is on [Bon Jovi] that’s the name… But songwriting is conceptual.” He then went on to say that “it can sometimes just come from looking out the window and observing, and a lot of times it comes from your own life, and for the most part of Bon Jovi, my life was a lot [more] colorful than everybody else’s in the band.”