Mitch Lafon recently celebrated Bon Jovi’s climb to No. 1 on Billboard’s 1987 Top Pop chart, stating that the band ‘boots Bruce Springsteen to the curb.’ The post tagged Richie Sambora for validation, but instead, the guitarist quickly came to Springsteen’s defense.
“Hey, nobody boots Bruce to the curb,” he wrote in response. “A lifetime of dedication to his craft, commitment to his fans, a songwriter and performer that changed people’s lives. Profoundly… For all time… Certainly mine. So, not here.”
A follow-up tweet added, “Whoever doesn’t agree with me, that’s alright… and I would never put down an organization that I was in. But I’ll always support any artist who gives sincerity and his or her life to their fans. I’m allowed my opinion as you. It’s a discussion, not an argument.”
Sambora has had longstanding issues with his former band. His relationship with Jon Bon Jovi has especially been in the spotlight due to their public comments about the guitarist’s departure and a potential reunion.
In June 2024, Sambora claimed that Jon Bon Jovi did not want him included in the band’s documentary, ‘Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story.’ He said his perspective was excluded even after he said he’d come back, and the documentary portrayed him in a bad light.
During that period, Jon said Sambora quit the band and wasn’t fired. He attributed their lack of communication to the guitarist’s decision to leave and denied that he ever made any serious attempts to return.
Sambora himself suggested he had moved on from his Bon Jovi days in a July interview with Guitar World, saying, “I look at myself as a new artist. Now, other people might not — they relate to me for what I’ve done, and I love what I did with Bon Jovi. I’m not ever saying anything bad about that because we did a bunch of damage in this world, and we had a great time. But right now, it’s a new game.”
Bon Jovi has worked with guitarist Phil X since Sambora’s departure in 2013. The band released their latest album, ‘Forever,’ last year. However, they have paused live performances indefinitely due to Jon Bon Jovi’s vocal health issues.
