Sebastian Bach & Friends

The onetime frontman for hair-metal hitmakers Skid Row, singer Sebastian Bach was born Sebastian Bierk in the Bahamas on April 3, 1968. A veteran of short-lived, little-known bands including Herrenvolk, Madame X, V05 and Kid Wikkid, he was living in Canada when in 1987 he received a demo tape from an unknown New Jersey band in search of a lead singer; the group was Skid Row, formed a year earlier by ex-Bon Jovi guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo. Signing to Atlantic, Skid Row issued its self-titled debut album in 1989; an opening slot on Bon Jovi's U.S. tour, combined with heavy MTV airplay of the video "Youth Gone Wild," launched the band to stardom, and the singles "18 and Life" and "I Remember You" both reached the Top Ten. Bach, with his wildman persona and photogenic looks, quickly emerged as the focus of fan and media attention, a situation compounded in late 1989 when, during a concert in Springfield, MA, he was hit in the head by a bottle thrown onstage; the singer proceeded to hurl the bottle back into the crowd, where it hit the face of an innocent girl, before physically assaulting another audience member as well. Sentenced to three years probation, Bach then appeared on MTV wearing an offensive T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan "AIDS Kills Fags Dead," prompting outcries from the gay community. Despite the bad publicity, Skid Row's second album, 1991's Slave to the Grind, debuted at number one, although it quickly fell off the charts; in the wake of 1995's disappointing Subhuman Race, Bach was dismissed from the group, briefly forming a band with ex-Breeder Kelley Deal before going solo in 1997. The album Bring 'Em Bach Alive followed two years later.