Dave Sabo

Sabo was born on September 16, 1964, in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. He grew up in Sayreville, down the street from Jon Bon Jovi. His mother, Dorothy, or "Mama Snake" as she is known, raised him and his brothers on her own. Influenced heavily by the rock n\' roll music of the era, including some Motown, he found himself listening to the likes of Kiss, Aerosmith, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, the Rolling Stones, and Van Halen. From an early age, Sabo was a gifted athlete, even having scouts coming out to see him play. At the age of 13 Sabo saw Kiss, which acted as a catalyst for him to give up sports and focus his time on music and learning guitar. His mother had bought his brother a $40 guitar which he soon lost interest in, paving the way for Sabo to take up the instrument at the age of 14.\n', ' He was the original lead guitar player for Bon Jovi in 1983. A childhood friend of Jon Bon Jovi, Sabo agreed to a short three-week tour to support the demo version of "Runaway" which became a surprise New York City-area hit in 1983. Soon afterwards, Richie Sambora replaced Sabo in Bon Jovi.\n', ' He is also the uncle of former ATP Tennis professional Matt Sabo.\n', '