There are a number of reasons being cited as to why Bon Jovi mainstay guitarist Richie Sambora has been fired from their latest tour and replaced by Canadian Phil “X” Xenedis.
Mostly, rumour has it that Sambora was making too much money. At the group’s April 2nd concert in Calgary, Global News reported that singer Jon Bon Jovi told the crowd Sambora “won’t be performing for awhile.” A message on the band’s official website explained Sambora had left the tour “due to personal issues,” and on Aug. 21, RumorFix.com reported Sambora was fired from the tour. “Sources close to the band tell us it’s all about money,” read the website. And Us Weekly reported on Aug. 23rd Sambora “parted ways” with Bon Jovi and quoted a source as saying: “There were a lot of well-documented problems, so this was the best decision for now.”
Phil X has been known for his work performing at sessions and on tours with the like of Tommy Lee, Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson, Rob Zombie, Chris Daughtry, and Alice Cooper. He filled in for Sambora when he attended rehab in 2011. He has also released a number of albums with the bands Powder and The Drills, including “We Play Instruments and Shit” with the latter in 2012.
The band’s Because We Can Tour will make upcoming stops in Vancouver on October 2nd, in Toronto on November 1st, and in Montreal on November 8th.
Photo: Phil X
