Celebrity Jobber with Jeff Zito - Rachel Bolan from Skid Row
41 min
•Apr 17, 2026about 2 months agoSummary
Jeff Zito interviews Rachel Bolan, bassist for Skid Row, discussing his journey from working-class New Jersey roots to rock stardom. Bolan shares stories about his early jobs, supportive parents, and the life-changing moment hearing '18 and Life' on Z100 radio, while promoting his debut solo album 'Gargoyle of the Garden State' releasing June 12th.
Insights
- Parental support and belief in a child's unconventional career path is a critical success factor, even when that path lacks a traditional backup plan
- Work ethic instilled early by blue-collar parents directly translates to professional discipline and band cohesion across decades
- Crossing over from niche rock audiences to mainstream commercial radio (Z100) was the pivotal validation moment that signaled Skid Row's potential for massive success
- Solo projects allow established musicians to explore simpler, more personal artistic directions that wouldn't fit their primary band's brand or sonic expectations
- Regional identity (Jersey toughness, blunt honesty) becomes a competitive advantage and differentiator in entertainment and business
Trends
Legacy rock musicians leveraging solo albums as creative outlets and career diversification in their 50s+Importance of regional/cultural identity in building authentic artist brands and fan loyaltyCollaborative features with established artists as validation and cross-promotion strategy for solo debutsNostalgia-driven fan demand for reunion tours creating tension between artistic evolution and commercial opportunityWork ethic and mentorship from previous generation as foundational narrative in musician origin storiesMainstream radio crossover as definitive moment of commercial breakthrough for rock actsFamily-based financial accountability systems building character and gratitude in successful professionals
Topics
Music Career Development and Artist TrajectoryParental Support for Non-Traditional CareersWork Ethic and Blue-Collar Values in Rock MusicBand Dynamics and Creative DirectionSolo Album Strategy for Established MusiciansMainstream Radio Crossover SuccessRegional Identity and Cultural AuthenticityEarly Career Jobs and Life ExperienceSkid Row Band History and EvolutionCollaboration Features and Artist NetworkingFan Expectations vs. Artistic DirectionFinancial Responsibility and Family LoansNew Jersey Cultural IdentityRock Music Industry LongevityDebut Solo Album Release Strategy
Companies
People
Rachel Bolan
Guest discussing his journey from working-class New Jersey to rock stardom and his debut solo album 'Gargoyle of the ...
Jeff Zito
Podcast host conducting interview about Rachel Bolan's pre-fame career and life experiences
Snake Sabo
Skid Row guitarist and songwriting partner; met Rachel at a music store in Tom's River, New Jersey
Scotty Hill
Skid Row guitarist; Rachel previously had a band with him before forming Skid Row with Snake
Corey Taylor
Featured vocalist on Rachel's solo album track with sham 69 influence; flew to Vegas for 45-minute studio session
Danko Jones
Canadian rocker featured on lead single 'At War With Myself' from Rachel's debut solo album
Damon Johnson
Friend and collaborator who contributed to Rachel's debut solo album
Nuno Bettencourt
Featured guitarist on Rachel's solo album track 'Jet Black Universe' with Extreme-influenced style
Steve Conti
Featured vocalist on Rachel's solo album; brought vocal control and soul to a track Rachel couldn't sing himself
Joey Ramone
Met Rachel at the Cat Club in New York City during press tour; impressed Rachel with his height and kindness
Michael Lago
Music industry executive who signed Metallica; met Rachel at the Cat Club in New York during band's rise
Mary Gormley
Music industry executive with multiple major signings; met Rachel at the Cat Club during band's early success
Sebastian Bach
Original Skid Row lead singer; fans request reunion tour but band has moved past that chapter
Quotes
"Whatever you do, don't be afraid of hard work because hard work is what makes you successful. If you go and dig ditches for a living, be the best damn ditch digger you could be."
Rachel Bolan (quoting his father)•Mid-episode
"I'm not as good as Scotty and Snake. I'm fortunate enough to be in a band with the to me, the best rock guitar duo in a long time, like maybe ever."
Rachel Bolan•Mid-episode
"I just looked out at the crowd and I look at my best friends and I'm just like, this is amazing. We're in about 15 seconds. We're going to be running out on stage, living our dream again."
Rachel Bolan•Mid-episode
"We're very unique. We're different than anywhere else in the country. Jersey people are just tough men and women. Sometimes women are tougher than the guys."
Rachel Bolan•Early episode
"I'm listening to this and they're dudes that do not look like they go to our shows at all. They were generic looking guys with like polos. They're like, these are rockers."
Rachel Bolan•Mid-episode
Full Transcript
in the race to scale with AI. You need data infrastructure that can match your pace. EverPure's data storage platform brings all your data into one hub. No silos, no scrambling, just instant access to tame your data chaos. And with EverPure Storage as a service subscription, your storage and security upgrade automatically with zero downtime. Your infrastructure stays current, so your business never slows down. Visit everpuredata.com to learn more today. With EverPure, you're not just in the race, you're built to win it. Hey everybody, thanks for checking out another episode of the Celebrity Jobber Podcast. I'm Jeff Zito. We're streaming everywhere. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, wherever you listen to podcasts. And please hit that subscribe button. Really could use your help with the subscribing. Would love a five star rating. And please leave a review if you wanted to check out all of our past guests and episodes. You can do so easily by going to celebrityjobber.com. I think it's fascinating to take a look at some of these people that we know and find out who they were before fame. My guest today is the bassist for a New Jersey band who kind of broke through in the late 80s, early 90s. Songs like 18 and Life, I remember you. Youth Gone Wild. Rachel Bowlin had a life before fame. Grown up in New Jersey, we'll find out a little bit more about his life before joining Skid Row. We'll find out about what his parents did for work, what he did for work before Skid Row reached their level of success. And maybe the big break or that life changing moment. And FYI, Rachel Bowlin releasing his debut solo album titled Gargoyle of the Garden State set to drop June 12th. And you can check out the lead single right now. It's called At War With Myself and features Canadian rocker Danko Jones. Really great song. Check it out. We're about to find out all about Skid Row bassist Rachel Bowlin, who's my guest this week on Celebrity Jobber. These weren't famous. What would they have become? What was their first job? We're about to find out. Hey, Rachel. Wow, I was panicking. I could not find the link. No worries. You know what? I'm from Jersey. I've been in this business for over 30 years and I've never met you before. So it's a... That's crazy. I thought about it. Yeah. I've heard your name a million times. Right on. I've never actually met you. That's cool, man. Are you still in Jersey? I actually just moved back about a year and a half ago, something like that. So I work at the... I work at the RAT. So it's probably the station that you would probably listen to. But I grew up in... I grew up in Wachong Summit area for a lot of years. So I don't know what it is. What do you think it is, Rachel, about us Jersey guys? Do you think like there's something... It's like I always find a connection with the Jersey guy. I don't know why. I think maybe because everybody's against us. What do you think? Yeah. You know... Yeah. A little bit of that, I would say. I mean, it's... We're very unique. We're different than anywhere else in the country. I mean, New Yorkers are New Yorkers and we're very similar in certain ways. But the thing with Jersey, I find is we're natural born storytellers. And my dad had a saying for people that told a story that they could really down to half the time, he used to say, ask that guy at the time, he'll tell you how to build a watch. But we are storytellers and we're honest, bluntly honest. And that makes us feel good, even if it makes other people not feels not so good sometimes. And that's something that when I moved down south, I really had to dial back because I say stuff to people and they'd be like, this guy's an ass. Right. Right. It's just we we we're tough. I mean, Jersey people are just tough men and women. Sometimes women are tougher than the guys. I think you're right. Yeah. And, you know, we we we share a lot of similarities with New York and with Philly and stuff. It's this area. But Jersey is just different. It is. It's it's something we I don't know. Maybe it was the Jersey Shore that kind of got people upset about people from New Jersey to where real people from Jersey are like, wait, that's not that's not us. But I think you're right. I think you know where you stand with somebody from New Jersey. Absolutely. They're going to just tell you flat out, you know, absolutely. And I think that's probably you summed it up pretty well. So so I had a conversation with Snake earlier on on this podcast and in its infant stages four years ago. And he said I was working at a music store in Tom's River and this guy comes in. He looks like a fucking rock star. This guy comes in and it's Rachel Bowen. And I just ended up saying like, hey, man, we should do we, you know, we should do something together. So is that is that kind of how you remember meeting Snake? Yeah, yeah, I went in the music store that I used to go to all the time and he was fairly new there. And he said he was from Seneerville. I was like, why that's like an hour away, man. It's like over almost 60 miles away. He's like, well, I can't get hired up there because they want me to cut my hair. And I was like, I like this guy. I like his work ethic. And so he'd taken two buses to get there, you know, and to get to work and we we hit it off. You know, he he dropped a lot of names. Oh, yeah. He was that guy. Yeah, he dropped a lot of names. But I was like, we got together and he had a band and I had a band. I had a band with Scotty Hill, actually. And so we just we just got together and started writing songs. And I think silently we were both thinking like, wow, this is pretty special. And then here we are 40 years later, you know, unbelievable, unbelievable. So what about growing up your family? Were they musical people or how did you find this? They liked music that like they everyone listened to music. I'm the fourth out of four kids. So there was a lot of music playing in the house, you know, for my one sister's room, we had like Hermans Hermits and the Beatles and stuff like that. For my brother's room, there was always Jimmy Hendrix in Chicago. Miles Davis and then my other sister's room was like a lot of like Melanie and Carly Simon and James Taylor type stuff. And, you know, I was absorbing it all. And then I found my own way, you know, with with Kiss and, you know, Ramones eventually and just stuff like that, stuff like and then like Brit Pop. Then Brit Pop, like Bay City Rollers type of stuff that just, you know, which is kind of made for a young kid. And so just all of that and all of those influences and even influences on the periphery from the other rooms ended up on this record. You know, really, even if it's a tiny little part here and there, like my new wave, my love of new wave could be in a baseline or, you know, let's I want to play a guitar part that sounds like the keyboard part of that Devo song, you know, that stuff like that. And that's what made this. I mean, having a putting a solo record out at this point in my career, special to begin with, monumental, right, for me. But to have all those influences just put into one place. It was it's a pretty amazing feeling. So you were saying in another interview that I was watching not too long ago that, you know, when you record stuff, this is like you said, this is your debut solo album, first time you've ever done this. And I heard you say like, hey, you know, sometimes I'm writing all the time. And it's I know it's not quite right for Skid Row. Can you tell me what that means? Because like I I figure anything you come up with is going to be what Skid Row should be like because because it's you. So what does that mean when you're like, you know, I didn't think this was quite right for Skid Row. Well, first off, it it it's not just me because Skid Row is all of us that are in the band. So everyone has to feel good about a song. And so if you you we've been doing it so long, excuse me, that if. You bring a song to the band, you could tell within a second if everyone's into it or not. If everyone's playing hard, like, oh, yeah, you know, and then digging in. And if everyone's kind of like, well, but they don't want to hurt your feelings because they're your bros, you're like, all right, just put that one to the side. So with all this, this stuff is obviously such a departure. From Skid Row that, you know, I wasn't hearing, you know, soaring vocals or just, you know, epic guitar soles and stuff like that. This is it's simple. It's like me. It's my attitude. I'm a man of simple, simple. I like my life to be simple. I like my songs to be simple. And that's I write simply. So that that's where it's easy to tell the to what what's going to column A and what's going to column B, you know what I mean? And, you know, I had some of these songs for a while and I still feel strongly that they could not be Skid Row songs without changing the whole feel of the songs, you know, because first of all, I'm not as good as Scotty and Snake. You know what I mean? I'm fortunate enough to be in a band with the to me, the best rock guitar duo in a long time, like maybe ever, you know, and so it would almost be like they'd have to dumb down there playing the play on this. I don't think so. I think I think the the single at war with myself is great, really catchy. And I'm a big fan of Danko Jones. So are you are you friends with Danko? How did you get all the guys? Are they all friends? Because I did hear you say one guy wasn't into it. And he just said, no, thanks. So was was that guy a friend or or and not anymore? Like he wasn't. He was someone I really looked up to. And I take that chance putting it out there. You know what I mean? But yeah, everyone that was on the record. Were. My friend, they are my friends, Corey, Danko, Damon Johnson, obviously, Rob, Scotty and Snake and Steve Conti. These are all my friends and even more friends that did backup vocals. Ryan Cook, Paul Taylor, my friend, Matt Farley. These are all true friends of mine that I could call any time and say, did you see the game last night? You know what I mean? Yeah. And. Yeah, so that made a monumental, special. You know, a occurrence in my life, even more that much more special that they said, yes, and I didn't write songs around them, but I knew. Immediately, like, oh, Nuno should play on this song. I'm hearing that kind of Nuno right just flash and soul on, which was Jet Black Universe. And and you know, I had the one song, Rock and Roll Star. I heard Scotty. And when Scotty came in and did the solo, I was like, oh, my God, like he never both both Snake and Scotty. It's like they'll play stuff. I'm like, I'm so glad I'm in a band with these guys and not trying to be in a band with these guys. Cool. Yeah. That's cool. And everyone that did it, like I was like, I had the song written. Yes, I could sing it with the exception. Well, I'll get to that in a second. Like the songs that I'm eventually going to be singing, because obviously, if I take this on the road, they're not going to be there. But I'd be like, man, Corey Taylor would sound really good on this song. So I called him like, you want to sing this song? It's got a sham 69 feel to it. He's like, I'm in, send me the song. And so I sent him song, flew out to Vegas. We had three hours booked in the studio. He was done in 45 minutes. So he's just great. And then we talked about punk rock for another two hours. So, you know, and Danko's saying thing, I didn't write that song around his voice. I was singing the whole thing. And then I was like, man, it would be really cool. Our voices are similar in ways, but there's a there's a distinct contrast with his because he is nice of a guy as he is. He looks like the imposing person. Like, just like, oh, my God, I'm going to rip your head off and down your neck. Oh, you know, and, and, but he's just such a nice guy. And I was like, I think our voices would sound really good. And, you know, and I love the way it came out. And he was so much fun. He came down. He did the video. It wasn't even Jersey for 24 hours. Just he just fit it in. And I was lucky that everyone said yes, you know, and Steve Conti was the guy. I'm sure you know, Steve, you're anyone in the Northeast knows Steve, you know, he was in the dolls and, you know, company wolves. And, and I was with Michael Monroe and I'm like, man, I know that I can't sing this song. I would need someone with more vocal control and soul. I could sing faster songs. I could sing rhythmic songs, angst, whatever. But I know I can't do this. So I called him and I was like, man, would you sing this? And he agreed. He's like, OK, I'll sing this song, you know, in his New York accent. And when it came back, Mick and I just looked at each other like perfect. It's a perfect guy to sing this song. The Celebrity Jobber podcast with Jeff Zito. The Celebrity Jobber podcast with Jeff Zito. I almost look at this like like write a book, right? Like it's like when like when you write your your autobiography, when you you reach this this level of success, you know, and that's kind of how I look at it for for musicians coming out with a with a solo record like you being a part of Skid Row for so many years. Did you ever think, I mean, do you ever do that that look back that, you know, take a jog down memory lane, you look at yourself as a teenager? Yeah, you ever just look back to you and say, man, this is wild. This is a wild ride. I can't really because you have to admit the guys that aspire to be famous, to be rock star, be a, you know, an athlete. These are dreams that a lot of people have. The difference is the average ham and egg are can't put that work or don't. They don't have the talent to achieve that stuff. It's very hard. It's, you know, one in a million shot. They say, did you ever take that time and look back and say, wow, I, you know, all the time did it, man. You do all the time. And it happens every night. As the intro rules, I think of that before when we're on tour. I just think of it. I'm like, wow, I just look out at the crowd and I look at my best friends and I'm just like, this is amazing. We're in about 15 seconds. We're going to be running out on stage, living our dream again. Right. Every night we're going to be doing it again. And then we run out on stage and the rush is just like to the point where I'm out of breath sometimes, like, because I'm thinking about it and the adrenaline is just like, and I've barely moved. And I'm like, you know what I mean? And it, you know, my parents always instilled with all four of us and my friends is to appreciate the good things that come your way. And my dad would always say to me, he had, he had a lot of stuff that didn't seem to make sense as a kid. But as I became an adult, it still pops in my head, but he would always say, whatever you do, don't be afraid of hard work because hard work is what makes you successful. He goes, if you go and dig ditches for a living, be the best damn ditch digger you could be. Yeah. And just, you just work hard at that. And so it was funny. I was not digging a ditch, but I was digging, I was working for a land before Skid Row. I was working for a landscaping company. And one of the trees that one of the crews planted had died for some reason. And it was a pretty, it wasn't a huge tree, but it was like the ones by the sidewalks. And we had to get it out. So everyone was kind of digging at it, digging at it and trying to rock the tree. I'm like, it's not going to end up boss is standing right there. And he's like, I'll be right back. So I just jumped down with an axe and a shovel into a hole that was about four feet deep and I'm just whack, whack and I'm hitting it. And the boss came back with like, I don't know, some kind of, it wasn't a chain saw, but it was something to remove, make it easier to remove a tree. And I had it done. And I did it by hand and I rocked it back and forth. Everything snapped. The other guys grabbed it and pulled it out and the boss helped me out. And he goes, if you work as half as hard on your music as you work that getting that dead tree out of the ground, because you're going to make it. And that's never forget that. Well, that's big. That's something you took with you forever. Forever at one of your first jobs. Yep. Can you remember it was, was that your first job landscaping? No, no, no, my very first job was working at seaside. Well, not counting working with my dad, like he built houses. So I would go and do little stuff like here, cut this cut 15 of these two by fours. Like doing a little stuff like that. Right. But my first job where I was getting paid by a boss and had to deal with the boss was working up on Casino Pier at a basketball and I was I wasn't old enough to drive. So I was probably like 14 ish. Right. So I was up there and I have to deal with just all the drunk weeders that came down. They take. Oh, yeah. And back then, Seaside had a bad reputation back then, I bet, right? Not like now. Not like now. Yeah. And so I'd be there and I'm the scrawny little kid and these guys are trying to impress their girlfriends and they're missing it. They had to throw basketball into a hoop and the hoops were slightly smaller. And they told us to inflate the basketballs so they bounce. And so I'd always get harassed, especially if you had his girl from with them. And he take like behind me was where the ocean pretty much was the average ocean was what, you know, the waves were breaking there and the beach. Right. So they take these basketballs and they whip them in right over the whole thing into the ocean. And sometimes they'd stay on the beach most of the time they got washed out into the ocean and then my boss told me to go get it. After my shift was over, I go, you want me to swim out into the ocean to get the balls? He's like, you got to go get him. He goes, go get a net or something. I go, I they're 50 feet out. They're like, they're like almost where they break the. And it's that night. I'm not going out there. I'm not going out. So anyway, I got a couple. I walked down there and I'm like, I watched for him to leave. I was like, I'm not getting these balls in. And then one came and I brought one up and I put it. And I was dealing with that every day. That kind of stuff every day. Drunk guys wanting to pick fights with me because I had long hair or the girlfriend said, oh, you're cute or something like that. So these we dos want to jump over his thing. So I'm like, yo, dude, you know, so. My dad's like, and that's what my dad had to say. If. As someone's bigger than you hit him with a big stick. And that's where I got the whole idea for the song, Big Stick. So I was like, OK, so I went into Dad's workshop and I found his framing hammer. So I brought it to work. He's like, what are you doing with that? He's driving me to work. I go, are you using it today? He's like, no, no, I'm not doing any framing today. I was like, this is the big stick. He goes, you can't hit somebody with a hammer. You go to jail. I was like, I'm not going to hit them. I'm going to hit in their vicinity, though. Right. And so sure, sure as hell, some Guido started giving me a hard time. So I reached on and went, bam, right next to his hand. And he's like, whoa, whoa, this dude's crazy. He's. I was like, all right, now we have our boundaries. That's awesome. That's a great story. The Celebrity Jobber podcast with Jeff Zito. Celebrity Jobber. So we're talking about like, OK, this is a big dream, you know, like, did you think what were you thinking if it didn't work out? If Skid Row didn't work out? Are you thinking that you were going to go into this business or did you have aspirations to go to college or what were you what was your what was your plan? Did you were you just too young to have a plan? You're just like, fuck it. Well, you know, rock or bust. Well, yeah, my parents were very supportive. That's awesome. Like extremely supportive. They bought me my first base. They they let me money for a van so I could get the gear around. So he's a bass player with the van. So they were supportive. My mom, I just had to graduate high school. She's like because I hated school, man. I really, really hated. I love seeing my friends and I really liked a couple of my teachers. But I just hated. I felt like I was trapped there and I was wasting my time when I could be writing songs and so sometimes I get detention and I'd be like, finally, I could I have time to write songs and I write and write and write. So. But my mom and dad were like, you need a plan B. Right. We have all the faith in the world in you to do this, but you need a plan B because at this point I talked them. It didn't take much talking. They knew I hated school. I had no interest in college. So whatever money they put away, I was like, can I please borrow that money for a van and for some gear that's actually going to work? You know, and they're like, yes. So. They said, but we need you to have a plan B. And I said, I have a plan B. I totally have a plan B. I didn't have a plan B. So I'm like when I met and then it brings me to when I met Snake. I'm like, OK, this guy is on the same collision course with success that I think I'm on. You know, hitch my wagon. And so we we started writing songs and they just started coming to us like that. But I didn't have a plan B. I knew what I could do because I knew a lot about construction. I knew how I knew how to build a house because of my dad. Right. He showed me a lot of stuff and I, you know, between him, my brother, my cousin. You know, we could we could definitely build a house. And but it's not what I wanted to do. And they were mom and dad were totally cool about that. And, you know, I. I just it was it was or an or bust that that was a that's very important, though, having the support of your parents, because absolutely. If they didn't support you, I think things could have been different. Who knows? I mean, but that is I think that's very, very important. What about what about the moment that changed your life forever? There there had to be, I mean, you probably worked gradually, a little bit more, a little bit more, you know, 18 in life, whatever the song was that that came out. But was there a moment that you can remember defining moment, whether it was here in the song on the radio, signing the record deal, a call from somebody playing a show, a defining moment where you guys looked at each other and you were like, I think everything's going to be different for us here on after. Yeah, there were a couple and in different situations with with one time I went, we were doing press in New York City, and we were on tour, but we flew to New York and we were doing press for like three days. I didn't even go home to New Jersey. I just stayed in New York. So. I went to see friends and we went to the old cat club and. Yeah, it was a cat club, right? In New York City. Or am I thinking? Yeah, the cat club. So I go there and I met a couple of people. My friend, Michael Lago and my friend, Mary Gormley, who were both and are they did and are for two different labels. Michael signed Metallica. Mary had a bunch of big signings. And we were all in town at the same time, and we were all kind of coming up at the same time. So I met them there. I had a great time. Met Joey Ramone. Awesome. Blown away. Yeah, it was just he was so nice and so cool. And I didn't realize how tall he was. And I got five nine. I'm like, I don't even come up to this dude's armpit. Wow. So so nice to me. And so I grabbed a cab back because I, you know, I we had to start press at like 10 a.m. or something like that. It was already like 3 a.m. So I'm in a cab and it was hot out. So I had the windows down and there's a car parked next to us at a light. And it was on what was a super, super commercial radio station in New York back then. That's it was probably what Stern was on, which was K rock, right? And was there a Z 100 back there? Yeah, Z 100 was like a pop, like a top 40 station. Huge, but yeah, huge. Yeah, that's what it was. We're all the jamming. Yeah. And all the DJs had lots of reverb and delay on their voice. Yeah. So I'm in the cab. And all of a sudden I hear 18 and life on there. Oh, man, that's a big station. Z 100. Yeah. 18. And I'm like, oh, my God. Yeah, it's not. I'm not listening to it on a rock station. I'm listening to it on the most commercial station from the top of the world. From the top of the empire. Is building. Yeah. That's that's huge. Yeah. And so I'm listening to this and they're dudes that do not look like they go to our shows at all. They were I know exactly what you mean, like generic looking guys with like polos. They're like, these are rockers. Exactly. And they were rocking out to the song and we kept stopping at the same lights. And I was just like, this is so unbelievable. Like no one's going to believe this story. There are no cell phones then where I could call go listen to this, you know what I mean? And I got back and I barely slept that night because I was so excited. Celebrity Jobber, the Celebrity Jobber podcast with Jeff Zito. There was another point where so. My mom kept ledgers of what all of us kids owed her, right? Oh, oh, right. You know, Bob, because it was never like we're giving you this money. It's like we're not charging you interest, but we're loaning you this money. And it was a great character learning experience. I'm sure you didn't think about it the same way you think about it today, but you sure appreciate mom doing that. Yeah, yeah. Absolutely. So I remember I got. My first substantial royalty check and it could it could have been a million dollars, right, but it wasn't no, it was nowhere near that. But I still owed them about eight thousand dollars. I went cash to check. I took the eight thousand dollars out of it and I just had them wrap it in a those little money wrapper things. And I go, mom, I go and my dad's in the living room watching TV. Right. He was hysterical. Like they both are really funny, but that was frigging hysterical. So I go in, I said, how much do I owe you? And she goes, let me see. She takes out the big ledger. She's like, there's your sister, your other sister, your brother, your. Eight thousand dollars. And I go on my jack, I go, how? And I put it on the ledger. Wow. She goes, how much is there? I go, eight thousand dollars. I said, we are square. And she goes, oh, you don't have to pay it at all times. The old man from the other room, I let him pay back the goddamn loan. That moment, I was like, wow. It was it was a big moment. I saw like she was trying not to show up, but she's like, that's great. You know, and that came into the room, gave me a big hug. It was great. Yeah, man. That's a cool story. That's a cool story. It's funny, Rachel, you know, you seem like a pretty nice guy. And I'll tell you, I let that get out. I well, I I heard on the inside, you're you're tough. You're tough to be in a band. Well, I hear Rachel's tough, man. I know there's a lot of singers that are that are trying out right now. You've got this really public thing going on with sweet water, which is really cool. I'm following it. I even have some ideas of some some guys, some friends of mine that I think would be good. And one of them goes, yeah, well, dude, Rachel, she's he's tough to be in a band with, man. What what what why are you? Do you just grind these guys? Like just no, I don't think I don't think I'm tough to be in a band. I mean, I don't expect any more out of anyone else than I do out of myself. Maybe that's what they're they're thinking. But I mean, you know, we've we've made a mark. We've made our own mark on, you know, on music, you know, it would be small, be a big whatever it is. So, you know, we we all it's not just me. We all expect someone to put in the time as we all do and put in the hard work as we all do, going right back to what my old man said. Don't be afraid of hard work. And and yeah, I don't I think I think I'm pretty easy to be in a band with. I mean, but I know that Scotty has said to me, he's like, you know, sometimes, dude, you have your way of thinking. And it's kind of hard to get in between those cracks. I go, I know, I know, but I have vision and stuff like that. But, you know, well, I'll guess I'll just end with this. And I know and I have to realize I have to. So the Sebastian chapter, you've you guys have all made it very clear that that's a direction that was in the past and that you're moving forward. And I do know that the fans would love to see at least maybe one last tour with those with the guys together. Is it is it is it even a are you and Snake and Scotty? Do you guys talk about it or leave the door open a little bit? It's just it was just too too much. Just just too much that it is what it is. Right. Right. It is what it is. You know, we're here now. We're still Skid Row and and we're heading into the next chapter of our career. Right on. OK. Well, you know, I got to ask. You really don't have to. But I can't. We are coming for you. I got to I got to because again, that's what the, you know, I hear from the streets, you know, everybody wants it. But then they realize that there's there's a reason that it doesn't happen and time moves on. And that's all that you have to say about that. So gargoyle of the Garden State. Are you the gargoyle? I would be the gargoyle. I am the gargoyle. Well, McCartney was walrus. I am the gargoyle. The gargoyle of the Garden States, the new album. It's coming out June 12th and the new single with Dango Jones at War with Myself is out right now. Rachel Bowen, Skid Row. Great man. It was great conversation. Thanks for digging deep and telling me all about your family and your dad. And that's good stuff, man. Really good stuff. I appreciate it, man. No worries. Have a great rest of your day and good luck with the solo. I love it. I really think it's great. And I think it's going to be really, really, really well with it. So thanks. Good luck. Yeah, man. Thank you. I'm really proud of the way it came out. You should be. You should be. Thanks again. All right. Yeah, man. Born James Richard Southworth, Rachel Bowen from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, grew up in a blue collar household, his dad built houses and seemed like his his old man really instilled that work ethic into Rachel. And he reflected on that several times during the interview and seems like he got a real kick out of his old man. And I talked about some of his earlier jobs before Skid Row and he was a landscaper. He also talked about working at Seaside Heights, which is kind of a beach town with a boardwalk, kind of a tourist trap. And on the boardwalk, there's a bunch of like pizza places and arcades. And it's kind of like the county fair, a lot of games and stuff where Rachel was working by the basketball hoops had to bend the basketball hoop so you couldn't really swish one in there and win some crappy, grateful dead mirror or whatever the hell they were giving away, you know? You know, I think it was pretty cool. It seemed like he had a pretty close family and mom and dad, he mentioned several times were supportive of his music career. And think about that, how important that is. Like your son has long hair and he's in a band. You know, usually mom and dad would probably steer you away from that, cut your hair, get a real job. But they supported him and they loaned him money for a van and talked about how his mother kept a ledger of all the money that the kids owed them. And one of Rachel's most satisfying moments was getting his very first royalty check, which was he set a substantial amount and he knew that he owed his mom and dad $8,000. So he took that money out, asked mom how much he owed. She took out that ledger and she said $8,000 and he slammed the money down, said, here you go, I'm all paid off, we're square. And that was such a satisfying moment for Rachel. And I think it's really cool and shows you how how tight knit that he was with his mom and dad and that support that he got from home. You know, again, they must have seen something in him to support him. Because I would think most parents would try to deter their son from joining a rock band or making that their profession. You know, Rachel also talked about a life changing moment for him. And he's cruising around and listening to one of the biggest radio stations, Z100 in New York City. I remember that station as a kid and their motto being serving the universe from the top of the Empire State Building. And Rachel's listening to that station, Z100, which by the way, wasn't a rock station. It was like a top 40. So it played, you know, all of the popular songs, Madonna, Michael Jackson, all that kind of stuff. So listening to that station, hearing Skid Row's 18 in life. And he said he would look at some of the cars around him and people were singing along to that song. And they were kids that weren't going to his shows, not the rocker type of kids like regular kind of clean cut people singing his song. It was that moment that he said to himself, wow, I think we're about to do something big. I thought it was a great story. And I've heard a thousand times how the band has kind of moved on from original lead singer Sebastian Bach, but I had to ask because that's what the fans keep asking for. You know, one tour with the original band and it looks like that ship has sailed. Rachel going to be touring behind his debut solo album Gargoyle of the Garden State. Check out the first single called At War With Myself featuring Canadian rocker, Danco Jones. He's also got a ton of guests on this album, including Corey Taylor from Slipknot, Stone Sour. The album Gargoyle of the Garden State from Rachel Bowman set to drop on June 12th. More details up on the website Skid Row.com. I'm pretty sure having a supportive family help Rachel Bowman achieve his personal goal of being in one of the biggest rock bands of the late 80s and early 90s Skid Row. You know, without that support, who knows, maybe Rachel would still be working on the boardwalk or maybe going to business with his old man, building houses or landscaping. I think it all worked out for Rachel. Thank you for checking out another episode of the Celebrity Jobber podcast. Streaming on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow on Instagram, celebrity underscore, jobber underscore podcast. Also, youtube.com slash the at sign celebrity jobber bonus content on substack.com slash celebrity jobber. And of course, check out all of our past guests and episodes online at celebrity jobber.com. Who were these celebrities before they were famous? Regular people, just like you and me. Thanks so much for listening and until next week, I'll see you then. I'm Jeff Zito.