Jon Bon Jovi says it took Richie Sambora ‘years’ to apologize for ‘walking out’ on the band

In 2013, Richie Sambora left Bon Jovi in the middle of a tour amid troubles in his personal life. Now, Jon Bon Jovi says he still has a lot of “heartbreak” over the way his bandmate departed.

While speaking to Jelly Roll‘s wife, Bunnie Xo, on her Dumb Blonde podcast, Bunnie asked Jon to describe his relationship with Sambora. “The great thing that I have said about him throughout our lives was you would be lucky to call him your friend, and I mean that,” Jon said. “Talented beyond, beyond as a guitar player, as a singer, as a collaborator, wonderful, right-hand man, awesome. Couldn’t ask for more.”

“My heartbreak with him is the way he walked out on us, compounded by the fact that it took him years to come back in the room just to have a meal with [drummer] Tico [Torres] and [keyboardist] David [Bryan] and I and say, ‘I’m sorry,'” he continued.

“It’s unfortunate. It’s heartbreaking … but if what he wanted was to be just ‘Richie Sambora,’ not a member of Bon Jovi, do it! I always encourage all of my guys, because my attitude was, ‘Bring the information back that you learn outside. It’ll only help us.'”

“And so for whatever reason, he walked out, and then that was that. But I can’t defend or accuse … it’s just not worth it anymore,” Jon added. “It’s been so many years, I just … if you can’t figure [it out] or get it together, then it’s not on us. I love the man; heartbroken that he walked out on us.”

In the 2024 documentary Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story Sambora apologized to the band and to the fans for how he left Bon Jovi.