Former Queensrÿche frontman Geoff Tate recently reflected on the time they opened for Bon Jovi in 1986 and revealed how the band treated them. During the conversation with 107.1 The Boss radio station, the former frontman shared his experience with opening for the band’s ‘Slippery When Wet Tour.’
The singer was thrilled to have witnessed the success of Bon Jovi. He reminisced about their touring days and said the following:
“We opened up for ’em on the ‘Slippery When Wet’ tour. And they were just really starting to hit big at that time. And it was exciting to watch their success and how they handled it. It was such a wonderful band of guys at that time. They were very happy to be there. They were excited, and they treated everybody with respect.”
Tate revealed whether or not Bon Jovi treated Queensrÿche with respect the way they treated everybody else:
“They were one of the few bands that said to their opening act — which was us — ‘Have the stage. Do with it as you please.’ And they didn’t hold anything back, which was very admirable. A lot of bands would see a band like us and feel competitive and maybe not so confident in their own abilities. But they did. They were a very good band. Very confident.”
It seems that this wasn’t the first time the two bands encountered and spent time together. The current Queensrÿche frontman Todd La Torre shared one of the band’s memories with the late Bon Jovi bassist Alec John Such while paying tribute to him. The frontman recalled him giving the band ‘The Best Metal Band’ award and shared how cool it was for Such to take his time to be a part of a local awards show.
The rocker also shared his thanks to the late bassist for being part of a band that he grew up with.
Below, you can see the latest Geoff Tate interview.