18 and Life

All you want to know about 18 and Life

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“18 and Life”

Single by Skid Row
from the album Skid Row

Released

1989

Genre

Heavy metal

Length

3:51

Label

Atlantic

Writer(s)

Rachel Bolan, Dave Sabo

Producer

Michael Wagener

Certification

Gold

Skid Row singles chronology

"Youth Gone Wild"
(1989)

"18 and Life"
(1989)

"I Remember You"
(1989)

"18 and Life" is the second single from Skid Row's 1989 eponymous debut album. The band's first power ballad single, it was written by bandmates Rachel Bolan and Dave "the Snake" Sabo. It is about a young man and the hard life he goes through (see below).

The song was to be the band's biggest hit, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, but only reaching #11 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, which was previously their biggest market.

This song also appears on Skid Row's greatest hits compilation, 40 Seasons: The Best of Skid Row. Lead singer of Skid Row, Sebastian Bach, released a live version of this on his solo album Bring 'Em Bach Alive!. It is also a playable song on the video game Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s.

Track listing

"18 & Life"
"Midnight Tornado"
"Here I Am" (Live)

Chart performances

Chart	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100	4
US Mainstream Rock Tracks	11

The song was also MTV's most played video in 1989.^{[citation needed]}

Meaning

Skid Row guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo wrote this song after reading in a local newspaper about an 18-year-old boy who shot his friend by accident. He thought the gun wasn't loaded, and eventually ended up in prison for life.

v • d • e Skid Row

Johnny Solinger · Dave "The Snake" Sabo · Scotti Hill · Rachel Bolan · Dave Gara Rob Affuso · Sebastian Bach · Phil Varone · Matt Fallon · Sean McCabe · Charlie Mills · Kurtis Jackson · Steve Brotherton · Keri Kelli · Tim DiDuro

Studio albums	Skid Row · Slave to the Grind · B-Side Ourselves · Subhuman Race · Thickskin · Revolutions per Minute

Live albums	Subhuman Beings on Tour

Compilations	40 Seasons: The Best of Skid Row · Hi-Five

Videos	Oh Say Can You Scream · No Frills Video · Road Kill · Under the Skin

Singles	"Youth Gone Wild" · "18 and Life" · "I Remember You" · "Monkey Business" · "Slave to the Grind" · "Wasted Time" · "In a Darkened Room" · "Youth Gone Wild / Delivering the Goods" · "My Enemy" · "Breakin' Down" · "Into Another" · "I Remember You Two" · "Strength"

Related articles	Discography · Members · The Last Hard Men · Michael Wagener · Bob Rock