Richie Sambora has responded to Jon Bon Jovi's recent comments that he wished he "had his life together and was still in the band."
In an interview with dailymailtv.com, Sambora says, "When people say I don't have my life together - are you kidding me? I'm the happiest dude on the block."
As for his relationship with Jon, Sambora says, "We've had our ups and downs throughout the years as any married couple have. Jon and I spent more time together than we spent with our families because him and I wrote the songs."
Sambora left Bon Jovi in 2013 because he says he was "in a dire situation with my family and I had to make a tough decision and I did and I'm sure people weren't happy about it."
He adds that Ava, his daughter with ex-wife actress Heather Locklear, "just graduated on the dean's list from Louisiana State University as a psychology major and she's gone on to grad school now. She and I have just been really fantastic and we just have a great relationship."
Sambora last performed with Bon Jovi when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018. Then, as now, he says he has "no malice toward the band" and "it would have to be a special situation for me to go back, but I'm certainly not counting it out."
Bon Jovi just released their third album without Sambora, 2020.