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"Bon Jovi was responsible for the most organic-sounding technopop-metal hybrids of the ’80s," wrote Spin’s Chuck Eddy in 1993 of the megapopular five-member band named after its lead singer, Jon Bon Jovi. Credited as one of the creators of "metal lite" or "pop metal"—heavy metal rock softened by top 40 lyrics—the band rose to prominence with the help of millions of MTV-watching teenage listeners during a decade dominated by pop giants Madonna and Michael Jackson. Eddy characterized Bon Jovi’s sound as "dirty-white-boy guitars, a pinch of rockabilly twang, and maybe a couple of classically orchestrated disco strings" in his critique of the band’s chartbusting 1986 album Slippery When Wet. Indeed, the New Jersey rockers who are the state’s second-most-famous musical export (after working-class hero Bruce Springsteen), have not only survived but thrived in an ever-changing, intensely competitive industry. Thanks to their music skills, carefully polished image, loyalty to fans, and collective good looks, Bon Jovi has sold more than 90 million records globally. "We just want kids to have fun, nothing more—and nothing less," [Jon Bon Jovi] stated in a 1986 interview in Rolling Stone."We aren’t U2, we aren’t gonna change the

world…. We’re a rock band, and that’s all we’re supposed to be."

Born on March 2, 1962, in Sayreville, New Jersey, Jon Bon Jovi is the oldest son of Italian-Americans John and Carol Bongiovi. John Sr., a hairdresser, was notorious for closely cropping his three young sons’ hair. Mrs. Bongiovi, a gift-shop owner and former Playboy bunny, planted the seed of her son’s love of music when she brought home a guitar for seven-year-old Jon. "I was very much the average American kid," he told Jill Selsman in Interview. "I wanted to be an astronaut, a cop, or a baseball player. I remember my first experience with a guitar very well…. I flung it down the steps and heard it going oing, oing, oing. I remember hearing that and thinking, that’s pretty cool. It took another seven years for me to want to get into it, though."

As a teenager Jon was influenced by the music of folk rocker Bob Dylan, Irish mystic-soulman Van Morrison, and fellow New-Jerseyites Springsteen and South Side Johnny and the Asbury Jukes. He played in several bands, including the Atlantic City Expressway (his first), the Rest, and the Raze. A highlight of his early career came when Springsteen joined the Atlantic City Expressway onstage for an impromptu jam session in an Asbury Park nightclub, a "near religious" experience for Jon.

Following high school graduation, the already ambitious singer and musician was ready to leave Sayreville, an industrial town he considered a dead end. Jon’s cousin, Tony Bongiovi, part-owner of the Power Station, a well-known New York City recording studio, gave him a job sweeping floors. The perks of the position included rubbing elbows with Rolling Stone Mick Jagger and pop star David Bowie and recording demo tapes with professional back-up bands during non-peak hours. During this period, Jon attempted to interest record companies in his music, with little success.

"Runaway" Kicked off Career
In 1982 one of Jon’s demo songs, "Runaway," became a surprise hit following local radio airplay of a compilation album featuring amateur groups. Soon thereafter, the budding rock star was signed by Mercury Records, a division of PolyGram, and suddenly found himself in need of a permanent band. He assembled some of his early Jersey Shore mates—Tico Torres, Dave Bryan, Alec John Such, and Dave Sabo, who was eventually replaced by Richie Sambora—as The Wild Ones and watched Mercury turn "Runaway" into a national hit. Properly marketing the band, which had since become simply Bongiovi, was critical to Mercury executives, who insisted on a spelling change to minimize what they apparently deemed the too-Italian character of Jon Bon Jovi’s surname. Thus was born the phoneticized Bon Jovi; the singer took this opportunity to change his name as well. Though the band would develop a strong group identity, Mercury did not offer Torres, Bryan, Such, and Sambora a contract, effectively making them Jon’s employees.

In 1984 the group released its first album, Bon Jovi, and began touring as the opening act for established acts such as .38 Special, Ted Nugent, Eddie Money, Judas Priest, and ZZ Top. As his ensemble began to enjoy coast-to-coast attention, Jon Bon Jovi landed in the middle of lawsuit brought by his cousin Tony, who claimed to have advanced Jon’s career and now wanted payment for his efforts. The suit was settled out of court, with Tony Bongiovi winning a producer’s credit, cash award, and royalties on the group’s first release—as well as a one percent royalty on the next two albums. This infuriated Jon, who considered Tony’s influence minimal at best. Despite the legal wrangling, the first album sold well and laid the groundwork for the band’s basic sound: a big beat with catchy lyrics.

Bon Jovi was quickly followed in 1985 by 7800 Fahrenheit—the melting point of rock—which achieved platinum sales in 1987. Though critics were generally unimpressed with the band and considered them more "fluff" than "stuff," the teenage crowd couldn’t get enough of them. "The whole younger rock movement was in dire need of someone to come along and be a superstar," national radio programmer Fred Jacobs explained to the Detroit Free Press, elaborating, "The pop ranks have had so many people in the past few years … but the young rockers really haven’t had anybody to get them into the arenas and throw their fists in the air and get nuts about."

Slippery Breakthrough
In 1986, Slippery When Wet, Bon Jovi’s third and best-selling album to date was released to largely positive reviews. Audiences savored the combination of heavy metal guitar crunch and upbeat lyrics. With singles like "You Give Love a Bad Name," "Living on a Prayer," and "Wanted Dead or Alive," the band had reached a new plateau of success. This was due, in part, to the increasing prominence of music videos, which allowed for superior marketing of the "videogenic" quintet. "Nobody knew what Bon Jovi was," guitarist Richie Sambora later told the Detroit Free Press."It could’ve been a spaghetti or a jeans company for all they knew. We said, ‘No actors, no actresses, no concept. We’re going for simplicity. Just come and film us live, at a show.’ All of a sudden, Bon Jovi became Bon Jovi. It was clearly defined. What’s Bon Jovi? It’s a rock ‘n’ roll band."

Sambora also attributed the album’s success to the group’s ability to fill a niche in the music business. "There was a need by the people for a Bon Jovi," he said in a 1989 Rolling Stone interview, echoing radio programmer Jacobs. "Just a good-time entertainment band, you know? A bridge between [pop crooner] Phil Collins and [hard rock outfit] Whitesnake." Despite this confidence, the group was ill prepared for their emerging superstar status and experienced some growing pains. "With the first two albums, we were happy to have enough money to go to McDonald’s," Jon Bon Jovi told Edna Gundersen of USA Today."We went through the phase of buy, buy, buy!," he continued. "It’s hard to grow up when that kind of success is thrust upon you."

But grow up they did. The band embarked on a grueling world tour to promote Slippery When Wet, which had reached number one on the album charts, then immediately launched into writing and recording its follow-up, New Jersey, released in 1988. That album generated more hits, including "Lay Your Hands on Me," "Bad Medicine," "I’ll Be There for You," and "Blood on Blood," ultimately reaching number one. High Fidelity’s Ken Richardson wrote of the album, "The first ten minutes are absolutely thrilling: ‘Lay Your Hands on Me’ proves the band can play undiluted metal, and ‘Bad Medicine’ proves it can add some of that mean streak to its pop sense."

New Jersey was the first American album released on the former-U.S.S.R.’s state-owned record company Melodiya, a move that prompted Bon Jovi to visit the Soviet Union during the its 16-month tour. Though completely unintentional, Jon Bon Jovi took some flak on the home front for naming the album after his home state as it was perceived as a jab at Bruce Springsteen. "I went to hell for calling the album New Jersey" he groused in the Chicago Tribune."Springsteen owns the state. Somewhere along the line, when nobody was looking, he bought it."

The band would not release another album for four years—an eternity in pop music; rumors abounded that the group was on the verge of splitting. The band members were, in fact, suffering from severe burnout, the result of virtually non-stop recording and touring. "For years we spent every waking moment together, even vacations," said Sambora in a 1992 article in USA Today."People thought we were crazy to live, eat and breathe this band. We needed to get away from each other."

During the self-imposed hiatus from 1989 to 1991, both Sambora and Jon Bon Jovi released solo albums. Jon’s Blaze of Glory (1990), a collection of songs written for or inspired by the western Young Guns II, delivered tumbleweed authenticity but didn’t over-whelm critics. The title track was "a slow, dusty clone of ‘Wanted Dead or Alive,"’ according to People’s Craig Tomashoff. Greg Sandow of Entertainment Weekly called it "thin if you don’t share his cowboy thang" and rated it a C+. Sambora’s solo album, Stranger in This Town (1991), fared only marginally better with Sandow, who awarded it a B-, remarking, "Gotta love Richie Sambora’s solo meditations for their brooding mood. But only a few of the songs stand out."

New Maturity
Several significant events in Jon Bon Jovi’s life occurred during the break from the band: In 1989 he married his girlfriend of ten years, Dorothea Hurley; two years later he started his own label, Jambco Records, and produced albums for Aldo Nova and Billy Falcon, as well as producing and co-writing songs for Cher, Stevie Nicks, and Hall & Oates. He and Sambora also set off on a two-week cross-country motorcycle trip that would significantly affect their creative juices; formerly apolitical, the two observed some of the country’s social ailments first-hand and decided to incorporate awareness-raising messages into their next album, thereby displaying a new maturity. On the image front, Jon Bon Jovi revamped his style by cutting his trademark dirty-blond tangle of hair; the result was a more contemporary look for the matinee-idol-handsome heartthrob.

Although 1992’s much-anticipated Keep the Faith debuted at number five on the Billboard charts, the fully rested Bon Jovi were concerned about the album’s long-term prospects. Much had changed on the hard rock scene since the success of New Jersey, with Seattle’s so-called "grunge" bands Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and Nirvana riding an unprecedented alternative-rock wave of popularity. Undeterred, Jon Bon Jovi faced this challenge head-on, dismissing long-time manager Doc McGhee and undertaking management of the band himself.

"Success is a funny thing," he told Roy Trakin in a 1993 Music Express interview. "I enjoyed it, but no one seemed to care for the five of us the way they cared about keeping the machine running. By the time the New Jersey tour was over, nobody even said goodbye to one another." "We’re on our own now," he continued. "It’s five grown-up guys who are supporting ourselves with no one to congratulate or blame but ourselves…. This is our turn on the firing line, and we’ll see what comes of it."

Critical reaction to Keep the Faith was lukewarm despite a major publicity effort by Mercury. Spin’s Eddy called "Dry County," inspired by Jon’s motorcycle trek to California, "[an] interminable opus about economic depression in a hamlet where booze is illegal." Of "Bed of Roses"—which nonetheless became a hit—Eddy wrote, "Sounds like Billy Joel—a vodka-soaked holy-ghost piano waltz." Yet Rolling Stone praised "I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead," assessing, "This booming combination of hammerhead vocal hooks and weekend-warrior hedonism is classic Bon Jovi. If Jon and the boys didn’t invent this sure-shot formula, they certainly own the patent."

Though not the smash of their former efforts, Keep the Faith seemed to satisfy fans, and Jon Bon Jovi was confident that the band’s core group of admirers would truly "keep the faith." Criticism in some circles that he had "sold out" to commercial interests led the rock veteran to respond in USA Today: "For the first time I’m not impressed with money or numbers. I got wiser and I learned to deal with success…. I can take valid criticism very easily, but not from a gunslinger out to beat me up before he even listens to the album. There are certain critics in the world who aren’t ever going to like me no matter what. What can I do? I’m not out to make them happy."

Continued Success
Hoping to capitalize on the release of their multiplati-num-selling greatest hits collection entitled Cross Road, Bon Jovi released These Days in 1995. The album featured the lead single "This Ain’t A Love Song," "Diamond Ring," an acoustic ballad, and "Something for the Pain," a true rock song. "I think it’s the most introspective record we’ve done," Jon Bon Jovi told Billboard in 1995. The group toured widely in support of the album, including three sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium in London, England. The year 2000 saw the release of Crush, the group’s first album for Island/Def Jam Music Group after the label subsumed Mercury Records in a merger between Universal/PolyGram. David E. Thigpen of Time called the album "a piece of vintage ’90s pop-metal, as straightforward as a stretch of the New Jersey Turnpike." Though not the blockbuster success of Slippery When Wet, the album was certified multiplatinum in 2001.

Jon Bon Jovi has enjoyed a budding career as an actor, appearing in such films as Moonlight and Valentino in 1995, Destination Anywhere in 1997, Homegrown in 1998, U-571 in 2000, and Pay It Forward in 2001. He and Sambora continue to build successful solo careers, and Torres has looked beyond the stage to find success as an artist and as the creator of a baby clothing line called Rock Star Baby.

Selected discography
Bon Jovi, Mercury, 1984.
7800 Fahrenheit, Mercury, 1985.
Slippery When Wet, Mercury, 1986.
New Jersey, Mercury, 1988.
Keep the Faith, Mercury, 1992.
Cross Road, Mercury, 1994.
These Days, Mercury, 1995.
Crush, Island/Mercury, 2000.
One Wild Night: Live 1985-2001, Universal, 2001.

Sources
Periodicals
Billboard, June 12, 1993; May 20, 1995; May 13, 2000.
Chicago Tribune, March 19, 1989.
Detroit Free Press, March 8, 1987; May 25, 1987.
Entertainment Weekly, December 11, 1992.
High Fidelity, January 1989.
Interview, December 1990.
Music Express, January 1993.
People, October 1, 1990; November 30, 1998.
Rolling Stone, November 20, 1986; February 9, 1989, December 10, 1992.
Spin, January 1993.

Time, June 26, 2000, p. 74.
USA Today, November 9, 1992.

Online
"Bon Jovi," RollingStone.com, http://www.rollingstone.com (August 13, 2001).
Bon Jovi Official Website, http://www.bonjovi.com (August 13, 2001).
Internet Movie Database, http://www.imdb.com (August 30, 2001).
Recording Industry of America, http://www.riaa.com (August 13, 2001).
Additional information for this profile was obtained from Jambco/PolyGram Records, 1992.

Bon Jovi

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Bon Jovi

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Biography

After ushering in the era of pop-metal with their 1986 blockbuster Slippery When Wet and its hit singles “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “Wanted Dead or Alive,” and “Living on a Prayer,” Bon Jovi wound up transcending the big-haired ‘80s, withstanding changes in style and sound to become one of the biggest American rock bands of their time, selling over 120 million albums worldwide, and sustaining their popularity well into the new millennium. As the times changed, so did the band’s sound. They slowly peeled away the arena rock guitars of the ‘80s, occasionally scoring on the adult contemporary charts and sometimes singing country music without ever rejecting hard rock, a move that illustrated how they never abandoned their roots and became second only to Bruce Springsteen in defining the sound and spirit of New Jersey rock & roll.

Bon Jovi took their name from lead singer Jon Bon Jovi (born Jon Bongiovi), who spent his adolescence playing in local Jersey bands with David Bryan (born David Rashbaum). Jon’s cousin, Tony Bongiovi, owned the celebrated New York recording studio the Power Station and Jon spent many hours there, working as a janitor and recording demos after hours, sometimes supported by members of the E Street Band or Aldo Nova. One of those demos, "Runaway," became a hit on local New Jersey radio and lead to the formation of Bon Jovi the band, as Jon and Bryan were supported by guitarist Dave Sabo, bassist Alec John Such, and drummer Tico Torres. “Runaway” spurred a major-label bidding war leading to a contract with Polygram/Mercury in 1983. Before the group entered the studio, though, Bon Jovi replaced Sabo with Richie Sambora, a working guitarist with a long résumé including a stint as a member of Message.

Bon Jovi released their eponymous debut album in 1984, generating a Top 40 hit with the original version of "Runaway." The following year, 7800° Fahrenheit was released and went gold, all serving as a prelude to the band's 1986 breakthrough, Slippery When Wet. Paul Stanley had given Jon and Richie the phone number of professional songwriter Desmond Child, and together they wrote two of the album's biggest hits in Richie's parents' basement. The trio composed 30 songs in total and auditioned them for local New Jersey and New York teenagers, basing the album's running order on their opinions. Supported by several appealing, straightforward videos that received heavy rotation on MTV, the record took off on the strength of “You Give Love a Bad Name,” followed quickly by “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “Wanted Dead or Alive.” Those three Top Ten Hits helped propel Slippery When Wet to sales of nine million in the U.S. alone, establishing Bon Jovi as superstars in their home country. Their fame was not limited to the U.S., though, as the album also turned into a significant hit in Europe, Canada, Japan, and Australia.

Bon Jovi built upon Slippery When Wet's formula with 1988's New Jersey, which shot to number one upon its release. New Jersey was only slightly less successful than its predecessor, selling five million copies and generating two number one singles, "Bad Medicine" and "I'll Be There for You," as well as the Top Ten hits "Born to Be My Baby," "Lay Your Hands on Me," and "Living in Sin." Following the completion of an 18-month international tour, the band went on hiatus. During the time off, Jon Bon Jovi wrote the soundtrack for Young Guns II, which was released in 1990 as the Blaze of Glory album. The record produced two hit singles -- the number one title track and the number 12 "Miracle" -- and earned several Grammy and Oscar nominations.

The following year, Bon Jovi reunited to record their fifth album, Keep the Faith, which was released in the fall of 1992. While the album didn't match the blockbuster status of its predecessors, it did produce a hit with "Bed of Roses," an adult contemporary-styled ballad that helped sustain the band’s popularity. A greatest-hits album called Cross Road appeared in 1994 and yielded another Top Ten ballad, "Always." Around the same time, bassist Alec John Such left the band; Hugh McDonald, who appeared on Bon Jovi recordings stretching back as far as “Runaway,” became his unofficial replacement and featured prominently on the band’s next album. Released in the fall of 1995, These Days turned into another U.S. Top Ten, as well as a popular European hit. After appearing in the 1996 film Moonlight and Valentino, Jon Bon Jovi released his first official solo album, Destination Anywhere, in the summer of 1997.

During the tail end of the '90s, the members of Bon Jovi engaged in different projects -- Sambora released a sophomore solo set called Undiscovered Soul in 1998 -- before easing back into work in 1999 via a song for EdTV, then beginning work on a full-length record. The resulting album, Crush, appeared in 2000 and constituted something of a comeback in America thanks to the smash single “It’s My Life,” a cross-platform hit single with long legs. “Thank You for Loving Me” also turned into a hit, helping Crush go double platinum in the U.S. and selling eight million copies worldwide. Bon Jovi quickly followed Crush with their eighth studio effort, Bounce, which appeared in fall 2002, and supported the record with another international tour. In 2003, the band re-recorded many of its most well-known songs for the acoustic-based release This Left Feels Right, which also saw an accompanying DVD in 2004.

The ambitious outtakes and rarities box set 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong arrived later that November, followed by the all-new Have a Nice Day -- the first of several albums produced by John Shanks. That album's success was aided in part by the single “Who Says You Can’t Go Home,” featuring guest vocals from Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles, which eventually won the Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals -- as well as topping the charts in Japan, Australia, Europe, and Canada. The band spent the following year in the studio, putting the finishing touches on a collection of pop-infused heartland country anthems. The resulting Lost Highway, which featured duets with LeAnn Rimes and Big & Rich, arrived in the summer of 2007 and grabbed the band a healthy new country music fan base in the process. Lost Highway's cross-genre formula proved to be quite potent, securing the band its third number one album in the U.S. Bon Jovi returned to rock shortly thereafter, though, with the release of the somber, searching The Circle in 2009. One year later, Greatest Hits: The Ultimate Collection offered plenty of hits along with two new tracks, “No Apologies” and “What Do You Got?” ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
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Bon Jovi

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Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi in Montreal in 2007 during the Lost Highway Tour
Background information
Origin Sayreville, New Jersey, United States
Genres Hard rock, glam metal, pop rock
Years active 1983–present (hiatuses from 1990-1991 and 1997-1999)
Labels Island, Mercury, Mercury Nashville
Website www.bonjovi.com
Members
Jon Bon Jovi
David Bryan
Tico Torres
Richie Sambora
Past members
See: Band members

Bon Jovi is an American rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi (John Francis Bongiovi, Jr.), guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald.[1] The band's lineup has remained mostly static during their history, the only exception being the departure of Alec John Such in 1994, who was unofficially replaced by Hugh McDonald. The band became known for writing several rock anthems and achieved widespread recognition with their third album, Slippery When Wet, released in 1986. After touring and recording non-stop during the late 1980s, the band went on hiatus after the New Jersey Tour in 1990, during which time Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora both released successful solo albums. In 1992, the band returned with the album Keep the Faith. Their 2000 single "It's My Life", which followed a second hiatus, successfully introduced the band to a younger audience. Bon Jovi has been known to use different styles in their music, which has included country for their 2007 album Lost Highway. Their latest album, The Circle, was released on November 10, 2009 in the United States.

Throughout their career, the band have released eleven studio albums, three compilation albums and one live album, and have sold 130 million records worldwide.[2] They have performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans,[3] and were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006.[4] The band was also honored with the Award of Merit at the American Music Awards in 2004.[5] Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora were inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009.[6][7] The band was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, but did not make it.[citation needed]

Contents

History

Formation (1975–1983)

Jon Bon Jovi at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.jpg Richie Sambora at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.jpg Tico Torres Bon Jovi at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.jpg David Bryan of Bon Jovi at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.jpg
Jon Bon Jovi Richie Sambora Tico Torres David Bryan

Jon Bon Jovi began playing piano and guitar in 1975, at the age of 13, with his first band 'Raze'. At 16, Bon Jovi met David Bryan and formed a band called Atlantic City Expressway. Still in his teens, Bon Jovi played in the band "John Bongiovi and the Wild Ones," playing local clubs like "The Fast Lane," and opening for known acts in the area. By 1980, he formed another band, "The Rest", and opened up for New Jersey acts such as Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes.

By mid-1982, out of school and working part-time at a women's shoe store, Jon Bon Jovi took a job at the Power Station Studios, a Manhattan recording facility where his cousin Tony Bongiovi was co-owner. Bon Jovi made several demos—including one produced by Billy Squier—and sent them to record companies, though failing to make an impact. His first professional recording was as lead vocals in "R2-D2 We Wish You a Merry Christmas," which was part of the Christmas in the Stars album which his cousin co-produced.

Bon Jovi visited local radio station WAPP 103.5FM "The Apple" in Lake Success, New York. He spoke directly to the promotion director, John Lassman, who accepted the song "Runaway" for inclusion on the station's compilation album of local homegrown talent. Bon Jovi was initially reluctant, but eventually gave them the song, on which Bon Jovi had used studio musicians to play on the track. The studio musicians who helped record "Runaway"—known as The All Star Review—were guitarist Tim Pierce, keyboardist Roy Bittan, drummer Frankie LaRocka, and bassist Hugh McDonald.

The song began to get airplay in the New York area, then other sister stations in major markets picked up the song. In March 1983, Bon Jovi called David Bryan, who in turn called bassist Alec John Such (b. Alec John Such, November 14, 1952, Yonkers, New York, USA) ex-Phantom's Opera and an experienced drummer named Tico Torres. Tapped to play lead guitar was Bon Jovi's neighbor, Dave Sabo (a.k.a. The Snake)—who later formed the group Skid Row. Sabo was eventually replaced by Richie Sambora (b. Richard Stephen Sambora, July 11, 1959, Perth Amboy, New Jersey, USA). Before joining the group, Sambora had toured with Joe Cocker, played with a group called Mercy and had been called up to audition for Kiss. He also played on the album Lessons with the band Message, which was re-released on CD through Long Island Records in 1995. Message was originally signed to Led Zeppelin's Swan Song Records label, although the album was never released.

Tico Torres was also an experienced musician, having recorded and played live with Phantom's Opera, The Marvelettes, and Chuck Berry. He appeared on 26 records and had recently recorded with Franke and the Knockouts, a Jersey band with hit singles during the early 1980s.

David Bryan had quit the band that he and Bon Jovi had founded in order to study medicine. While in college, he realized that he wanted to pursue music full-time, and was accepted to Juilliard School, a New York music school. When Bon Jovi called his friend and said that he was putting together a band, and a record deal looked likely, Bryan followed Bon Jovi's lead and gave up his studies.

Early years (1984–85)

Once the band began playing showcases and opening for local talent, they caught the attention of record executive Derek Shulman, who signed them to Mercury Records and who was part of the PolyGram company. Because Jon Bon Jovi wanted a group name, Pamela Maher, a friend of Richard Fischer and an employee of Doc McGhee, suggested they call themselves Bon Jovi, following the example of the other famous two word bands such as Van Halen. This name was chosen instead of the original idea of Johnny Electric. Pamela's suggestion of the name was met with little enthusiasm, but two years later they hit the charts under that name.

With the help of their new manager Doc McGhee they recorded the band's debut album, Bon Jovi, which was released on January 21, 1984. The album included the band's first hit single, "Runaway", reaching Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 followed by "She Don't Know Me" which was a song Mercury requested Jon record and include on the album as part of his deal. To date, that song remains the only track that has ever been included on a Bon Jovi album for which Jon does not have any writing credit (it was written by Mark Avsec of Donnie Iris and the Cruisers fame).

The group found themselves opening for Scorpions in U.S. and for Kiss in Europe. In August 1984 the band made an appearance at the Super Rock Festival as a special guest in Japan. However, "Runaway" became a hit and Bon Jovi attracted the attention in Japan. Bon Jovi got the very first gold disc for their first album in Japan. The album peaked at #43 on the Billboard 200 album chart in U.S. and a year after its release, it was certified Gold by RIAA.

In 1985, Bon Jovi's second album 7800° Fahrenheit was released. The band released three singles "Only Lonely", "In And Out Of Love" and the ballad "Silent Night". The album peaked at #37 on Billboard 200 and certified Gold in U.S. While the album did not do as well as they'd hoped in terms of sales, it allowed Bon Jovi to get out on the road touring again. Their first Japanese performances as headliner which had been done immediately after the release of the album and eight shows in total became sold-out all, and the album hit the Top 5 and certified Gold in Japan.

In May 1985, Bon Jovi headlined venues in UK and Europe. 7800 Fahrenheit peaked at #28 in UK and #40 in Germany. At the end of the European tour, the band began a 6-month run of U.S. tourdates supporting Ratt. In the midst of that tour they managed to make appearances at the Texas Jam and Castle Donington's Monsters of Rock concerts in England. Jon Bon Jovi also did a solo appearance at the very first Farm Aid in 1985.

Slippery When Wet (1986–87)

Main article: Slippery When Wet

In April 1986 Bon Jovi moved to Vancouver to record their third album.[8] Six months of studio work resulted in Slippery When Wet. The album, produced by Bruce Fairbairn and mixed by Bob Rock, was released in August 1986 and became Bon Jovi's breakthrough album. The first single, "You Give Love a Bad Name", became the band's first #1 single on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles charts. The follow-up single, "Livin' on a Prayer" hit #1 as well, spending four weeks at the top position, both co-written with a young virtually unknown songwriter named Desmond Child (b. John Charles Barrett, 28 October 1953, Gainesville, Florida, USA) whose songwriting talents were recommended by KISS frontman, Paul Stanley. The songwriting partnership of Jon Bon Jovi/ Richie Sambora/ Desmond Child has continued to the present day. The album's third single "Wanted Dead or Alive" was a major Top 10 hit and still remains to this day, the Bon Jovi "National Anthem".

MTV wholeheartedly embraced Bon Jovi, whose camera friendly good looks and live concert videos helped catapult the band into superstardom. With the overwhelming success of Slippery When Wet Bon Jovi had become the worldwide musical superstars they had been dreaming of. Slippery When Wet reached number one in Australia, Canada, Norway, Finland, New Zealand, Switzerland and holds the record for the most weeks for a hard rock album at #1 in U.S., spending 8 weeks at #1 on Billboard 200. The album also hit the Top 10 in Austria, the Netherlands, Japan, and the United Kingdom, spending 107 weeks on UK Albums Chart.

In 1987, Slippery When Wet was named the top selling album of the year by Billboard[9] and "Livin' On A Prayer" won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Stage Performance.[10] In 1988, the band also won an award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band at the American Music Awards[11] and an award for Favorite Rock Group at the People's Choice Awards.[12]

When Slippery When Wet was released in August 1986, Bon Jovi was the support act for 38 Special. By the end of 1986, Bon Jovi were well into six months of headline dates in arenas across America. In August 1987, the band headlined England's "Monsters of Rock" festival. During their set Dee Snider, Bruce Dickinson and Paul Stanley joined the band to perform "We're an American Band". The band ended the year having headlined 130 shows in the "Tour Without End", grossing $28,400,000.

Jon Bon Jovi was asked what all this astronomical success meant, to which he answered, "Everything is bigger, and it moves twice as fast. You're recognized twice as often. This is bigger, the whole world gets bigger. You have to sell more records, be huger. You get smarter and you understand the business a little more, so it's more responsibility. You understand it now, and you want to make sure everything goes right".

Following the group’s success, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora were asked to assist in producing Cher’s ‘comeback’ self-titled album in 1987. Jon and Richie co-wrote and sang backing vocals on Cher’s single "We All Sleep Alone" and also produced several other tracks on the album, later going on to co-produce Cher’s multi-platinum album Heart of Stone in 1989.

New Jersey (1988–90)

Main article: New Jersey (album)

Determined to prove that the success of Slippery When Wet was not a fluke, Bon Jovi released their fourth effort New Jersey in September 1988. The resulting album was a commercial hit. New Jersey spent four consecutive weeks at #1 on Billboard 200 and two weeks on UK Albums Chart.

New Jersey also holds the record for the hard rock album to spawn the most Top 10 singles, with five singles charting on the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart in United States. "Bad Medicine" and the ballad "I'll Be There for You", both of which hit #1 on Billboard Hot 100. The album's three other singles ("Born to Be My Baby", "Lay Your Hands on Me", and "Living in Sin") reached the Top 10 and were huge hits on MTV. Bon Jovi even made the news when the video for "Living In Sin" was banned by MTV for featuring some too racy romance/sex scenes. After that it was re-edited and MTV put it in heavy rotation.
"I'll Be There for You" (1988)
30 second sample of the Hot 100 #1 hit, "I'll Be There for You" by Bon Jovi
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Bon Jovi mounted another huge worldwide tour that continued throughout 1989 and 1990. They visited more than 22 countries and performed more than 232 shows before it was all over. The personal highpoint for the band was their June 11, 1989 sell-out homecoming at Giants Stadium in New Jersey. In August 1989, the band headed to the Soviet Union for the Moscow Music Peace Festival. Bon Jovi were the first band officially sanctioned by the Soviet government to perform in the Soviet Union and New Jersey was released on the state-owned record label, Melodiya, a privilege no Western artist had ever been granted before[citation needed]. Monsters of Rock festival was cancelled in 1989 because of the deaths of two fans during the Guns N' Roses performance in 1988. It was replaced with another rock festival which took place in Milton Keynes with Bon Jovi, Europe, Skid Row, and Vixen as participants.

The non-stop touring was taking its toll on the band. By the end of the New Jersey tour, Bon Jovi had 16 months of concerts under their belt and the band members were exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally. Finally, following the last tour date in Mexico, and without any clear plans for their future, the band members just went home.

Solo albums (1990–91)

Between 1990 and 1991 the band members went their separate ways. The exhaustion of recording both Slippery When Wet and New Jersey back to back, with highly paced world tours after each album, took its toll on the band. The band has since stated that there were few if any goodbyes between them at the end of the New Jersey tour. During the time they took off from the scene, the band retreated to their own interests and showed no desire for making another album.

Jon Bon Jovi recorded a solo album, a soundtrack to the movie Young Guns II more commonly known as Blaze of Glory. Having been originally approached by his friend Emilio Estevez to lend "Wanted Dead Or Alive" as the theme song for his upcoming Billy The Kid sequel, Jon Bon Jovi ended up composing an all new theme song for the film's soundtrack and delivering his first solo album.

Released in 1990, the album featured high profile guests such as Elton John, Little Richard and Jeff Beck. The album fared well commercially and received positive reviews. The title track, "Blaze of Glory" hit #1 in United States. In 1991 "Blaze of Glory" won an award for Favorite Pop/Rock Single at the American Music Awards[13] and awarded a Golden Globe, as well. The song also earned Jon Bon Jovi an Academy Award nomination and a Grammy nomination.

Sambora, with the help of Tico Torres and David Bryan, released a solo album entitled Stranger In This Town, in 1991. The album featured Eric Clapton on the song "Mr. Bluesman". David Bryan recorded a soundtrack for the horror movie The Netherworld, which was the brighter part of that year after he was hospitalized with an illness caused by a South American parasite. Alec John Such took a fall off of his motorcycle which injured his bass-playing hand, forcing him to develop a whole new way to hold and play his instrument.

Disillusioned with the music business, despite all his success, and unhappy with the status quo, in 1991 Jon Bon Jovi fired his management, business advisers, and agents, including his long time manager, Doc McGhee. Jon took on the quarterbacking responsibilities himself by closing ranks and creating Bon Jovi Management.

In October 1991 the band went to a Caribbean island of St. Thomas to discuss plans for the future. They managed to resolve their differences by allowing each member to speak about his feelings without interruption from each other. Upon resolving their issues, they headed back into the Vancouver Little Mountain studios with Bob Rock to work on the band's fifth album in January 1992.

Keep the Faith (1992–93)

Main article: Keep the Faith

Bon Jovi's fifth studio album Keep the Faith was released in November 1992, representing "the beginning of a new chapter in the history of Bon Jovi" and marking a change in the band's sound. To promote Keep The Faith they returned to their roots playing a few dates at the small New Jersey clubs where they had started their career.

The musical tastes had shifted in the four years between New Jersey and Keep the Faith. Despite the industry's and audience's growing affinity for Grunge, Bon Jovi's sound morphed itself to work in the 1990s music scene, and also their image changed. The media focused considerable attention on Jon Bon Jovi’s hair. When Jon Bon Jovi cut his hair he made headlines on CNN.

The album went double platinum in United States and peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200. But on the other side of Atlantic, reaction was even more impressive. The album debuted at #1 in both UK and Australia and reached 5x platinum in Canada and 3x platinum in both Japan and Australia. Keep The Faith was also a huge success in Germany, and sold very well in both Asia and South America, two emerging and growing record markets.

The band appeared on MTV Unplugged in late 1992 but that was different from the other episodes of MTV Unplugged series. The performance captures Bon Jovi in an intimate, "in the round" experience, performing acoustic and electric renditions of classic hits (Bon Jovi and non-Bon Jovi tracks) and new material from Keep the Faith. The concert was released commercially in 1993 as Keep the Faith: An Evening with Bon Jovi.

To mark the beginning of the band's next phase, Bon Jovi embarked on an extensive international tour, visiting countries the band had never seen before and headlining stadiums in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia. They visited 38 countries and performed 177 shows on the Keep the Faith Tour/I'll Sleep When I'm Dead Tour.

Cross Road and These Days (1994–96)

Main articles: Cross Road and These Days (Bon Jovi album)

In October 1994, Bon Jovi released a greatest hits album titled Cross Road, with two new tracks: "Always" and "Someday I'll Be Saturday Night". The first single off of the album, "Always", was a massive hit. "Always" spent six months on the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, hit the #1 in 21 countries certified platinum in the US, sold 3 million copies world wide and became Bon Jovi's highest selling single. That year Bon Jovi won an award for Best Selling Rock Band at the World Music Awards.

That same year, bassist Alec John Such left the band, the first lineup change since Bon Jovi began. Hugh McDonald who was the bassist on "Runaway," unofficially replaced Such as bassist, with rumours that he had also recorded bass on previous albums (McDonald's website lists every Bon Jovi album, with the exception of 7800° Fahrenheit, in the Discography section).

Jon Bon Jovi said, regarding the departure of Such: "Of course it hurts. But I learned to accept and respect it. The fact that I'm a workaholic, studio in, studio out, stage on, stage off, want to be dealing with music day and night, doesn't mean everyone else has to adjust to that pace. Alec wanted to quit for a while now, so it didn't come as a complete surprise."
"This Ain't a Love Song" (1995)
30 second sample from "This Ain't a Love Song" by Bon Jovi
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Bon Jovi's sixth studio album, These Days, was released in June 1995. This was the first album Bon Jovi released after the departure of bassist Alec John Such. Critics responded to These Days much as they had to Keep The Faith, noting that the band had continued to mature lyrically and explore different styles of music, while keeping the music undeniably Bon Jovi. Jon Bon Jovi has stated that even though the album was their darkest, the band was in a very happy place at the time.

The album hit the Top 10 on Billboard 200 and managed to reach Platinum status by the RIAA in U.S. but fared better internationally than in the U.S. The album debuted at #1 in UK where it replaced Michael Jackson's album HIStory at number one on the UK Albums Chart and spent four consecutive weeks at #1.[14] In Japan, the album topped the Oricon chart with sales of 379,000 copies in first week, becoming then-fastest selling album by a non-Japanese artist in history of the country's chart.[15] The lead single This Ain't A Love Song reached #14 in the United States, and was the only significant US hit from the album. However, the album produced four UK Top 10 hits. That year the band earned a BRIT Award for best international band and also won a MTV Europe Music Award for Best Rock.

The world tour that kicked off in India took the band though Asia, Europe, Australia and South America before the band's first-ever shows in South Africa. A career highpoint came in June 1995 when Bon Jovi sold out three-nights at London's historical Wembley Stadium. With film crews in tow, the concerts were documented for Bon Jovi: Live From London, a Grammy-nominated video of their record-breaking appearance. Bon Jovi visited 35 countries and performed 126 shows on These Days tour.

Hiatus (1997–99)

Following the overwhelming success of the These Days Tour, the members of Bon Jovi went their separate ways. But unlike the period following the New Jersey tour, tainted with uncertainty, this hiatus was a conscious group decision. The members of Bon Jovi agreed to a self-imposed two-year sabbatical from the band.

In 1997, Jon Bon Jovi landed lead roles in several movies. While he was free between filming different movies, Jon wrote what would become his second solo album, 1997's Destination Anywhere. A short movie of the same name was recorded around the record's release, based entirely on the songs from the record and starring Jon Bon Jovi, Demi Moore, Kevin Bacon and Whoopi Goldberg.

Tico Torres used the opportunity to further pursue his painting while David Bryan started writing and composing various musicals. In 1998, Richie Sambora released his second solo outing titled Undiscovered Soul.

Bon Jovi reunited in 1999 to record the song "Real Life" for the movie EdTV minus Bryan who was recovering from an accident in which he nearly severed his finger. In 1999 Bon Jovi was ready to release a new album, under the working title Sex Sells; however, the album was suspended, and only three of more than thirty songs written were used for Crush. (In the "Real Life" music video you can see some posters of this album.)[16]

Crush and One Wild Night (2000–01)

Main article: Crush (Bon Jovi album)

After a nearly four-year hiatus, during which several band members worked on independent projects, Bon Jovi regrouped in 1999 to begin work on their next studio album. In June 2000, Crush was released as the band's seventh studio album. The first single "It's My Life" was noted as one of the group’s most successful releases in a decade and most importantly, becoming a symbol of the band's longevity as they prevailed through many different changes in the mainstream rock scene with admirable success. The album helped introduce them to a new, younger fan base. That year the band received two Grammy nominations for Best Rock Album Crush and Best Rock Performance by Duo/Group "It's My Life". The video for "It's My Life" won the My VH1 Music Awards for "My Favorite Video". VH1 also featured the band on the episodes of Behind The Music in 2000.
"Thank You For Loving Me" (2000)
30 second sample from "Thank You For Loving Me" by Bon Jovi
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Bon Jovi played stadiums in Japan and Europe over the summer of 2000 including two sold-out concerts at London's historic Wembley Stadium, becoming the last ever concerts held at the legendary venue before its demolition. That summer the band played to more than one million fans in less than 30 shows. Upon their return to the U.S. the band did a sold-out arena tour in the Fall of 2000, followed in the Spring of 2001 with a sold-out arena–amphitheatre run of dates in America. They revisited stadiums in Japan and Europe including their first date in Wales at The Millenium Stadium. After this they had one more lap of shed dates in America. Bon Jovi sold out two homecoming concerts at New Jersey's Giants Stadium. Concerts were not only fulfilling career and personal highlights for the band but the broadcast broke ratings records for the VH-1 network.

Main article: One Wild Night Live 1985–2001

While on tour, Bon Jovi released a collection of live performances from throughout their career in an album entitled One Wild Night Live 1985–2001. This was Bon Jovi's first-ever live album. The songs were culled from archives of recorded material the band had been collecting from their earliest days on the road right through the current tour.

The band awarded for "Hottest Live Show" at the 2001 My VH1 Music Awards At this awards show, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora surprised a live theatre full of attendees and a live television audience with a beautiful rendition of "Here Comes The Sun" as a tribute to George Harrison.

When the Crush and One Wild Night tours were complete, the members of the band had anticipated a brief vacation before work would begin on the band's 8th studio album. But on September 11, the world changed. Within days of the terrorist attacks, Jon and Richie had filmed Public Service Announcements for the Red Cross, recorded "America The Beautiful" for the NFL and performed as part of the historic America: A Tribute to Heroes live telethon. One month later, the band participated at two Monmouth County Alliance of Neighbors concerts in Red Bank, NJ to raise funds for the families close the band's hometowns, which were affected by the World Trade Center disaster. And on October 21, 2001, Bon Jovi performed at the monumental Concert For New York at Madison Square Garden, raising relief funds and honoring those who worked to save lives during the attack. Bon Jovi also released a second greatest hits album titled Tokyo Road in 2001.

Bounce and This Left Feels Right (2002–04)

Main articles: Bounce (Bon Jovi album) and Bounce (Bon Jovi song)

In spring 2002, the group entered the studio to begin recording their eighth studio album. The title Bounce was a reference to New York City's and the United States' ability to bounce back from the World Trade Center attacks as a nation, and also referred to the band's ability to bounce back to popularity over the years. Bounce represented a return to Bon Jovi's "roots" with Richie Sambora playing heavily distorted guitars, gravelly vocals by Jon, keyboard effects and piano's by David Bryan and booming drums by Tico Torres. Jon Bon Jovi noted that "Bounce" was mainly a "Jon and Richie album." However, this return to a more "classic Bon Jovi" sound, while a relief to some fans[who?], also brought out some critics that accused the band of being too "formulaic," a criticism that had been leveled at the band in the past[citation needed].

The first single off the album, "Everyday," was nominated at the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. The band went on the Bounce Tour for this album, during which they made history as the last band to play Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia before it was torn down.

Main article: This Left Feels Right

Following the end of the Bounce Tour in August 2003, Bon Jovi embarked on a side project; originally intending to produce an album consisting of live acoustic performances, the band ended up rewriting, re-recording and reinventing 12 of their biggest hits in a new and much different light. This Left Feels Right was released in November 2003.

Main article: 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong

The following year, the band released a box set entitled 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong, the title being a homage to Elvis Presley's 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong. The set consisted of four CDs packed with 38 unreleased and 12 rare tracks, as well as a DVD. The box set marked the sales of 100 million Bon Jovi albums and also commemorated the 20th anniversary of the release of the band's first record in 1984.

In November 2004, Bon Jovi was honored with the Award for Merit at the American Music Awards, where they performed a sneak preview of an unfinished song, "Have a Nice Day."

Have a Nice Day (2005–06)

Main article: Have a Nice Day (Bon Jovi album)

Bon Jovi participated in Live 8 on July 2, 2005, where they debuted the full, final version of "Have a Nice Day", alongside "Livin' on a Prayer" and "It's My Life". Bon Jovi's ninth studio album, Have a Nice Day, was released in September 2005. "Have A Nice Day", the first single off the album. The second single, "Who Says You Can't Go Home", was released in the U.S. in early 2006. In the U.S., a duet version of "Who Says You Can't Go Home" with country singer Jennifer Nettles of the band Sugarland was released, they also released "Welcome to Wherever You Are" as the third single. And in May 2006, Bon Jovi became the first Rock & Roll Band to have a #1 hit on Billboard's Hot Country Chart. On February 11, 2007, Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles won the Grammy Award, for "Best Country Collaboration with Vocals" for "Who Says You Can't Go Home". The band also won an award for Favorite Rock Song at the People's Choice Awards with "Who Says You Can't Go Home".[17]

Soon after the release of Have A Nice Day, the band started gearing up for the new 2005–2006 worldwide Have A Nice Day Tour. This tour, being shorter than previous ones with only seventy-five shows originally planned, took the band to numerous stages and stadiums throughout the world. The tour was a significant commercial success, as the group played to 2,002,000 fans, and the tour grossed a total $191 million. The tour was the third-highest-grossing tour of 2006 taking in just over $131 million, just behind The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang World Tour and Madonna's Confessions Tour. On November 14, 2006, Bon Jovi were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame alongside James Brown and Led Zeppelin.

Lost Highway (2007–08)

Main article: Lost Highway (Bon Jovi album)

In June 2007, Bon Jovi released their tenth studio album, Lost Highway. The album influences the band's rock sound with that of country music following the success of a country version of the band's 2006 single "Who Says You Can't Go Home", a duet with Jennifer Nettles.

To promote the new album, Bon Jovi made several television appearances, including the 6th annual CMT Awards in Nashville, American Idol, and MTV Unplugged, as well as playing at the Live Earth concert at Giants Stadium.[18] They also performed ten promotional gigs in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Japan. As part of the 'tour', Bon Jovi were the first group to perform at London's new O2 Arena (formerly the Millennium Dome) when it opened to the public on June 24, 2007. The 23,000-seater stadium sold out within 30 minutes of tickets being released.[19]

Lost Highway topped the charts in United States, The Netherlands, Japan, Australia, Europe, and Canada. The album was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album and the album's first single "(You Want To) Make a Memory" was nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 2008 Grammy Awards. The album's third single "Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore" won the CMT Music Award for the Collaborative Video of the Year in 2008.[20] Presenter LeAnn Rimes accepted the award on behalf of the band, as Bon Jovi was not at the awards ceremony.[21] The song was also nominated for the Academy of Country Music Award for Vocal Event of the Year.[22]

In October 2007 the band announced the Lost Highway Tour. Starting with the 10 shows to open the brand new, Newark, New Jersey Prudential Center, the band toured Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, the U.S. and then Europe, finishing in the summer. In early December 2007 the band took time off from their Canadian tour to become the first ever American band to headline the Royal Variety Performance in Liverpool, England, performing in front of the Queen herself.[23] While the band was on tour in Australia, Bon Jovi have landed eight albums in ARIA Charts in the wake of their first tour in 12 years.

The tour was the highest grossing tour of 2008 in Billboard's rankings, with ticket sales of $210.6 million, reported from November 14, 2007 through Nov.11, 2008.[24] In all, 2,157,675 tickets were sold during 2008.[24] Combined with $16.4 million in 2007 from the Newark shows, making a combined gross of $227 million in ticket sales. In Pollstar's calculus for North America, the Lost Highway Tour had the highest gross for 2008 at $70.4 million.[25]

The Circle and Greatest Hits (2009–2011)

Main articles: The Circle (Bon Jovi album) and Greatest Hits (Bon Jovi album)

In April 2009, Phil Griffin's documentary on the band, "When We Were Beautiful", debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival, chronicling Bon Jovi's ups and downs over 25 years and following the band on their latest Lost Highway tour.

In June 2009, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora were inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame. That month they also recorded a cover of the song "Stand By Me" with Iranian singer Andy Madadian, to show solidarity for those affected by political unrest in Iran. Parts of the song were sung in Persian.

On November 10, 2009, the band released their 11th studio album, entitled The Circle. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 163 000 copies in its first week. The album is a return to rock n' roll after their Nashville influenced album, Lost Highway. To promote the album, Bon Jovi performed "We Weren't Born to Follow", the first single off the album, on the result show of the rock week of the TV show, The X-Factor. The song also was performed during the Fest der Freiheit on November 9 in Berlin, a memorial for the Fall of the Berlin Wall. Bon Jovi headed out on the road once again on February 19, 2010, embarking on The Circle Tour. In 2011, the tour morphed into Bon Jovi Live.[26]

In May 2009 special editions of Bon Jovi albums from 1984 to 2007 were released, featuring new artwork and photos from the time period of when the albums were released and live recordings of select songs on the album recorded on the tour that supported the album.

Bon Jovi had planned to release a greatest hits album in 2009, but the project got sidelined after the group came up with enough material for a brand new studio album.[27] In July 2010 Bon Jovi posted pictures on their Facebook page from the photo shoot for the Greatest Hits album. The first single from the Greatest Hits, titled "What Do You Got?" was released on August 27, 2010. In October 2010 full versions of the remaining three new songs were released on bonjovi.com. It has been confirmed that the new Greatest Hits album will be made available as downloadable content for Rock Band 3.[28]

In September 2010, Bon Jovi was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. At the 2010 MTV Europe Music Awards on November 7, Bon Jovi received the Global Icon Award from Eva Longoria, and closed the awards ceremony with "What Do You Got?", "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "It's My Life".[29][30]

On January 12th 2012, Jon Bon Jovi stated that the band are writing up a storm for their next album. [31]

Musical style/genres

Bon Jovi's musical style has generally been characterized as 'hard rock', 'pop/hair metal', 'arena rock' and 'pop rock', although they have also experimented and varied from these genres at times.[32]

The band's first four albums blended the pop metal and hard rock genres, although they had mostly shed the pop metal sound by their fifth studio album, Keep the Faith, and their sixth, These Days, utilizing a more mature hard rock sound. Crush was characterized as "far enough into pop/rock to actually stand a chance of getting airplay", while Bounce was described as "heavy, serious rock". Have a Nice Day was also characterized as being heavier than Crush.[33]

The band altered their sound dramatically in their next release, Lost Highway, blending influences from country music and country rock, a sound Jon Bon Jovi described as "a Bon Jovi album influenced by Nashville". Bon Jovi returned to a more typical rock sound on The Circle, which was described by Allmusic as "conjured by echoed, delayed guitars, shimmering keyboards, and spacious rhythms."[34]

Band members

Current members
Additional musicians
Past members
Unofficial members

Discography

Main articles: Bon Jovi discography and List of Bon Jovi songs

Awards and Nominations

Grammy Awards

Year Nominated work Award Result
1997 "Live From London" Best Music Video, Long Form Nominated
2001 "It's My Life" Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group Nominated
2001 "Crush" Best Rock Album Nominated
2003 "Everyday" Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group Nominated
2004 "Misunderstood" Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group Nominated
2007 "Who Says You Can't Go Home" with Jennifer Nettles Best Country Collaboration with Vocals Won
2008 "Lost Highway" Best Pop Album Nominated
2008 "(You Want To) Make a Memory" Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group Nominated
2010 "We Weren't Born to Follow" Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group Nominated

MTV Video Music Awards

Year Nominated work Award Result
1987 "Livin' on a Prayer" Best Stage Performance Won
1987 "You Give Love a Bad Name" Best Stage Performance Nominated
1991 "Bon Jovi" Video Vanguard Award Won

American Music Award's

Year Nominated work Award Result
1988 "Bon Jovi" Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Won
1988 "Slippery When Wet" Favorite Pop/Rock Album Nominated
1988 "Livin' on a Prayer" Favorite Pop/Rock Single Nominated
1990 "Bon Jovi" Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Nominated
1990 "I'll Be There for You" Favorite Pop/Rock Single Nominated
2004 "Bon Jovi" Award of Merit Won

Tours

Solo tours

References

  • Chow, Jason (2006). Dimery, Robert. ed. 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Quintet Publishing Limited. ISBN 0-7893-1371-5. 
    • Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. London: Rough Guides. ISBN 1-85828-201-2. 

Notes

  1. ^ "Bon Jovi History". Historyking.com. http://www.historyking.com/Music-History/Bon-Jovi-History.html. Retrieved 2009-06-01. 
  2. ^ Gary Graff (November 6, 2010). "Bon Jovi ‘Hits’ collection out Tuesday with four new tunes". The Oakland Press. http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2010/11/06/entertainment/doc4cd4221167dfa777403506.txt. Retrieved 2010-11-18. 
  3. ^ "Bon Jovi: When We Were Beautiful". Top 40 Charts.com. 2009-04-06. http://top40-charts.com/news/Metal-Hard-Rock/BON-JOVI-WHEN-WE-WERE-BEAUTIFUL--Documentary-Celebrates-Bands-25-Year-Career/47464.html. Retrieved 2009-06-01. 
  4. ^ "Bon Jovi to enter UK Hall of Fame". BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation). 2006-10-16. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6055938.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-01. 
  5. ^ "Bon Jovi honored at American Music Awards". The Sydney Morning Herald. November 15, 2004. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/11/15/1100384463983.html?from=storyrhs. 
  6. ^ "Jon Bon Jovi inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame". Songwritershalloffame.org. http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibits/C6013. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  7. ^ "Richie Sambora inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame". Songwritershalloffame.org. http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibits/C6014. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  8. ^ "Bon Jovi: Summary". TV.com. CBS Interactive. http://www.tv.com/bon-jovi/person/591904/summary.html. Retrieved 2009-06-01. 
  9. ^ "1987". Billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=The+Billboard+200&g=Year-end+Albums&year=1987. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  10. ^ "Metrolyrics.com". Metrolyrics.com. 1987-09-11. http://www.metrolyrics.com/1987-mtv-video-music-awards.html. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  11. ^ "Rockin' on music awards night". News.google.com. 1988-02-02. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=k_YaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ikcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3222,293008&dq=bon+jovi+american+music+awards&hl=en. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  12. ^ "1988 Pcavote.com". Peopleschoice.com. http://www.peopleschoice.com/pca/awards/nominees/index.jsp?year=1988. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  13. ^ "Rappers dominate music awards". News.google.com. 1991-01-28. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VTgdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2aUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5690,6330505&dq=bon+jovi+american+music+awards&hl=en. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  14. ^ "UK Charts". Everyhit.com. http://www.everyhit.com/searchsec.php. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  15. ^ "海外グループの歴代アルバム初動売上記録TOP3". oricon.co.jp. Oricon Style. http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/rankmusic/73631/full/#rk_top3. Retrieved 　May 4, 2010. 
  16. ^ "Everything Bon Jovi". http://www.everythingbonjovi.com/Discography/Albums/132-Sex-Sells. 
  17. ^ "2007 Pcavote.com". Peopleschoice.com. http://www.peopleschoice.com/pca/awards/nominees/index.jsp?year=2007. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  18. ^ "MSN.com". Liveearth.msn.com. http://liveearth.msn.com/artists/bonjovi. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  19. ^ "Bon Jovi sell out first Dome gig". BBC News. April 20, 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6575577.stm. Retrieved July 8, 2009. 
  20. ^ "2008 Winners". CMT. 2008. http://www.cmt.com/microsites/cmt-music-awards/2008/winners.jhtml. Retrieved 2009-04-07. 
  21. ^ "Backstage With Rascal Flatts, LeAnn Rimes, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss". CMT. 2008-04-16. http://www.cmt.com/news/country-music/1585690/backstage-with-rascal-flatts-leann-rimes-robert-plant-and-alison-krauss.jhtml. Retrieved 2009-04-07. 
  22. ^ "43rd Academy of Country Music Awards". CBS. http://www.cbs.com/specials/43acma/. Retrieved 2009-04-07. 
  23. ^ "Bon Jovi top Royal Variety bill". BBC News. 2007-11-06. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7080509.stm. Retrieved 2007-11-10. 
  24. ^ a b Waddell, Ray (2008-12-11). "Bon Jovi Scores 2008's Top-Grossing Tour". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/bon-jovi-scores-2008-s-top-grossing-tour-1003921575.story. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  25. ^ "Madonna biggest 2008 North American tour attraction". Reuters. Yahoo! News. 2008-12-30. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081230/music_nm/us_tours. Retrieved 2008-12-31. [dead link]
  26. ^ "Bon Jovi Announces Meadowlands Concerts". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/news/bon-jovi-announces-meadowlands-concerts-1004029629.story. Retrieved 2009-12-30. 
  27. ^ "Bon Jovi plans new greatest hits for 2010". http://www.therockradio.com/2009/11/bon-jovi-plans-new-greatest-hits-for.html. 
  28. ^ Christopher Dring. "Bon Jovi signs up for Rock Band 3". http://www.mcvuk.com/news/41231/Bon-Jovi-signs-up-for-Rock-Band-3. Retrieved October 30, 2010. 
  29. ^ Bon Jovi to Receive Global Icon Award at MTV Europe Awards Billboard. Retrieved April 19 2012
  30. ^ 2010 EMA | Bon Jovi | What Do You Got?, You Give Love a Bad Name, It's My Life MTV. Retrieved April 19 2012
  31. ^ "note from JBJ". http://www.bonjovi.com/story/news-backstage_jbj/new-note-from-jbj. Retrieved February 26, 2012. 
  32. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Allmusic". http://www.allmusic.com/artist/bon-jovi-p3734/biography. Retrieved 13 April 2011. 
  33. ^ Thomas, Stephen (2005-09-20). "Have a Nice Day - Bon Jovi". AllMusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/have-a-nice-day-r790894. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 
  34. ^ Thomas, Stephen (2009-11-10). "The Circle - Bon Jovi". AllMusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-circle-r1675189. Retrieved 2011-07-18. 

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Bon Jovi
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Bon Jovi
7800° Fahrenheit
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One Wild Night Live 1985–2001
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100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong
  • "The Radio Saved My Life Tonight" (promo single)
Have a Nice Day
Lost Highway
The Circle
Greatest Hits
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Jon Bon Jovi solo singles
Richie Sambora solo singles
  • "Ballad of Youth"
  • "One Light Burning"
  • "Stranger in this Town"
  • "Hard Times Come Easy"
  • "In It for Love"
  • "Undiscovered Soul"
  • "Made in America"
Billboard Year-End number one albums (1970–1989)

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