I am positively sure that the majority of classic rock music fans adore or have at least once in their life headbanged to songs such as “You Give Love a Bad Name”, “Bad Medicine” or “Runaway” by Bon Jovi. But how much do we really know about one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time?
Bon Jovi have been one of rock ‘n’ roll’s biggest success stories, even after the departure of Jon Bon Jovi’s longtime songwriting partner and lead guitarist Richie Sambora. The band launched their career in the glam and pop-metal scene back in the early 80s and ever since then they haven’t stopped selling out shows and providing first class acts. Many glam rock bands lost their spark and eventually faded away. However, Bon Jovi somehow managed to jump from one decade to another with more strength and diversity than any other rock band. Of course, the fact that they had one of the most charismatic and talented rockstars in the world as their frontman also helped a little (a lot)…
Throughout the years, Bon Jovi released hundreds of hits and crossed-over various styles and genres – an achievement which we can’t but admire. With powerful songwriting skills, catchy tunes and sensational albums, the band won over millions of fans. I am sure that many devoted fans are quite familiar with the band’s story and the interesting background events and details that surround their career. However, for those of you who love Bon Jovi’s songs but don’t know much about them, I prepared a little appreciation publication that will list a few pieces of additional information about the band. I hope you guys enjoy it!
1.So far, the band has released 14 studio albums, 5 compilation albums and two live albums. Furthermore, the band has 58 music videos, 14 video albums and 57 singles in total.
2. Bon Jovi’s third studio album – “Slippery When Wet” was released in 1986 and up to date is their best-selling album. It was certified 12 times Platinum by the RIAA and spent 94 weeks on the Billboard album chart. The album spawned four singles, three of which – “You Give Love a Bad Name”, “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “Wanted Dead or Alive” are considered to be their most instantly-recognizable, career-defining and commercially successful songs.
3. Bon Jovi’s lineup has remained solid throughout their 30+ year career. The only exception was the dismissal of bass player Alec John Such in 1994 (unofficially replaced by Hugh McDonald) and the departure of longtime songwriter and guitarist Richie Sambora in 2013. Not many bands can brag about such static lineup.
4. In terms of awards and achievements, among the numerous nominations, the band has won one Grammy award in 2007 (Best Country Collaboration with Vocals for the song “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” featuring Jennifer Nettles), two World Music awards in 1995 and 2005 for bestselling rock artist and a global icon award in 2010 during MTV Europe Music Awards. In addition, both Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora were inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009.
5. Despite having 27 hit singles in the USA, Bon Jovi, never topped the charts in the UK. The closest they got was in 1994 with their hit single “Always” which reached #2 on the UK chart.
6. The band’s second album – “7800° Fahrenheit”, released in 1985 was titled as such because that’s the temperature at which rock melts.
7. So far, Bon Jovi have performed more than 2,700 concerts in over 50 countries around the world. They have organized 17 concert tours in total (from 1984 to 2015).Their last one – “Bon Jovi Live!” marked the first tour without guitarist Richie Sambora and was staged in support of their 2015 album “Burning Bridges”.
8. The original guitarist of Jon Bon Jovi lasted for just a few weeks in the band. Dave “The Snake” Sabo was almost immediately replaced by Richie Sambora. What happened with Dave? Well, he went on to form another very successful and loved rock band – Skid Row.
9. Bon Jovi’s first number one hit single – “You Give Love a Bad Name” was almost given to another band – Canadian rockers called “Loverboy”. However, before doing so, Jon and Richie decided to keep it for themselves. (…and thank God they did!!)
10. Bon Jovi were originally supposed to be called “Johnny Electric”. However, a friend of them suggested that they should follow Van Halen’s example and take the leader’s last name as the band’s name.
- [+ 1 ] Jon Bon Jovi actually owns the band. This means that the other members are his employees. The management worked quite well, as Jon is the only one who makes any management or business decisions. Quite unique business relationship, don’t you think? He is also the only one signed to the record label.
Credits:
“10 Facts about Bon Jovi”, retrieved from http://gulfnews.com
“Bon Jovi Artist Facts”, retrieved from http://www.songfacts.com
P.S. I don’t own any audio or visual material used in this publication. All the credits go to the owners and/or right holders.
MY ROCK MIXTAPES 
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