Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi is an American hard rock band from Sayreville ^{Sayreville, New Jersey} , New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald ^{Hugh McDonald (musician)} . The band's line-up has remained mostly static during their 26-year history, the only exception being the departure of Alec John Such in 1994, who was unofficially replaced by Hugh McDonald ^{Hugh McDonald (musician)} . The band have become known for writing several rock anthems, and achieved widespread recognition with their third album Slippery When Wet, released in 1986. Bon Jovi are well-known for songs including "Livin' on a Prayer", which has become their signature song, as well as "You Give Love a Bad Name ^{You Give Love a Bad Name (song)} ", "Wanted Dead or Alive ^{Wanted Dead or Alive (Bon Jovi song)} ", "Bad Medicine ^{Bad Medicine (song)} ", "Keep the Faith ^{Keep the Faith (Bon Jovi song)} ", "Bed of Roses ^{Bed of Roses (song)} ", "Always ^{Always (Bon Jovi song)} ", "It's My Life ^{It's My Life (Bon Jovi song)} " and "Have a Nice Day ^{Have a Nice Day (Bon Jovi song)} ". Their latest hit single is "We Weren't Born to Follow."

After prolifically touring and recording during the late 1980s, the band went on hiatus following 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 and have since created successful albums throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Their 2000 single "It's My Life ^{It's My Life (Bon Jovi song)} ", which followed a second hiatus, successfully introduced the band to a younger audience. Bon Jovi have been known to use different styles in their music, which have ranged to country ^{country music} for their 2007 album Lost Highway ^{Lost Highway (album)} . Their latest album, The Circle ^{The Circle (Bon Jovi album)} , was released on 10 November 2009 in the United States.

Throughout their career, the band have released eleven studio albums, two compilation albums and one live album, and have sold over 120 million albums worldwide. They have performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans, and were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006. The band was also honored with the Award of Merit at the American Music Awards in 2004, and as songwriters and collaborators, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009.

 
Formation (1982-83)



Jon Bon Jovi began playing piano and guitar at thirteen with his first band 'Raze'. At the age of sixteen Bon Jovi met David Bryan (b. David Bryan Rashbaum, 7 February 1962 Edison, New Jersey) and formed the 12-piece cover band Atlantic City Expressway. They played New Jersey clubs even though they were minors. 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 mid-1982, out of school and working part time in a women's shoe store, Bon Jovi took a job at the Power Station Studios ^{Avatar Studios} , a Manhattan recording facility where his cousin Tony Bongiovi was co-owner. Bon Jovi made several demos ^{demo (music)} – including one produced by Billy Squier – and sent them to record companies but failed to make an impact.

Bon Jovi visited the local radio station WAPP 103.5FM "The Apple" in Lake Success ^{Lake Success, New York} , New York. He spoke directly to the promotion director John Lassman, who accepted the song "Runaway ^{Runaway (Bon Jovi song)} " 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 "Runaway". 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 ^{Hugh McDonald (musician)} .

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. November 14, 1951, Perth Amboy, New Jersey) ex-Phantom's Opera and an experienced drummer named Tico Torres (b. Hector Samuel Juan Torres, 7 October 1953 New York City).

Tapped to play lead guitar was Bon Jovi's neighbor, Dave Sabo (a.k.a. The Snake) (b. David Michael Sabo, September 16, 1964, North Brunswick, New Jersey, USA) who later formed the group Skid Row ^{Skid Row (heavy metal band)} . 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 ^{Mercy (band)} and had been called up to audition for Kiss ^{Kiss (band)} . 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 he and Bon Jovi founded in order to study medicine. While in college, he realized he wanted to pursue music full-time and was accepted to Juilliard School, the New York music school. When Bon Jovi called his friend and said 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, part of the PolyGram company. Because Jon Bon Jovi wanted a group name, Pamela Maher a friend of Richard Fischer, an employee of Doc McGhee, suggested they call themselves Bon Jovi, following the example of the other famous two word band Van Halen. This name was chosen instead of the original idea of Johny Electric. Pamela's suggestion of the name was met with little enthusiasm, but two years later they hit the charts under that name.

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With the help of their new manager Doc McGhee they recorded the band's debut album, Bon Jovi ^{Bon Jovi (album)} , which was released on January 21, 1984. The album included the band's first hit single, "Runaway ^{Runaway (Bon Jovi song)} ". The group found themselves opening for ZZ Top at Madison Square Garden (before their first album had been released), and for Scorpions ^{Scorpions (band)} and Kiss ^{Kiss (band)} in the US and Europe. They also made an appearance on the popular television program American Bandstand.

In 1985, Bon Jovi's second album 7800° Fahrenheit was released. 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. In April and May 1985, Bon Jovi headlined venues in Europe and Japan. In May, 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 Donnington'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)

In April 1986, Bon Jovi moved to Vancouver to record their third album..


Crush, and One Wild Night (2000–01)

After a nearly three-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 ^{Crush (Bon Jovi album)} was released as the band's seventh studio album. The first single "It's My Life ^{It's My Life (Bon Jovi song)} " 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 sold over eight million copies worldwide and 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.



Bon Jovi played stadiums in Japan and Europe over the summer of 2000 including two sold-out concerts at London's historic Wembley Stadium ^{Wembley Stadium (1923)} , 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 before 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.

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)

In spring 2002, the group entered the studio to begin recording their eighth studio album, the title, Bounce ^{Bounce (album)} was a reference not only to New York City's and the United States' ability to bounce back from the World Trade Center attacks as a nation but, it also referred to Bon Jovi, the band's ability to bounce back again and again, 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 , 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 .

The first single off the album "Everyday ^{Everyday (Bon Jovi song)} ", 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. Following the end of the Bounce Tour in August 2003, Bon Jovi embarked on a 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.

The following year, the band released a box set entitled 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong, the title being an 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 (Bon Jovi song)} ".


Have A Nice Day (2005–06)

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 ^{Have a Nice Day (Bon Jovi album)} , was released in September 2005. "Have A Nice Day ^{Have a Nice Day (Bon Jovi song)} ", 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 ^{Sugarland (band)} was released, 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 Best Rock Song at the People's Choice Awards with "Who Says You Can't Go Home."

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 ^{Madonna (entertainer)} '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)

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In June 2007, Bon Jovi released their tenth studio album, Lost Highway ^{Lost Highway (album)} . 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 ^{Live Earth concert, New York City} . 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 ^{The O2 arena (London)} (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. Reviews for the CD were not very strong. Rolling Stone said "This was a very weak effort. To be honest, this has been a terrible band for the last 3 albums."

Lost Highway topped the charts in United States, Japan, Australia, Europe, and Canada. The album was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album and the albums 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 albums third single "Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore" won the CMT Music Award for the Collaborative Video of the Year in 2008. Presenter LeAnn Rimes accepted the award on behalf of the band, as Bon Jovi was not at the awards ceremony. The song was also nominated for the Academy of Country Music Award for Vocal Event of the Year.

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. 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. In all, 2,157,675 tickets were sold during 2008.


The Circle (2009–present)


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 Circle (Bon Jovi album)} . 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 X Factor (UK)} . The song also was performed during the Fest der Freiheit on November 9 in Berlin, a memorial for the Fall of the Berlin Wall.

On December 12, 2009, Bon Jovi were ranked #9 on Billboard's top 25 touring artists of the decade after grossing (US)$419,481,741 from 249 shows, of which 244 were sellouts.

On January 31, 2010, Bon Jovi performed for the first time at the 52nd annual Grammy Awards. They performed the songs “We Weren’t Born to Follow” off their new album The Circle, “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” from their album Have A Nice Day, and fans voted for the last song and chose “Livin’ on a Prayer.” Bon Jovi was nominated for a 2010 Grammy for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for "We Weren't Born To Follow."

Bon Jovi headed out on the road once again on February 19, 2010, embarking on The Circle Tour, their largest tour since the Jersey Syndicate tour in the late 1980s. When it concludes in 2011, the tour will have consisted of 135 shows in 30 countries.;Current members
*Jon Bon Jovi – lead vocals, guitar (1983–present)
*Richie Sambora – guitar, backing vocals, talkbox (1983–present)
*Tico Torres – drums, percussion (1983–present)
*David Bryan – keyboards, piano, backing vocals (1983–present)
*Hugh McDonald ^{Hugh McDonald (musician)} – bass, backing vocals (1994–present)

;Touring musicians
*Bobby Bandiera – guitar, backing vocals (2003–present – live only)
*Jeff Kazee – organ, additional keyboards, backing vocals (2003–06 – live only)
*Lorenza Ponce ^{Lorenza Ponce (musician)} – violin, backing vocals (2007–09 – live)
*Kurt Johnston ^{Kurt Johnston (musician)} – pedal steel, backing vocals (2007 – live)

;Former members
*Alec John Such – bass, backing vocals (1983–94). Returned for one live performance of "Wanted Dead or Alive" in New Jersey in 2001.;'Studio albums'

*Bon Jovi ^{Bon Jovi (album)} (1984)
*7800° Fahrenheit (1985)
*Slippery When Wet (1986)
*New Jersey ^{New Jersey (album)} (1988)
*Keep the Faith (1992)
*These Days ^{These Days (Bon Jovi album)} (1995)
*Crush ^{Crush (Bon Jovi album)} (2000)
*Bounce ^{Bounce (album)} (2002)
*Have a Nice Day ^{Have a Nice Day (Bon Jovi album)} (2005)
*Lost Highway ^{Lost Highway (album)} (2007)
*The Circle ^{The Circle (Bon Jovi album)} (2009)


;'Compilation albums'

*In Brazil: LP (1988)
*Cross Road: Greatest Hits (1994)
*Tokyo Road: Best of Bon Jovi (2001)
*This Left Feels Right (2003)

;'Live albums'
*One Wild Night Live 1985-2001 (2001)

;'Box Sets'
*100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong (2004)*Bon Jovi Tour
*7800 Degrees Fahrenheit Tour
*Slippery When Wet Tour
*New Jersey Syndicate Tour
*Keep the Faith Tour
*These Days Tour
*Crush Tour
*One Wild Night Tour
*Bounce Tour
*Have a Nice Day Tour
*Lost Highway Tour
*The Circle Tour