Here's the first part:

Bon Jovi in 1985: "I sing of lust, not love!"

Bon Jovi Rockin' All Over The World
Text: Juho Juntunen
Pics: Harri Ahola

Originally published in Soundi 6/1985

Jon Bongiovi is exactly at the right place in exactly the time. I've just finished opening the first bottle with my teeth as this pretty-face storms in, flashes a blinding smile and starts shaking my hand. Rings the size of matchboxes scratch my fingers as I check the rings on his hand: his ring fingers and forefinger are decorated with a leopard, skull with a top hat and a snake in attack pose.

- Beautiful!, Jon says and wiggles his rings.

I shake my top and try to see what color are the eyes hidden behind black sunglasses. I can't. Jon flashes a new smile and bares about 10 inches of white teeth. His massive hair moves as he sits next to me.

Okay, this guy is born to be a rock star, I excitedly think and ask Jon if I'm right.

- During my last few years in school, I knew clearly that I would become a rock star, the 23-year-old admits. - I didn't want to get in the business to become rich or to buy things. I wanted to get girls. And besides, I have an attitude.

Jon lifts his leg on the table and pokes his torn-knee jeans with his finger.

- See, this is my attitude. I woke up this morning, thinking I would wear some nice pants and talk friendly to everyone. But then I thought about it again. Wait a minute! I'm not doing this for anyone. That's my attitude.

Jon spends a minute lookign at his bony knees.

- Yeah, maybe it pays to look poor. The people will pity me and give me money.

Jon Bongiovi's childhood wasn't exactly poor. His father is a hair-dresser and Jon himself made nice pocket money in school by playing the clubs in New Jersey.

- It's only 7 years ago. Then the music scene in NJ was still wild. Bruce Srpingsteen and Southside Johnne had just risen to the top and rock was played everywhere. A few years ago NJ collapsed. Because of the new alcohol laws the clubs had to raise the age-limit to 21 and it's not worth getting bands to perform in those places anymore.

- In any case, during my last years in school, I played in a 10-piece band that had horns as well - it was kind of Southside-influenced rock. The gigs were basically in the middle of the week, so as I got to bed at 3 am, I wasn't at my sharpest the next day at school. My eyes were red, so I used to wear shades all the time and sleep at my desk. The teachers hated me. I passed the finals on mercy. The teachers yelled at me that now that I was finished, I should get the **** out.

So you were the bad boy on NJ?

- No. I was to good boy. Now that I've met my teachers in the recent years, also the ones that hated me, they've come to hug me and tell me how great my albums are.

After school Jon Bongivovi got a job at a recodring studio where his fathers cousin Tony Bongiovi worked as a producer. Tony has produced Aerosmith, Carlene Carter, Meco, Talking Heads and early Ramones. Jon's job was to sweep the studio floors and hallways and with his broom he met people like Mick Jagger, Meat Loaf and Southside Johnny.

- I was just a sweeper, nothing more. But I got to try out the studio equipment late at nights or very early in the mornings and that's when I met Billy Squier and Aldo Nove, who became a good friend of mine. He even played on our first album.

Bon Jovi - the band was formed roughly 2 years ago, as Jon Bongiovi gathered his old friends, who had played the club scene in NJ. David Rashbaum took over the keyboards, Richie Sambora manned the lead guitar, Alec John Such the bass and the drummer was Tico Torres, the only professional musician of the bunch at the time. Each had created their own careers mainly playing Led Zeppelin covers, so the choice of musical style wasn't a tough one. It had to be heavy.

Bon Jovi were professionals to begin with, but the big record company Mercury was mainly interested in the massive and flexible voice of Jon. He was offered a solo recording deal, but he wasn't interested. It was the band or nothing. Tony Bongiovi supported the band heavily, so Mercury gave in and the deal was made.

The rest was easy. The first album "Bon Jovi" was recorded at the Power Station studios and was produced by Tony Bongiovi and his long-time partner Lance Quinn. The album was a smash hit and already at that time the hard-working band hit the top.

- Of course I've changed during my time in this band, Jon confesses. - A couple of years on the road makes you grow and mature, since this thing wont' work if you act like a douche. I guess I've become more of a business man - at the same time I've had to give up a lot of things. Some say they've sold their soul to rock'n'roll, I sold my normal life, my soul, my house, my car and everything I ever had.

But your albums have sold well, surely you must be rich by now?

- Our road manager is rich, Jon laughs.

Bon Jovi's first album was a surprise success. It sold well in the US, went gold in Japan (soon platinum) and it rose to the top of import-albums in the UK. The first song of the album, Runaway, was a big hit and the audiences loved this slick and smooth heavy the critics hated. They claimed it was too slick, over-produced, that it was bubble-gum-heavy for the American youth.

- In the early days we thought about who we should please. Then I found out that it was stupid - it's better to please yourself and then the kids. But now I'm ready to admit that our first album was too pop. We went into the studio and did everything the way we were told to. The songs stand up today, but the music lacked an edge.

Bon Jovi's latest album 7800' Fahrenheit has just been released in Finland as well. It's noticiably different from the first one, more versatile and more efficient. Bon Jovi was spared of the AOR-camps lures and can today be called a full-fleded heavy metal band.

I ask about the name, since I have no clue what happens at 7800' fahrenheit.

- I'll tell you, Jon helps me. - When I was thinking of a name for the album, I noticed that our name, Bon Jovi, means nothing to anyone. If you see a name like Twisted Sister, you immeditely now that they're a heavy metal band. When we didn't really have an image, to blow ourselved into peoples minds just like that, we had to have an album title that would lend itself to a great marketing campaign.

- We thought of may different titles, and then one of us decided to look up the temperature where rock melts. It was 1800' Fahrenheits. For some reason I felt that it wasn't big enough, so I decided to go further - to see where rock turns to gas. And it's at 7800', the temperature in the middle of the volcano. That's it! A great name for the album! A great name for a marketing campaign!

- The album itself is very different from out first album. For example, there's no "Runaway" here. If I wanted to, I could've written it again in ten minutes, but I wanted to go deeper. And the songs are very different - there's straight ahead heavy and then there are ballads with acoustic guitars.

- The biggest difference, however, is the sound and the playing. We were involved with the production and now it's less produced, harder sound than before. The sounds are live, which suits us. The guitars sound great, rough. I'm also very pleased with myself - just listen to me on Hardest Part Is The Night. It's great, even though I say so myself.

- The only problem with the new album is that it doesn't get you as fast as the first one did. You have to listen it through 5 to 10 times before you really get into it - you get what we were after. This is not an album that will hit you in the face once. I't meant to be near you and listened to year round.

- There. Did I praise it enough?