Bon Jovi commercial?

I know, I know... there were two posts already that got locked but maybe we can have a mature discussion. Otherwise... lock it again... although I think people should be able to regulate themselves.

But now back to the topic. Ever since I'm a Bon Jovi fan people claim they were commercial. But really... can anyone of you define what commercial actually is? Bon Jovi is a band that writes their songs themselves, of course they collaborate with others but still.... they write their own songs. How can someone be commercial if they do it that way? They write what they think is good. Saying they are commerical means they know exactly what to write to fit a certain point in time and the average music taste. If it was that easy then every band on this planet could write hit songs. Bon Jovi always had their own style and they stick to it. 20 years later they still have the sound that makes them special but they also evolved a lot . If they were commercial then they would have either tried to sound like in the 80's because they were successful or jumped on those Grunge or Nu-metal trains that came and went. Did they do that? No they didn't. So I don't really understand why they are always considered commercial.
Of course they create new hits ever since they started but they don't try to copy anything. So THEY define what other bands have to copy to be commerical but Bon Jovi is the original. Commercial also means being successful and yes they want to be successful but name one band that doesn't want to be successful. Everybody wants that but most of them are not good enough to actually reach it. To name one example some of you would probably say AC/DC is not commercial but hey... if they could they would. It doesn't help much if you sound the same for 25 years though. And I also think playing it safe without discovering new musical territories is much more commercial than what Bon Jovi is doing.
Those pop acts are commercial because the record company tells them what to sing to fit a certain taste. But that's not how Bon Jovi works. The difference is the record company has probably hundreds or thousands of songs they can choose from, written by some unknown guy on Bora Bora. So they can say "Oh that sounds like blabla and blabla was a hit so let's use that song". But it's just a coincidence that it sounds like blabla. I don't think any songwriter can sit down and write a song having in mind to let it sound like something else because it was a hit. Know what I mean?
Someone said One Wild Night Live is commercial... hmm.... no it's not. It's crap but releasing one Live CD after almost 20 years is definitely NOT commercial.
I don't know if anyone understands what I'm trying to say. I don't even know if I understand myself but as long as Bon Jovi doesn't try to copy any trends they are not commercial. And they don't do that yet. If you disagree then name one band they are trying to copy.
They sell but that's because they are good. Even in times when nobody thinks a real rock band would succeed. Commercial are only the imitators.
I don't appreciate everything they are doing and I'm surely not following them blindly but I hate it when people say they are commercial.

Commercial is an easy label for folks who are upset that too many people like what they like... it waters down their personal attachment and ability to wear the crown that says "I was a fan before the rest of the world knew..." It has nothing to do with Bon Jovi. Bon Jovi have been commercially successful since the moment Slippery When Wet catapulted them into the stratosphere... the argument is weak... It's for lazy people. No one is an authority on anything... everyone just have a bunch of personal opinions. Metallica had the best quote. When people tell them they sold out, they say yes... we sell out... every concert we play. Apparently, the band is able to face themselves in the mirror each morning and go to bed each night pleased with the work they've done and the music they're created... so we should be able to do the same!

Metallica says: Yes we sell out... Every concert, in every city, in every state.

That's Bon Jovi. I saw on Entertaiment Tonight that Bon Jovi sold out every US concert this past tour, and THE BACKSTREET BOYS only sold out 16 (I think). Now we know the Backstreet Boys are sellouts, but popularity does not mean selling out. Just because Jovi is popular doesn't mean they're sellouts. As long as Jon and Richie are making the music that they want to make then good for them. They don't do it for the record company, or the radio, or even the fans. They do it for themselves. And that's the way it should be.

Josh

Sure, first of all it is a business and they want to sell CDs and they for sure also look how they should make a song that it is played on the radio. Somehow every band that wants to make music as their profession and wants to earn money with it, is a little commercial. Not to forget the interests of the record company that quit contracts because the sell wasn't as good as they hoped (Maria Carey for example).

But first of all they are lucky to write songs that a lot of people all over the world like and be around for 20 years. There aren't too many bands who got this. If they were only commercial the fans would recognize it very soon and would search for another band to listen to. The bands that only exists to make money (like the boybands) don't exist that long, they have an expiration date of 5 years.