Kerrang's 25 Most Influential Bands Of Our Lifetime - 1981-2006

Bruce is not a Kerrang! magazine type artist! It's much more geared towards hard rock and metal.

Y'all are lucky I got up early and have some time on my hands!

Article:

11. Bon Jovi
100 million-selling monsters of stadium rock

In 1959 Elvis Presley released a groundbreaking compliation album called "50 000 000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong". In 2004 - the year of the 20th anniversary of their recording career - Bon Jovi went 50 million better with "100 000 000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong". That statistic speaks volumes about their phenomenal success over the years.

Bon Jovi had a profound effect on the course of rock music when their 1986 album Slippery When Wet went through the roof. Prior to that, it was a rare occurence for any rock band to penetrate the top 40 but Bon Jovi changed all that with a string of platinum-coated hooks and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi's poster boy looks. Their music reached a massive cross section of people and was, for many, a gateway into the wider rock world.

Bon Jovi were unshamedly commercial, and they certainly weren't metal, which meant a large proportion of Kerrang!'s readership objected to their coverage in the mag. It's worth pointing out that K! also met resistance when first covering Nirvana, and, while Jon and co. never had Nirvana's impact, they certainly helped mould the shape of rock in the 80's and its assimilation as a mainstream force.

When grunge killed off the hair bands of that era, BonJovi survived by reinventing themselves whilst retaining their sincerity and warmth. During a routine day of interviews around Christmas '94, Jon spirited Kerrang! writer Steve Beebee away from the assembled press pack and took him for a drive around his hometown of Rumson, New Jersey. They ended up at the singer's palatial pad, where Beebee was introduced to Jon's wife Dorothea and given a guided tour. "I particularly remember the 'trophy room' - its huge walls covered in presentation gold discs, it was too vast to take in," the journalist recalls. "It was a special day and an experience I will never equal even if I'm still writing for Kerrang! in my 90's".

In more recent years, the paths of Kerrang! and Bon Jovi have diverged somewhat. They no longer sit so comfortably in a pure rock setting but their commercial success proceeds unabated and they will no doubt continue to fill stadia until the day they decide to hang up their cowboy boots and put their steel horses to pasture.

Essential tracks:

You Give Love A Bad Name - The song that made them superstars

Livin' On A Prayer - The tale of working class lovers Tommy and Gina provided the Jovi with their signature anthem

Lay Your Hands On Me - A Masterclass in stadium rock dynamics

Jon Bon Jovi Speaks:

Kerrang!: What's your first memory of Kerrang!?

Jon: Wanting to be in it! I think Kerrang first featured us in 1983 shortly after our first record came out. It was an incredible boost for us. Somehow Kerrang! always seemed huge, even bigger than it actually was.

Kerrang: How do you feel about being named one of the most influential bands of our lifetime?

Jon: That's great to hear. And it's great that Atreyu have covered You Give Love A Bad Name. The fact that even a new band like thathas been touched by our music really means a lot to me. I always felt we had a special relationship with Kerrang! We come from the same place.

Kerrang: Do you have a birthday message for us?

Jon: You know what? There's Kerrang! - and then there's everything else. I congratulate both Kerrang! and its readers on their enthusiasm and spirit for music that doesn't seem to have dampened in all this time.

Tour interview:

Bon Jovi
Back to rock your world!

They've spent the last two decades playing in front of 32 million people in 50 countries, as well as selling over 100 million albums in the process. As hard rock royalty Bon Jovi gear up for another UK stadium tour, what else is there to be achieved? Mainman Jon Bon Jovi will settle for doing it all again ...

Good morning! Where in the world are you today!

JBJ: I'm in Dublin, but I'm still asleep!

A stadium tour of the UK awaits you when you wake up. Are you looking foward to it?

JBJ: It's always great to play in the UK. We're playing big stadiums and coming to some places we haven't been to before. It's dissapointing that the new Wembley isn't going to be ready for us, but they're all gonna be great nights.

New album Have A Nice Day has sold 3.5 million copies already. How does it feel to know that after 20 years at the top people obviously still want you around?

JBJ: Truly honoured. I take nothing for granted. The fact that our new album has been successful is very pleasing because with every record you release you can never predict what the reaction will be like. I'm very thankful that we're still able to reach people.

How do you psyche yourself up for big shows like these - any strange rituals?

JBJ: It might sound mundane, but there's no rituals as such. When you're playing in front of big crowds, it's easy to get psyched up. Having said that, I treat any audience - large or small - exactly the same way. If only 50 people turned up, I'd play exactly the same show. I always ensure I make eye contact with certain people in the audience and even have conversations with them. It's about trying to connect with people, creating an intimate atmosphere even in a huge venue.

Are we gonna be hearing much of the heavier Bon Jovi sound this time round, and what about the old classics?

JBJ: We'll be playing plenty of the rockier material, no question about it. What you'll get is a real mixture - some of our favourites from the new album plus all the old songs people really like to hear. On this tour we are really changing the set around, playing different songs every night. We've been listening to fan requests as well and playing stuff we haven't done for years, like Dry County.We might even bring back [first ever single] Runaway for some of the shows.

Do you actually get time to explore the various cities you visit?

JBJ: Very rarely. Normally there's too much to do, though our schedule is way less crazy than it used to be. All the same, my wife and family are out in Dublin right now doing some shopping and sightseeing. Meanwhile I am in the hotel talking on the phone to people. I was planning to hook up with my friend [Def Leppard vocalist] Joe Elliott while I'm here because he lives locally, but - typical - he just emailed me saying he's in Los Angeles!

Aloha !

Thanks for typing it out.

Jon is just saying the usual crap. They're changing the set this tour like they always do (meaning 2 or 3 different songs per night, but he "forgets" that every time he says so) and the only difference is that Dry County is finally back, the only song they haven't played for years. And sure he plays the same set for 50 people. Like he'd play Dry County for a show that isn't sold out. The guy is still full of shit.

Salaam Aleikum,
Sebastiaan

Why I have wasted a good half hour of my morning reading post after post by you I will never know....

Clearly Bon Jovi will never live up to the high standards you have set for them, and their core fanbase will always be less than the dirt beneath your shoes...as my kids say, "Cry me a river...build me a bridge...then just get over it!"

Now, my dear, I would suggest that, rather than frustrate yourself with lower life forms like us, you take your erudite, psuedo-intellectual commentary elsewhere...like maybe a message board for a tribute band to dead, neurotic, Seattle grunge rockers....

I will continue to enjoy my crappy, populist, escapist, pop trash with or without you...

Okay...back to my life...

Peace

Trish

Aloha !

Reading my posts is like education for you.

Not true. Bon Jovi is able to live up to my high standards, Dusseldorf being the example for that. But indeed, there is a part of their core fanbase (Which isn't that part of backstage that posts regularly on backstage, like many people think), will be less than the dirt beneath my shoes.

It looks like from the two of us, you seem to be the frustrated one. You're clearly on the wrong board. My dear.

Kattepish.

Salaam Aleikum,
Sebastiaan

and why shouldnt fugazi be up there??!! its a list of the most influencial bands and they were one of the first proper emo bands out there- they made way for that genre and if kerrang didnt have them on that list i wouldve thought they more ****ed up than ever.

Once again:

What the ****!? Fugazi?
I don't know if I listened to one full album of theirs but there definitely are BIGGER and BETTER band which sounded similar like The Replacement or the Pixies.
In any case, I never read an interview with any Limp Bizkits, Linkin' Parks or whatever to say that Fugazi is their fave band!

Hmmmmm, DevilsSon does make a good point about The Pixies

trish why dont you just speak your mind .
no seriously youre spot on , seen jovi all over europe and soon the states and they could sing baa baa fkin black sheep in c minor id still sing along
all i can say is when i saw them at wembley 1st night (20th i think) 95 i said id never go and watch them again only because the night was just perfect and i knew they could never play any better than that night , how wrong i was until sun june 4 2006
not gone drag it out jon, ritchie, dav,e tico, hugh and the other two geezers (session musicians i think) you were fkin awsome cant wait till 29th of july , see you in jersey guys