Vote for Bon Jovi as best rock band and for Richie as best Rock Guitarist!

No (though it might be a good point to start from).
I consider a legend someone who changed the music business in some ways. Queen did. So did Led Zep and the Beatles. I think BJ didn't change anything. They were huge in the 80's hair band heydays, survived the 90's and matured and became a joke form 2007 onwards. Maybe they will recover but they will never be LEGENDS. Freddie MErcury is a legend. Robert Plant also. JBJ ? naw.....

Bon Jovi made Kerrang magazines top 10 most influential artists of the last 25 years last year (I believe they made number 8 ), and Kerrang barely give them the time of day anymore ... they haven't reviewed an album since Bounce I don't think

My mistake, it was number 11 .... 8 must have been the position that they gave SWW in their "Top 100 Rock Albums ever" special last year

This is the article that accompanied their number 11 placing:


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.

Ridiculous. THey borrowed more than they influenced!
Name me one major band who says "Yes we are influenced by Bon Jovi" - you won't find any.
Apart from the fans BJ are still not taken seriously and considered to be a hair band with a pretty boy image. Sad but true

Born - I try and give you the benefit of the doubt, but you're WAAAAAAY off here. Love 'em or hate 'em, there's no denying Bon Jovi's place in music history. To call them a "joke" is just ignorant.

In the 80's, they were the biggest band in the US. For most of the 90's, they were the biggest band in Europe and Asia. In the 2000's, they've basically been huge all over the world.

When you make comments like "in their 80's big-hair hey-day", you sound clueless. That's like someone saying Queen was at their best "during their cross-dressing hey-day of the 70's." Everybody has a "hey-day", and everyone has a specific look that they will always be attached with. The fact that Bon Jovi has gotten past that with most people speaks voulmes about them. You can't lump Jon in with the likes of Bret Michaels or Vince Neil. Can you see either of those guys meeting the Queen of England, or playng a concert for the President of the United States?
We're talking about a band

As for who they've influenced - There are many. They may not all still be around, but that has nothing to do with Bon Jovi.

Agree or disagree, U2 are now in that list, or at least will be in another few years.

As for Queen, they are in the very elite group of bands that have sold in excess of 300 million albums worldwide.

And as for America 'not getting them'? I beg to differ. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumd...able=tblTopArt

Bon Jovi American album sales total 34million, Queen 32.5million - hardly that big of a difference.

I think that particular arguement is well and trulley settled and all you yanks can go eat your respective hats!

Queens are legends, end off.


Andi

If I named any band, you'd just tell me that they're not a 'major' band. I'd assume a lot of the bands that have opened for Bon Jovi were to some degree influenced by them, and they definitely did take rock into the mainstream ... there's probably a huge number of musicians today who got into rock as a result of wanting to be Bon Jovi

"Apart from the fans BJ are still not taken seriously"

Mmmmhmmm, and recieving an honour in one of the world's premiere rock magazines shows that, right?

Many bands, knowingly or not, were influenced by Bon Jovi and their effect on the music scene. Many bands also would probably not admit to it, as it would be deemed ''uncool'' to.

Many a popular, radio friendly rock band owe something to BJ. I'm not saying that they intentionally wear the influences on their sleeves all the time (well, in the case of All American Rejects, this is actually literally true), but the effect Bon Jovi and a few others had on the mainstream with the whole Rock/Pop crossover apeal had knock-on effects which are to be seen everywhere nowadays.


andi

FTR - No doubt, it's an impressive amount, but let's not forget, Queen had 15 (I believe) studio albums, a number of live albums and countless compliation albums. They've sold twice as many records as Bon Jovi, but they've had more than double the amount of albums released.

I've read 250million elsewhere so yes, it is debateable. Its still a huge amount, and more than Bon Jovi have managed worldwide.

But you failed to comment on the fact that I pointed out how much Queen have indeed officially sold in the U.S alone. You can't argue with the hard facts!

My favourite band is still Bon Jovi, but this doesn't let me bias stats. Just like I wont argue how damn popular Garth Brooks or Celine Dion are, weather I dig them or not. I know how big Queen were/are, and I admire them for that. Plus they are awesome.


andi