Band Biography
I couldn't rewrite their biography very well 'cause I ain't a journalist or anything like that and I don't think it would have looked very nice eighter, but here's what the Movie Mirror magazine's journalist, Alice King has to say(January 1996):
They've sold millions of albuns, toured places must of us have only heard about and have legions of loyal fans, but the guys in Bon Jovi still think of themselves as a bar band from New Jersey - it's just that the bars have gotten bigger. Lead singer Jon Bon Jovi, guitarrist Richie Sambora, drummer Tico Torres and keyboardist David Bryan (bassist Alec John Such left in 1994, the current replacement is Hugh McDonald) have been huge for so long, it's hard to believe they can even remember what it was like to be in the club circuit, much less relate to it, but perhaps the secret of their success is that they have never lost touch with their roots.
The Bon Jovi story began in Sayreville, New Jersey, where Jon and his brothers Matt and Tony were raised by their parents Carol and John Bongiovi (Jon later changed his name). By his early teens, Jon was hanging out at local clubs, convinced that one day he would be a rock star.
The area's local music scene was rocking then and there, with the music of rising stars Bruce Springsteen and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes leading the pack. "Just like Seattle is hot right now, 20 years ago it was Asbury Park, New Jesey", Jon told writer Rick Petreycik. "That was so close to my backyard, and when you're 13, 14 or 15 years old, you can't help but hear about it and have it affect you. When you went down to Asbury Park, what was the crummy boardwalk became Americana. What was splintered wood became sacred ground, and you went, 'Ooh, aah'. And those things romanticized the idea. The mith became the legend, and one thing led to another, and I think blind faith is what got me here"
That, and a little help from his friends. By the time he was 16, Jon was playing clubs. It was not long before he hooked up with keyboardist David Bryan (real name: David Brian Rashbaum), who played with him in a ten-piece rhythm and blues band called Atlantic City Expressway. Jon also performed with bands called The Rest, The Lechers and John Bongiovi and the Wild Ones. Meanwhile, Richie Sambora was also performing locally with a funk and fusion outfit called Extremes, before hooking up with Alec John Such in the band The Message. After The Message broke up, Alec played with Tico Torres in Phantom's Opera.
The members of Bon Jovi had crossed paths in these early days, but the current lineup didn't come together until March of 1983-after the first Bon Jovi single, "Runaway,"had become a minor hit. In one of those right place/right time/right person scenarios, Jon managed to get a job sweeping floors at a recording studio through a relative. His second cousin, Tony Bongiovi, was a co-owner of the Power Station in New York City. Jon had writen "Runaway,"and in 1980, he recorded a demo of the song at his cousin's studio, with backúp by studio musicians whom Tony had hired, including Frank La Roca, Tim Pierce, Hugh McDonald and Roy Bittan.
A local radio station included "Runaway" on a compilation tape, and the song started getting some serious airplay. The success of "Runaway" got Jon noticed, and he realized that he'd need more than session players if he wanted to capitalize on his success by touring the New York clubs to support the single.
Jon gave Dave a call, who in turn tapped Alec and Tico. A succession of guitarrists ( including Dave Sabo, who went on to Skid Row) followed, until Richie signed on, and the band came together as a whole. They began gigging around New York in earnest.
At one show, where they opened for Scandal, the band caughtthe attention of record exec Derek Shulman, who signed them to PolyGram. Their self-titled debut came out January 21, 1984. Filled with the group's now-signature power ballads and hook-filled tunes underscored by soaring guitar riffs and well-crafted melodies, the album went gold (sales of over 500,000) as did the band's follow-up, 7800 Fahrenheit, which included the hit singles "Only Lonely"and "Silent Night."
"When I was younger, I used to dream about playing in the big arenas and having the fans cheer for me. Now I'm on the other side, and they do," Jon commented at the time. Indeed, the band was selling out the biggest arenas in the world, their songs were radio hits, and they were constant presence on MTV. They were quite simply, the most popular rockers on the planet.
The pressure was on for Bon Jovi to repeat their performance on the folow-up to Slippery When Wet, and the band did not disappointed. While Jon admits to being "scared to death" when he sat down to write the songs for what was to become New Jersey, none of his fear came through on the album, released on the summer of 1988. "Bad Medicine" became a runaway hit on both radio and MTV. The band was even invited to perform in the Soviet Union in 1989, an experience which Jon humbly referred to as one which "broke down barriers." He's said of the historic tour, "It was amazing that in Lenin Stadium - the place where our athletes weren't allowed to compete in Olympics (1980) - here was this garage band from New Jersey lighting the torch and playing music."
The pressure was also on the band as competition heated up with the arrival of bands like Def Leppard, Guns n' Roses and Poison on the hard rock/pop scene. The band embarked on a monster tour to support the album and retain their rock n' roll crown. With all the touring, however, came a certain amount of burn-out, and the end of the road saw the band taking a much-needed hiatus.
Along with the exhaustion, the band was also suffering from creative and personal differences between Jon and Richie, who both pursued solo projects during the break. Jon had a hit with "Blaze of Glory" from his Young Guns II LP, and Richie proved a competent solo artist in his own right, with Stranger in this Town.
The band overcame their prolems for 1992's aptly titled Keep the Faith, which sold respectably, but didn't quite match their early efforts. The rise of alternative music had changed the landscape of the rock world, and many thought Bon Jovi had passed its peak.
"When we did Keep the Faith, we where too blind to know abot this thing called grunge," said Jon. The public, unfortunately , was not so blind. What may have seemed a misstep, however, actually ended up working in band's favor. By not trying to jump in the grunge bandwagon, Bon Jovi remained true to their vision, so they avoided the mistake of trying to become somebody else's idea of what a band should be. "I learned ten years ago, don't try to be something you are not," Jon confirmed. "You can't worry about the musical climate out there. If you do, you'll always be behind the eight ball." A greatest hits album, Crossroad, which spawned the killer single "Always", and sold over 12 million copies, proved Jon right.
Now, with These Days, wich is gaining critical as well as popular praise, the band is back on top - while their former competition languishes. They have matured, both professionally and personally, and the album reflects their maturity. "I did my first record when I was 20 or 21," Jon said, "and now I'm 34. So, in essence, I've grown up in public. And the good thing is, I have a lot of great experiences, but the bad thing is, people see your baby pictures for as long as you live."
Jon married his high school sweetheart, Dorothea, in 1989, and is now father of Stephanie Rose and Jesse James Louis, while Richie married Melrose Place vixen Heather Locklear, Tico married model Eva Herzigova, and David is the father of twins.
What accounts for Bon Jovi's continuing success? While never critics' darlings - the band is often dismissed as "lite metal" or, more recently as a "hair band" - Bon Jovi has found true love with the ones who really count: radio, video and the fans. David Edelson, from the trade mag Hits explains, "What makes Bon Jovi an enduring band is they've continuously written goo pop love songs tailor-made for Top 40 radio. As trends come and go, they shrewdly put out these radio-friendly tracks that programmers instantly pick up."
Another reason is that the band has never lost their love for what they do. Their sincerity of feeling comes through in their heartfelt lyrics and emotion-packed sound. Whether on stage or in the studio, the members of Bon Jovi are clearly having the time of their lives.
With stars like the Rolling Stones and Elton John proving that the longevity os possible in the rock n' roll, Bon Jovi seems destined to stay on the scene for years to come. "All I wanted to do wasbe here enough to finish the game," Jon said about the band's staying power, adding that "If it were strictly business, I'd go home."
From the bars of New Jersey to superstardom - just like 14-year-old Jon imagined it would happen all those years ago.
[[!This biography was taken from http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/towers/6182/hist.html!]]