Hailing from New Jersey, Bon Jovi has been a dominant force in the pop/rock genre since the mid-1990s. Slippery When Wet, their 1986 multi-platinum opus, contained two No. 1 singles, "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Livin' on a Prayer," which helped define a new American pop metal sound.
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The band got its start in 1983 when John Bongiovi cut a demo at a New York recording studio. Finding success with the song, "Runaway," Bongiovi put together a permanent band. He recruited high school friend and keyboardist David Bryan Rashbaum, bassist Alec John Such, drummer Tico Torres and, last but not least, guitarist Richie Sambora.
The band signed with Mercury Records, took on the name Bon Jovi, and released their debut in January 1984. Shortly thereafter, a re-recorded version of "Runaway" went gold. They found gold again in their 1985 follow-up, 7800° Fahrenheit.
1986's Slippery When Wet was a phenomenal breakthrough for the band. The album featured the chart-topping singles "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Livin' on a Prayer," as well as "Wanted Dead or Alive." Slippery When Wet went on to sell more than 10 million copies and spend eight weeks at the top of the album charts.
Bon Jovi released their next album in 1988. New Jersey, was another huge success that sold more than five million copies worldwide. Adding to the success of Bon Jovi was the fact that they had sold more than 25 million albums in less than five years.
