{"id":490820,"date":"2026-06-23T02:24:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T02:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/490820\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T02:24:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T02:24:12","slug":"bon-jovi-every-album-ranked-from-worst-to-best","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/490820\/","title":{"rendered":"Bon Jovi: Every album ranked, from worst to best"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rock’n’roll bands don’t come much bigger than Bon Jovi. In a career spanning nearly 40 years, they have sold 130 million albums and played to an estimated 34 million fans in more than 2,700 shows.<\/p>\n

At the heart of this classically all-American success story is the man born John Francis Bongiovi, Jr, in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1962. Blessed with movie-star good looks and driven by a ferocious work ethic and an unshakable will to succeed, he was the kid who had the Superman logo tattooed on his arm and believed it. And after renaming himself Jon Bon Jovi \u2013 less \u201cethnic\u201d, more \u201crock star\u201d \u2013 he found the path to glory.<\/p>\n

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Having served a lengthy apprenticeship in various bar bands and working at his cousin Tony Bongiovi\u2019s recording studio, The Power Station, Jon got his first break in 1982 when his song Runaway became a radio hit in the Jersey area. A contract with the Mercury label followed, and a band was formed under the name of Johnny Electric, hastily changed to Bon Jovi.<\/p>\n

Latest Videos From Louder<\/p>\n

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The band\u2019s original guitarist was Dave \u2018Snake\u2019 Sabo, a childhood buddy of Jon\u2019s who went on to form Skid Row<\/a>. But in 1983 Jon settled on the line-up with which he would conquer the world: guitarist Richie Sambora<\/a>, keyboard player David Bryan, bassist Alec John Such and drummer Tico \u2018The Hit Man\u2019 Torres.<\/p>\n

It was in 1986, with their third album, Slippery When Wet<\/a>, that Bon Jovi became one of the biggest bands in the world, and Jon Bon Jovi, with his fluffy hair and million-dollar smile, was transformed into rock\u2019s leading sex symbol. The follow-up album, 1988\u2019s New Jersey<\/a>, was another multi-million seller. But arguably, Bon Jovi\u2019s greatest success has been their longevity.<\/p>\n

While many big 80s acts were killed by grunge<\/a>, Bon Jovi rode out the storm with 1992\u2019s Keep The Faith, but the last few years haven’t been easy. Sambora left the band more than a decade ago and shows no sign of returning, while Bon Jovi himself underwent reconstructive surgery of his vocal cords after their 2022 tour. But next month, they’re back again, with nine shows scheduled at New York’s Madison Square Garden, and five UK and Ireland Stadium shows booked for September.<\/p>\n

Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story<\/a>, the band’s well-received 2024 docu-series, told a story of four decades at the coalface of rock’n’roll, but it also conformed something else: That the 80s was when Bon Jovi were at their big-haired, hard-rocking best, when Jon sang without a trace of irony or embarrassment: \u201cI\u2019ve seen a million faces, and I\u2019ve rocked them all!\u201d<\/p>\n

How we loved him for it.<\/p>\n

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