THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

325-Bon Jovi-Livin’ on a Prayer.

1986-Number 4 single.

Best Bit-At 0.21. Every mobile DJ, and every party DJ, probably plays this, religiously.

Jon Bon Jovi, (see also best songs 959) was born John Francis Bongiovi Jr. on March 2nd, 1962, in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, United States, he is one of the founding members of Bon Jovi, who were founded in 1983 in Sayreville, New Jersey, New York, United States. The band remain active with Jon Bon Jovi, Tico Torres, and David Bryan being the only three remaining members from the original line up. With record sales in excess of 130 million, they are one of the worlds best selling artists of all time, music critics have credited them with bridging the gap between ‘Heavy Metal,’ and ‘Pop.’ Aside from being the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for Bon Jovi, Jon Bon Jovi has also had a career as an actor, appearing in 15 films between 1990-2024, and also on television, in high profile shows such as ‘Sex and the City,’ and ‘Ally McBeal. He has released two solo studio Albums, ‘Blaze of Glory,’ in 1990, and ‘Destination Anywhere,’ in 1997, and 17 singles between 1990-2015, there are also two official compilation Albums, and one live Album available. In America on the Billboard Hot 100, two of his singles have reached the top 40, with his debut solo single ‘Blaze of Glory,’ making Number 1 in 1990, while in the UK, he has had seven top 40 solo hits, with ‘Midnight in Chelsea,’ peaking the highest at Number 4 in 1997.

‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ was the second of four singles released from ‘Slippery When Wet,’ which was the third studio Album by Bon Jovi, from August 1986, the Album has sold in excess of 18 million copies worldwide, making it one of the top 100 best selling Albums of all time. ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ was co-written by Bon Jovi group members, Jon Bon Jovi, and Richie Sambora, along with Desmond Child, with the production being by Bruce Fairburn (1949-1999.) Bon Jovi’s first two studio Albums, their self titled debut from 1984, and ‘7800 Fahrenheit,’ from 1985, were a mixture of ‘Hard Rock,’ and ‘Glam Metal,’ with both achieving moderate success. The band realised that if they were to take things to the next level they would need to create a more radio friendly sound. This led to the hiring of the songwriter and music producer Desmond Child, who already had a proven track record. Desmond Child was born John Charles Barrett, on October 28th, 1953, in Gainesville, Florida, United States, he took his working name partly from a duo he had in mind of forming when at school called ‘Night Child.’ As well as working on a further eight Bon Jovi Albums, Desmond Child’s other career highlights include co-writing ‘I Was Made for Lovin’ You,’ for Kiss, (1979-Billboard Number 11) and writing for dozens of other artists, including Alice Cooper, and Meatloaf. Desmond Child was also the co-writer of ‘Livin’ la Vida Loca,’ the U.S., and UK Number 1 hit in 1999 for Ricky Martin. Desmond Child has spoken about his inspiration for writing ‘Livin’ On a Prayer,’ ‘Paul Stanley taught me how to write stadium anthems the Kiss way, in which the protagonist is always the winner. There’s always victory. And the music is also lifting constantly upwards. I used those kinds of ideas or feelings in my collaborations with Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora for the band Bon Jovi. The most perfect example of that is ‘Livin’ On A Prayer.’

‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ and it’s parent Album ‘Slippery When Wet’ were produced by Bruce Fairburn, who was born Bruce Earl Fairbairn, on December 30th, 1949, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, he died on May 17th, 1999, of a cerebral haemorrhage, at the age of 49. Following ‘Slippery When Wet,’ Bruce Fairburn also produced the next Bon Jovi Album ‘New Jersey,’ in 1988. Other significant Albums he produced include three for Aerosmith, between 1987-1993, as well as Albums by AC/DC, Van Halen, and INXS. At the time of his death he was due to travel to New York to meet Bon Jovi to discuss another Album together. In March 2000, he was posthumously awarded the ‘Canadian Music Hall of Fame Juno Award’ for his work.

Richie Sambora used a ‘talkbox’ on ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ which gave it a very distinctive sound. A talkbox is an electronic device that allows a guitar player to make distorted sounds with his mouth. The most famous example of a talkbox is the one used on a recording by the English Rock singer Peter Frampton on his 1976 Album ‘Frampton Comes Alive.’ Other songs on this ‘1000 Best Songs’ list to use a talkbox include, The Electric Light Orchestra, (see also best songs 25) and Herbie Hancock (see also best songs 713.)

‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ is the story of Tommy and Gina who are a working class couple struggling to make ends meet. Tommy loses his job as a dockworker because of a strike, while Gina works as a waitress in a diner. The characters Tommy and Gina were loosely based on a real life situation that Desmond Child had encountered in the 1970’s with his then girlfriend Maria Vidal, with whom he was living. At that time Child was a taxi driver, and Vidal was a singing waitress in a diner. Maria Vidal who would go on to have a 1984 UK Number 11 hit with ‘Body Rock,’ was nicknamed ‘Gina’ due to her physical resemblance to the Italian actress and photographer Gina Lollobrigida (1927-2023.) In 2000 Jon Bon Jovi reintroduced Tommy and Gina in the song ‘It’s My Life,’ and in 2002 he said that he wrote the song as a response to the Reagan Era, adding, ‘trickle-down economics are really inspirational to writing songs.’

‘Tommy’s got his six string in hock, now he’s holding in what he used to make talk, so tough, it’s tough. Gina dreams of running away, when she cries in the night, Tommy whispers, ‘Baby it’s okay, someday,’