Rock music has given us many bright stars, whose creative work has inspired millions. These people create real masterpieces that can win the heart even after decades. And one of the most prominent representatives of classic rock these days is Jon Bon Jovi.
Jon Bon Jovi is the true embodiment of the 80s era. His impeccable vocal abilities were perfectly complemented by the striking image for which he is remembered to this day. We invite you to talk about both the musician’s biography and his personal life.
Personal life
John has always been a favorite of girls who cannot resist his natural beauty. The frontman had every chance to become another rock star whose name never leaves the front pages of newspapers.
Jon Bon Jovi in his youth
However, Jon Bon Jovi destroyed the stereotypes associated with the carefree personal life of rock music representatives. Despite the success, he did not go to great lengths, becoming a happy family man.
Jon Bon Jovi with his wife Dorothea Harley
Bon Jovi has been married to high school sweetheart Dorothea Harley since 1989, and continues to be an exemplary family man to this day. Despite the fact that the decision to get married was spontaneous, they fell in love with each other, creating a strong relationship.
At the moment, the couple is raising four wonderful children, once again proving their joint family happiness.
Bon Jovi and his wife in his youth
The couple's first daughter was born in 1993. Her parents gave the girl the sonorous name Stefania Rose, enveloping her with love and care.
Bon Jovi and his daughter Stefania
Just two years later, Dorothea gave her husband her first son, Jesse James Louis. But the couple decided not to stop there either. In 2002, John became a father for the third time in a row.
Jon Bon Jovi with son Jesse
The second son was named Jacob Harley. The birth of Romeo John's fourth child occurred in 2004.
Dorothea and John continue to be an exemplary married couple, capable of overcoming any difficulties. Unlike his colleagues in rock music, Jon Bon Jovi did not live by the laws of “sex, drugs and rock and roll”, becoming a monogamist. Many celebrities should take an example from this musician.
Music
In 1983, the aspiring musician took his first steps towards real fame: John founded his own musical group and gave it his name. At that time, Bon Jovi had six members, including John. Luck accompanied this endeavor, and a year later the team managed to sign a contract with. It seemed like a miracle - many aspiring bands and performers of that time dreamed of such a lucrative contract. In 1984, Bon Jovi's debut album, named after the group, was released.
Jon Bon Jovi in his youth
The first record turned out to be so successful that a year later the group recorded the next album, “7800° Fahrenheit,” which broke sales records and remained at the top of the music charts for weeks. Further albums by Jon Bon Jovi and his teammates were released with enviable regularity: “Slippery When Wet” appeared in 1986, and “New Jersey” appeared in 1988.
By this time, it became clear that their musical career was a success: the group had become truly “star-studded.” The team went on tour, every concert of Jon Bon Jovi and the team became a bright and unforgettable event, Bon Jovi music was heard from every radio, and photos of the musician adorned the walls of fans all over the world.
Jon Bon Jovi and the Bon Jovi band
According to rumors, the deafening popularity and heavy touring schedule almost destroyed the team. Constant stress and serious workload have caused conflicts and chronic fatigue among musicians. However, the group managed to overcome the difficulties, and in 1992 they released their next album, “Keep the Faith,” and three years later, “These Days.”
In parallel with his work in the team, John also worked on solo projects. The first of them, “Blaze of Glory,” named the same as the opening track of this record, brought John honorary musical awards. And in 1997, the musician gave fans the album “Destination Anywhere”, which became a hit both in his native America and far beyond its borders.
Jon Bon Jovi on stage
The musicians devoted the next two years to rest and restoration of creative strength. Fans patiently waited for the return of their idols, and this wait paid off handsomely: the song “It's my Life,” released in 2000, blew up all kinds of charts and charts. This song topped the band's new album, entitled "Crush".
The group's subsequent works and John's solo singles became no less popular. In addition to the song “It's my Life”, there is also Leonard Cohen's composition “Hallelujah”, soulfully performed by John. Jon Bon Jovi's videos for these musical works are still popular today.
Biography
The biography of this outstanding musician is full of bright pages. John Francis Bongiovi Jr. was born on March 2, 1962 in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. His parents were ordinary florists and hairdressers who did not grab stars from heaven.
Jon Bon Jovi as a child
John became interested in music as a teenager, picking up a guitar for the first time at the age of thirteen. Even then, the unprecedented talent of the young man was evident, becoming part of several youth groups.
Such early experience allowed John to hone his skills, trying himself in different genres of rock music. The teenager also had at his disposal sound recording equipment that the young man had inherited from his cousin. So all the necessary conditions were created for the formation of a new rock star.
Bon Jovi John.
Childhood
John Francis Bongiovi Jr. was born on March 2, 1962 in Perth Amboy (New Jersey, USA).
He is the son of hairdresser John Francis Bongiovi and florist Carol Bongiovi (nee Sharkey
).
His father is of Sicilian and Slovak descent, and his mother is of German and Russian descent. He has two younger brothers - Anthony and Matthew. Youth
From a young age, he was interested in music, played the guitar, performed in local bands, and wrote songs from the age of 13. While working part-time in his cousin's recording studio, John had the opportunity to use its equipment. His early composition “Runaway” was popular on local radio stations. In 1983, he formed a group consisting of his friend David Rashbaum, guitarist Dave Szabo (he was then replaced by Richie Sambora), bassist Alec Joe Such and drummer Tico Torres. The name of the group was a slightly modified surname of its leader - “Bon Jovi”. Soon the musicians signed a contract with the Mercury label.
In 1984, the band's debut album, Bon Jovi, was released, and the song "Runaway" entered the Top 40. The following year, the album “7800 Fahrenheit” was released, which became gold. The group's new success was the album "Slippery When Wet" (1986), which sold more than 28 million copies worldwide and raised Jon Bon Jovi to "star" heights. Two songs from it, “You Give Love A Bad Name” and “Livin' On A Prayer,” topped the charts, and “Wanted Dead or Alive” entered the top ten. The next album, “New Jersey” (1988), was also a success, in support of which the group conducted a tour.
Then Jon Bon Jovi began to pay more attention to his other projects: he began producing - working, in particular, with the groups “Gorky Park” and “Cinderella”. Bon Jovi then acted as a composer, creating the soundtrack for the film “Young Guns II,” which was soon released as a solo disc, “Blaze of Glory” (1990). Seven years later, his second solo album, Destination Anywhere, was released. Then he himself made a short film with songs from this album.
In 1995, Jon Bon Jovi made his debut as an actor in the melodrama Moonlight and Valentino, where his partners were Kathleen Turner, Whoopi Goldberg, and Gwyneth Paltrow. In 2000, Jonathan Mostow's war drama U-571 was released, in which Bon Jovi played the role of Lieutenant Pete Emmett.
If you ask Jon Bon Jovi what the difference is between composing for a Bon Jovi album and writing for his own album, he won't hesitate to answer.
“When you make a group record, it's a collaboration... it's not always my story or his story, it becomes our story. But this time,” John pauses, “it’s entirely my voice.”
This voice will appear in full force on the album called Destination Anywhere. This album by one of the leading singers and composers includes emotional, complex-sounding compositions. The musician wanted to show what Bon Jovi is like as an artist. And this goal was achieved by abandoning the stereotypes that had developed about his music. Chaotic, more rhythmic, but built more on exquisite passages than on guitar chords, the compositions from the album Destination Anywhere sound not like a heart-rending scream, but like a passionate whisper. And if the album does not seem like the sound design for New Jersey or Your Guns Soundtrack, then we can assume that John came to what he wanted.
John brought in a diverse and incredible group of musicians to create Destination Anywhere, including producer and composer Dave Stewert (Eurythmics, Tom Petty) and Steve Lironi (Black Grape's It's Great) When You're Straight" ... As John himself says: "I was getting ready to take the shot, and if my idea didn't work, I would have abandoned it immediately. In theory, I had five producers involved, with two tracks each! That would be an album! But then I selected two songs with Steve, I really liked them, and I was also amazed at the way he worked. We started with a plan and worked backwards... This is completely different from the way I work on an album. As a result, I prepared eight tracks for Steve, and he made three more. The main thing is that I understood that this method of recording allows me not to be afraid to experiment with new ideas and gives my music new colors.”
All these radical changes in recording methods took place in London. John spent three months there filming The Leading Man and, apparently, new rhythms were in the British air. John recorded the album's first ten songs on acoustic guitar during breaks in the privacy of his production trailer, and eventually completed most of the tracks in his main studio.
While working on the album Destination Anywhere, John was assisted by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan, Eric Bazilian (The Hooters), drummer Kenny Aronoff, Dave Stewart and many musicians, friends and children -siters. “Everyone who came into the studio was involved in the album in some way,” John laughs.
Bon Jovi at a concert in Nijmegen in 2006
Despite the unorthodox ways of creating this album, some things remained unchanged: namely the lyrical themes of John's songs: faith and the absence of illusions. Although this time the themes became more autobiographical in tone. In the famous single "August 7, 4:15" John touches on the painful topic of the murder of his manager's daughter. "Midnight in Chelsea", the album's first single, is a sublime account of time spent in London. Full of energy, "Janie, Don't Take Your Love To Town" chronicles a family's struggles with his wife, who, as John jokes, "always played the simpleton," and "Every Word Has a Piece of My Heart in It" Has A Piece Of My Heart") sounds the inherent lyrical sincerity of Bon Jovi.
This sincerity and determination to follow his own style lies at the core of Bon Jovi's work (both as a soloist and as an ensemble). For over 13 years, Bon Jovi reigned over the music industry, selling over 75 million albums worldwide. In addition, the group actively performs concerts, filling arenas and stadiums around the world. The band's 1995 CD, These Days, went multi-platinum and demonstrated the musicians' creative maturity. They are currently working on solo projects, but are planning a studio collaboration in the near future.
As for Jon Bon Jovi himself, he plans to continue filming; his film career began in 1995 with the critically acclaimed film “Moonlight and Valentino.” In addition, he stars in a short film for the album “Destination Anywhere”. John will soon appear in Miramax's Little City and Homegrown, which also stars Academy Award winner Billy Bob Thornton. John also starred in the film Long Time, Nothing New, directed by Ed Burns (She's The One and The Brothers McMullen). John doesn't give up music either. “The biggest thing I do in life is writing songs. This is much more important than recording and concerts. Because the song is something I created and will remain forever."
All 12 songs from the album Destination Anywhere are funny and sad, defiant and playful - another stage in Bon Jovi’s creative life.
Career
At age seventeen, John worked as a janitor at his cousin Tony Bongiovi's recording studio, The Power Station. In 1980, when Meco was recording "Christmas in the Stars: The Star Wars Christmas Album", Tony recommended John for the song "R2-D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas." This became his first professional recording (under the name Jon Bongiovi). He left in 1983 when he secured a contract to record an album.
Along with Hugh MacDonald, who would replace Alec John Such as Bon Jovi's bassist in 1984, and David Szabo, John released the song "Runaway", one of the few songs that John is said to have written during his bus trips from Sayreville at The Power Station. He was approached by several record companies, including Atlantic Records and Mercury (PolyGram), but was rejected by both. He eventually went to a disc jockey at WAPP-FM (a radio show in Manhattan) and asked the DJ to listen to “Runaway.” The DJ liked it and put it on air; he even included it on the WAPP record. "Runaway" became a hit. The Mercury record company offered John a contract in 1983, and John brought in guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres and bassist Alec John Such and formed the band. John later found Doc McGee, who would then become the band's manager. While searching for a name for a new group, one of the members suggested "Bon Jovi". Although Doc McGee disapproved of the proposal (claiming that it sounded like French ice cream), the name stuck, and John slightly changed his own name to Jon Bon Jovi.
With the help of new manager Doc McGhee, the band's debut album, Bon Jovi, was released on January 21, 1984. The album went gold in the US (sold over 500,000 copies) and was also released in the UK. The band opened for ZZ Top at Madison Square Garden (before the release of their first album), and for the Scorpions and Kiss in Europe. They also appeared on American Bandstand
Dick Clark.
In 1985, Bon Jovi's second album, 7800°Fahrenheit, was released, but its success was insignificant. Leading British rock magazine Kerrang!, which was very positive about the debut album, called the new album "a pale imitation of the Bon Jovi we knew and loved." Jon Bon Jovi himself later said that he could and should have been better. The band members have stated in numerous interviews that they will not perform any songs from this album live.
The turning point came when they invited poet and composer Desmond Child to create their third album, Slippery When Wet. With Child as a co-writer on many hits on this and future albums, the group became extremely popular around the world with songs such as "You Give Love a Bad Name", "Livin' On A Prayer" and "Wanted Dead or Alive".
The album has sold 28 million copies worldwide since its release in 1986.
Bon Jovi's next album was New Jersey, released in 1988.
The album was recorded immediately after the Slippery When Wet tour, as the band wanted to build on their success. The resulting album won both the love of fans and huge commercial success with such hits as “Bad Medicine”, “Lay Your Hands on Me” and “I’ll Be There for You”, which are still highlights of the band’s live performances . "New Jersey" was a commercial breakthrough and became the first hard rock album to become a top five Top Ten single. "Bad Medicine" and "I'll Be There for You" both went to number one, "Born to Be My Baby" (No. 3), "Lay Your Hands on Me" (No. 7) and "Living in Sin" (No. 9) complete this list. "Blood on Blood" was equally popular with fans. "New Jersey" was supported by video releases such as "New Jersey: The Videos" and "Access All Areas" and a huge 18-month tour, originally called "The Jersey Syndicate Tour". In 1989 the group was the headliner of the Moscow Music Peace Festival. Despite the band's enormous popularity, "New Jersey" almost led to the band's breakup, as they hit the road almost immediately after a lengthy tour in support of the previous album. During the new tour in support of "New Jersey", Jon Bon Jovi began to experience problems with his voice. Very high notes and an exhausting concert schedule were a constant threat to my voice. With the help of a vocal coach, he finished touring, but has since started singing in lower pitches. Constant life on the road almost destroyed the good relationships between the group. Sambora co-wrote many songs, but he was unhappy with the fact that most of the attention went exclusively to John. As seen on VH1's Behind the Music, the band members even flew on separate planes at the end of the tour to Guadalajara, Mexico in early 1990. Political Activities
Bon Jovi also participated in the Live Earth concert at the Meadowlands in 2007 , where she was introduced by former Vice President Albert Gore.
In 2008, Jon Bon Jovi supported Hillary Clinton's election campaign. Family
Jon Bon Jovi has been married to Dorothea Hurley since April 1989. Four children: Stephanie Rose (1993), Jesse James Lewis (1995), Jacob (2002) and Romeo John (2004).
Beginning of a musical career
John Bongiovi Jr. formed his first group in 1982, naming it after his own surname. The unusually named Bon Jovi included his friends David Rashbaum, Dave Sabo (later replaced by Richie Sambora), Alec Joe Such and Tico Torres. With this lineup, the group managed to attract the attention of the local Mercury label, which contributed to the release of Bon Jovi's debut album.
Bon Jovi in the 80s
The release took place in 1984, turning the band members into stars overnight.
The song, called Runaway, immediately entered the TOP 40 music charts, becoming a new hit in American rock music.
On the wave of success gained in a matter of months, the musicians began recording their second album, “7800 Fahrenheit,” which eventually won gold status.
Every year the popularity of Jon Bon Jovi's group only grew, bringing the leader multimillion-dollar income. By 1986, when another successful release called “Slippery When Wet” hit the shelves, the group was easily filling huge venues across the country.
Bon Jovi
John's dreams began to gradually come true when he met like-minded people - young musicians from neighboring neighborhoods. The guys gathered at a nearby club and spent hours rehearsing musical fragments that they themselves came up with on the fly.
In 1983, Bon Jovi John formed his own band, where he invited his friend pianist David Rashbaum, drummer Tico Torres, bass guitarist Alec Joe Such and lead guitarist Dave Sabo. The group was called Bon Jovi. The first studio to sign a contract with was Mercury. In 1984, their debut album was released, which was called Bon Jovi. The following year, the group's second album, entitled 7800 Fahrenheit, was released, which showed good sales results and went gold. The Bon Jovi group immediately became popular.
The next album, Slippery When Wet, recorded in 1986, was even more successful, its sales reached 28 million copies, and Bon Jovi John became a star. Three songs from this album took first place in the charts.
The band's next album, released in 1988 under the name New Jersey, also turned out to be in demand. In his support, Jon Bon Jovi, whose biography has been updated with a new page, organized a tour. The tour was successful.
Further creative activity
Fame followed Jon Bon Jovi throughout the 80s, when one successful release followed another almost every year. Such creative productivity could be the envy of many rock stars, who, as a rule, failed already on their third studio album.
“Music is something that can support you in difficult times, it has changed the lives of many, people can believe in it, even if they no longer believe in politicians and society.”
In John's case, there was no question of any creative crisis. The musicians easily combined long tours, interrupting them only to work in the studio.
However, by the beginning of the new decade, John began to be increasingly distracted by third-party side projects, expanding the scope of his musical activities. A new stage in Jon Bon Jovi's career is working as a producer.
With the light hand of the musician, such cult groups as Gorky Park and Cinderella gained fame.
Among other things, Bon Jovi also began to be attracted to work in cinema. His first attempt at writing was writing the soundtrack for the film "Young Guns II", also released as a solo music album.
Relevant products in the Online store:
John Frieda
Sheer Blonde Revitalizing Conditioner for Colored Blonde Hair
616 rub. 880 rub.
John Frieda
Sheer Blonde Revitalizing Shampoo for Colored Blonde Hair
616 rub. 880 rub.
John Frieda
Frizz Ease Miraculous Recovery Intensive conditioner for unruly hair
616 rub. 880 rub.
John Frieda
Frizz Ease Miraculous Recovery Shampoo for intensive care of unruly hair
616 rub. 880 rub.
All goods
Film work
But Jon Bon Jovi’s real debut in cinematography took place only in 1995. This happened in the popular melodrama Moonlight and Valentino, in which John starred alongside such stars as Kathleen Turner, Whoopi Goldberg and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Still from the film “Moonlight and Valentino”
John made another memorable film appearance in 2000, playing the role of Lieutenant Pete Emmett in the film U-571.
Further creativity
In 1990, Jon Bon Jovi temporarily ceased the activities of his group, deciding to engage in solo work, as well as production activities. His projects include the Philadelphia glam band Cinderella and the Soviet rock band Gorky Park. Since 1991, John has been combining new projects with Bon Jovi concerts, and in 1995 he tried his hand at acting.
The first film in which Bon Jovi starred was David Anspaugh's melodrama Moonlight and Valentino. The aspiring actor played a romantic painter named Valentino, who loves to work under the moonlight.
The film was not particularly successful at the box office, but John liked the filming itself and continued working in films, combining it with concerts and album recordings.
In 2000, having resumed the group's activities after another three-year break, Bon Jovi released his most successful song, It's My Life, which conquered the worldwide charts and remains popular to this day. A video of this song is presented below.
Solo creativity
In parallel with his film career, John continued to play music. But now he was no longer interested in collective, but in purely individual creativity, which led to the appearance of his first solo albums.
The most striking was the second release, released in 1997.
The Destination Anywhere album was distinguished by the singer's emotional presentation, as well as strong lyrical lyrics. Here John proved himself not only as a musician, but also as a self-sufficient artist. The album is still considered one of the best in the history of rock music.
Jon Bon Jovi now
Despite such a long creative path, the musician has not exhausted himself to this day, continuing to delight us with new releases. They contain fresh ideas that allow John to keep up with the times.
Most recently, Bon Jovi pleased us with a new release that received positive reviews from critics. We can only hope that the next album will be no less successful and will not take long to arrive.
