Bon Jovi- Slippery When Wet- Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora

One of my guests, original Bon Jovi lead guitarist/ co-writer Richie Sambora, dropped a bombshell while looking back to the first two albums which preceded Slippery When Wet, indicating how close the phenomenal August 1986 release came to never being made. “Quite frankly, “Quite frankly, I didn’t enjoy either of those first two (Bon Jovi , 7800 Degrees F) records personally,” Sambora admits.”I wasn’t even sure that the band was going to survive. To me, I don’t think we reached the soul of it, probably not until Slippery When Wet .” 

To attempt to get your head around the phenomenon of Bon Jovi’s third album  Slippery When Wet    three decades ago, it helps to write out the worldwide sales estimate since then : 28,000,000  copies. No hyperbole here, it is impossible to overstate how massively popular Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet  became quickly after release in Summer 1986, or how influential its sound and success were for the rest of the Eighties. But what does that do to the lives of the individuals involved? Find out from namesake Jon Bon Jovi and original guitarist/ co-writer Richie Sambora in this classic rock interview, framed by unforgettable songs “You Give Love a Bad Name”,” Living on a Prayer”, and “Wanted Dead or Alive”, here In the Studio. -Redbeard