The Ghost Album | Bon Jovi 1988 | Concert Reading | New Jersey – alternative double album

Today’s card is:
The Ghost Album

Bon Jovi
May – July 1988

Recording Studio Vancouver Canada
or unknown demo recording location 1987-1988

๐ŸŸ๏ธ New Jersey album

๐ŸŽ›๏ธ๐ŸŽถ๐ŸŽง->
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKOymf1mhkw&t=441s

by YouTube channel hAnD90, uploaded 2nd April 2025.

Back Storyย 

1988 demos new jersey album

.
Oh, THEBONJOVINEWJERSEYALBUM THEBONJOVINEWJERSEYALBUM THEBONJOVINEWJERSEYALBUM!
I ask of thee!
What could POSSIBLY have been more brilliant, more seductive, more the pinnacle 80s rock than Bon Jovi’s 1988 New Jersey album?!

The answer is of course TWO 1988 Bon Jovi New Jersey albums.ย 

Which is exactly what was forged, in the creative fires of the Little Mountain Sound Studios, Vancouver.
The same place where biggest-80s-rock-album Slippery When Wet had been recorded two years prior.

The band wanted this successor simply called “New Jersey” after their homestate, to be a double album.
December 1987 the band already had 30 demo songs.

But the record company didn’t want a double album, claiming the fans would not be prepared to invest that kind of money.
For context: in 1988 I would have been prepared to give my life for a new Bon Jovi record, and I was not the only 16 year old who thought that way!
So clearly the band was in the position they could have created anything they wanted, ask any price they wanted, and still have us screaming for more.
But okay.
Record companies, you know how it is.

Anyway!
What followed was one singular New Jersey album, and decades of rare recordings resurfacing in different shapes and sizes.
The band’s 2014 Deluxe edition from the album New Jersey is the most official, most complete version we have, of how this album would have sounded if the band had gotten their way and the album had been a double one.

Under the working title Sons of Beaches, recording took off.
And although I like to think that all songs had the honor of being performed at least once in the studio in Vancouver Canada, it is possible some versions were never brought into the studio.

But what we do know is that there are multiple versions, even from songs that never made it to the album!
In April 2025 hAnD90 on YouTube gave us a new interpretation of how Sons of Beaches (meaning: an alternative version to the New Jersey album) could have sounded.

The description box says:

“They’ve been around as part of the Sessions From The Vault demo bootleg collection and widely spread across the fan base and on YT. I think back in around 2011, my good friend Felipe Fontoura (some may remember his amazing acoustic Bon Jovi covers back in the day!) fine tuned the wobbly old tapes from this session and brought them up to the right speed and pitch. I slightly enhanced his work by balancing the instruments a bit more and refining some things”

This is your cue to click it, and let yourself be absolutely rocked (this is a f*ing promise!) by this jaw dropping alternative version of a double album that never existed in the first place.

๐ŸŽ›๏ธ๐ŸŽถ๐ŸŽง->
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKOymf1mhkw&t=441s
Bon Jovi | Sons Of Beaches | New Jersey Demo Tapes | Vancouver 1988
1hour 16min 28sec

The superb quality of their writing, music and OMG can we talk about Jon’s voice?!
Because of ALL of those things, and the crazy number of songs from this era, New Jersey will never stop being:
The Well That Keeps On Givingย ย 

The Ghost Album

the card

The Ghost Album Card means you’ve been overpowered, most likely in the area of creativity. Capitalism and its henchmen have you in a chokehold, making you take your creative work back, or altering it.
They’re making you change the message, or cutting it in half.
Watering it down.

The power to create was given to you. The time has come to summon that same power to send the work into the world, exactly as it was intended.

Your call will be answered.

~Suzanne Beenackers
Rock Star Writer

๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

.

about concert readings

.
Founded on the 4th of December 2024, Concert Readings are the Bon Jovi equivalent of a Tarot reading.

Can we find the stories still buried deep inside the bootlegs?
Can we elevate the ones already told a thousand times?

This series is intended to run for ten years, covering a good part of the available 20th century concerts.
And who knows?
Maybe from 2035 up, we’ll do what Jon calls a round two!
Covering the tours 2000 – 2010.

Map out your future but do it in pencil.
Jon Bon Jovi

 

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

.

subscribe to myย SUBSTACK
for all my English articles.

The Socials:
Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn
And YouTube Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

A Time Capsule Ballad | Never Say Goodbye | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/sQ-2DHUtQYE

#28 Never Say Goodbye
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

Welcome back, Jovi friends!
Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs continues with Never Say Goodbye.

It is the 9th song of the album Slippery When Wet (1986), and the second to last track.
It is also the very first real Bon Jovi ballad.

If you’re not familiar with the song – or simply long to be taken back to 1986 in this TIME CAPSULE OF A SONG! – you can listen here, to the official video.

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
And why this song is such a watershed moment, in the Bon Jovi repertoire.
And a bit of an 80s time capsule ๐Ÿค—

2. The 1987 Prom Song 01:34
And why it was such a darn On Point one! ๐Ÿ˜…
NB In the video I date it as “1986’s Prom song” but even with my non-existent experience with proms, I’m almost a 100% sure I should have said 1987.

3. Never released as a single?! 03:20
Or was it?
Why there is so much confusion about so many of the songs on this album, whether they were or were not released as singles.
And why they deliberately capped this mega successful album after only the third single, Wanted Dead or Alive.
Their heartfelt Swan Song.

4. Famous for these reasons 07:36
With this song never having been a single, why did it became a fan favorite?
Well!
Because this baby was the living, breathing, exhausted HEART of the show from 1986 to 1988!
It was what Jon Bon Jovi sang AFTER he FLEW over the audience, all the way to back of the venue.
All alone, an exhausted rock star, isolated, on a plateau.
For some of us, and by some of us I mean me, this pinnacle of rock star symbolism would become impossible to top.

5. the 3 different live VERSIONS 09:40

Over the course of 9 years Never Say Goodbye would be sung in three different ways.

The 1987 version: In the back of the room
https://youtu.be/p9FrdyS_RJs?si=jvxTMKCmkVuUsCfX
Vancouver

1990: the double guitar acoustic version, together with Richie Sambora
https://youtu.be/WKW6rPT6aNg?si=2s9tqFjhyrPHQqsi
Rock in Rio

1995: The Even-The-Critics-Loved-Bon Jovi Era, of musical perfection:
https://youtu.be/GTc7UR7P0bQ?si=-nbkpMovwl7uGHJJ
Jakarta

6. The 3 Groups in fanbase 12:04
Every version of Never Say Goodbye has its own fanbase!
With a special story about how Bon Jovi won over even the hardest critic. Forever.

7. How the song was created 17:17
Jon has gone on record saying Never Say Goodbye was inspired by Bruce Springsteen/ Southside Johnny’s song Hearts of Stone.
But with a demo sung by Richie Sambora, and the claim he actually wrote it about Jon and Dorothea, it is hard to get to the truth about who did what.
What we do know is that this song would never have been on the album. had it not been for the Pizza Parlor Jury!

8. The Life Lessons here 19:24
Don’t knock the power of the Pizza Parlor Jury!
And sometimes it takes 9 years before something has reached its full potential.
And even then?
Someone, somewhere, will prefer the raw 1987 Jon-is-exhausted version ๐Ÿ˜…

Next stop:
Wild In The Streets!

~Suzanne Beenackers
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Playlist Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGoDE3C06SeCKg4jvR2EoVHBOfXzHm_R

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

Double down on guitar | I’d Die For You | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/q9S2qqgnPkc

#27 I’d Die For You
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

Welcome back, Jovi friends!
Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs continues in 2025 with the most beloved fan favorite of Slippery When Wet.

To mark this special occasion, I made us an I’d Die For You playlist!
From the earliest demos to its 1996 mastery when it was turned into a ballad
I’d Die For You – Bon Jovi | Playlist – >
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGoDE3C06SeysU97wXZfucyBQSgVh0V4

I’d Die For You is the 8th song of the album Slippery When Wet (1986), but its core identity is actually being second!

For years this song was absolutely GLUED, to the spot of being played second at Bon Jovi concerts. And for good reason; With the magic of Jon Bon Jovi also playing electric guitar on this one, joining Ritchie Sambora, the song doubled down on being a rock song for the ages.

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
The first video of 2025 and I’m happy to report I’ve made video-making the heart of my planning.
Because over the past years, it just didn’t get done!

So it promises to become a productive year.

2. Slippery When Wet Album 01:36
We’re still at the album that was their absolute biggie.
The book behind me, Let it Rock, is also about the creation of this record.

3. I’d Die For You 02:30
A fan favorite to die for that had its own designated place on every setlist for absolute years! It came second, every night from 1987 to 1989

Link to this channel’s I’d Die For You playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGoDE3C06SeysU97wXZfucyBQSgVh0V4

4. “Hey operator” 04:07
The first two on the playlist are demos which have entirely different lyrics.
Recognizable by the verses starting with “Hey operator”.
This is the version before Desmond Child came in.
And I was ON THE VERGE- of telling you this version had won me over.
Until I heard the official one (song 3 and up on the playlist)

Unbeatable!
To die for! ๐Ÿ˜‰

5. Always in second place 06:32
For the longest time, I’d Die For You was glued to the second spot in their setlists!
Giving us the first life lesson:
There’s no shame in being second!

6. Less is more 08:26
The second life lesson this song brings us, is less is more.
The new lyrics are more intimate because they have less characters (the operator was no longer in the story).
In particular because the music is already so rich, it pays off to have less “exposition” or complexity, in the lyrics.

๐Ÿˆโ€โฌ›๐Ÿˆโ€โฌ›
The little cat peeking into the frame every now and then is Zaza.
The pluche toys on the couch are little bear Puux, Fleurtje the Monchhichi and Master Grogu. And it’s winter so they’re all snuggled up in their blanket.
(Zaza and Flip’s baby blanket, but they’re okay with them using it)

7. Saved the best for last!! 11.22
This song live has Jon Bon Jovi on electric guitar!!
Double electric guitar really makes this song kick in.
But in recent years, something happened that broke this ancient custom.

8. The future of Bon Jovi live 14:02
Will we ever hear I’d Die For You, in its former glory?

Next stop:
Never Say Goodbye!

~Suzanne Beenackers
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Playlist Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGoDE3C06SeCKg4jvR2EoVHBOfXzHm_R

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

A Designated Cover Song | Without Love | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/XH5TcMJAGgE

#26 Without Love
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

Welcome back, Jovi friends!
Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs continues with the least recognized song of the album, Without Love.
It has the questionable honor of being the only song on this album that was never performed live.

Without Love is the 7th song of the album Slippery When Wet (1986).

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
This sure feels like ages ago!
(in reality it was one packed December month ago)

But this song has the perfect line for it:
๐ŸŽต๐ŸŽถ “I’ve been through some changes
But some things always stay the same” ๐ŸŽต๐ŸŽถ
There’s nothing “without love”, and I do love making these videos!
So of course, I am back.

2. One of 4 Siblings 01:20
Desmond Child co-wrote several songs for Bon Jovi’s album Slippery When Wet.
Without Love is one of the two lesser known songs.

The fourth Desmond Child song is I’d Die For You, which is up next;
And about which I already have a lot of emotions! ๐Ÿฅถ๐Ÿ˜ฌ

As opposed to the usual suspects on this album, competing for Best Song, it appears to be the upcoming I’d Die For You that seems to be presenting the biggest challenge so far in this series!

3. A designated Cover Song 04:57
The unusual thing Jon Bon Jovi said about Without Love
(source: https://twostorytown.com/without-love)

4. What would Tony Kuzminski say about this song?! 06:14
Always a great question to ask oneself.
(read his answer for any Bon Jovi song here: https://ultimateclassicrock.com/bon-jovi-songs-ranked/)

5. The Life Lesson! 07:37

Okay!
So we’ve definitely had lessons that were more tightly knit to the song itself.
But my friend, rarely will you get a “deeper cut” of insiders-only yoga knowledge!
Colored in, by yours truly.
So this theory was passed down to me, in an era long gone. But I expanded on it, and developed it into my own thing.

I’m not even going to say what it’s about.
Because YouTube has probably got me shadow banned enough based on verbal analysis alone.
But it’s good ๐Ÿ˜‰

Next stop:
I’d Die For You!
๐Ÿฅถ๐Ÿ˜ฌ

~Suzanne Beenackers
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Playlist Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGoDE3C06SeCKg4jvR2EoVHBOfXzHm_R

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

Cemented into 80s Pop Culture | Raise Your Hands | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/PUMeSXJK6zA

#25 Raise Your Hands
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

The unlikely candidate to become a classic;
But hear me out!

Raise Your Hands is the sixth song of the album Slippery When Wet (1986) and the opener of side B, for vinyl and cassette.

This episode was recorded on 24th November 2024, and posted on the 28th.

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
This sure feels like ages ago! (in reality it was 3 weeks )
With Raise Your hands we have flipped the Slippery When Wet cassette or vinyl to the second side, where this songs opens.

2. The Tale of Two Opening Songs 00:55
A story about Raise Your Hands (opener of side B), Let it Rock (album opener), as well as an initially unnamed instrumental sibling, which would successfully be teamed up to either one.

Plus a fast forward to the classic opener for their next album (the New Jersey album, 1988) and tour.
They were definitely overdelivering on their openers!

“Raise Your Hands is my way of saying good morning class.”
Jon Bon Jovi, 1986

3. Going all in on being a live band 06:30
Raise Your Hands was the signature song for the Slippery When Wet Tour specifically.
The song would disappear from the setlist afterwards.

But Raise Your Hands was also symbolic of them coming of age as a live band. And understanding Bon Jovi could handle stadiums.

4. We, The band 09:15
And my 2 cents on when we noticed there is an I, in Bon Jovi.

5. A Star Is Born 10:31
Director Wayne Isham literally set the stage for the new Bon Jovi era.
He set up a faux stage at a boxing arena, brought in a live audience, and shot the videos for the album’s first two videos;
You Give Love A Bad Name and Livin’ On A Prayer.
Turning them into superstars.

6. Director Wayne Isham 14:40
Would stay on for years, creating many more Live-inspired videos.
At first it seems there’s little story telling here, but Richie Sambora pointed out that those videos were actually a form of documentary.
A style that had never before been used for music videos.

Having a live video would become the default for the band.

7. Play your strengths 15:51
The live videos, as well as Jon’s realization around 1986, that they could handle big stadiums, are both examples of having a keen sense of what you’re good at.
And rolling with that.

8. Raise Your Hands equals movie Spaceballs 17:05
For many people, these two always go hand in hand!
As the comment section of Raise Your Hands on the official Bon Jovi YouTube, proves.
Spaceballs was an 80s Star Wars spoof, and it has cemented Raise Your Hands into 80s pop culture.

You can watch the movie here: Spaceballs (1987)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAGuYr3hpR4

Next stop:
Without Love!

~Suzanne Beenackers
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

The Anthem! | Wanted Dead or Alive | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/wus1Ur9CJEM

#24 Wanted Dead or Alive
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

Known to Bon Jovi fans as THE ANTHEM!
But we’ll just go with;
Everybody’s Favorite Song ๐Ÿ™‚

With the exception of the few rebels who choose differently out of principle.
But even they (including me) would agree Wanted Dead or Alive is Bon Jovi’s most cinematic composition.

Wanted Dead or Alive is the fifth song of the album Slippery When Wet (1986) and the closer to side A, for vinyl and cassette.

video recorded on 4 November 2024

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
A series we do in chronological order and we’re at their third album.
And Everybody’s Favorite Song.

2. The Brilliant Website 00:51
That is making creating this series so much easier for me!
The website is called Two Story Town.
This is today’s page:
https://twostorytown.com/wanted-dead-or-alive
With “Everything Anyone In Bon Jovi Has Ever Said About Wanted Dead or Alive”.

3. How this Cowboy-inspired song came into being 01:45
Tapping straight into the lonely depths of their ’84 and ’85 tours, this song did not just have a personal meaning for them;
It also had a specific musical inspiration.
They knew what they wanted! So to speak.

4. David Bryan the Keyboard Prayer ๐Ÿ˜‰ 05:08
Bon Jovi’s low-key instrumentalist, brings it once again.

5. Richie’s Basement 07:52
The bare bones of this song were created at a magical place: The basement at Richie Sambora’s.
It was his parent’s basement and he had dreamed and envisioned his life as a rock star before he could even play.

I forgot to outline a real lesson to this song, in the video.
But I’d say the lesson is to have a place where you can dream.
Just like Richie Sambora did.

6. The Afternoon It ALL Happened 10:10
And they even had time to write a second song.

7. Recording this song at the Studio 11:09
And Bruce Fairbairn giving the missing link to bring this song to life!

8. Bring. Back. Acoustic. 12:04
And double neck and even triple neck guitar.

9. Going against the grain 14:10
Although I agree Wanted Dead or Alive is hands down the strongest song in Bon Jovi history;
I’m gonna go with an entirely different song, as being my favorite!
And I just realized I managed to pick the one that is its diametrical opposite!
๐Ÿ˜‰
Can you guess?
It was a song created for a single purpose, and with no intrinsic meaning to pretty much anyone. Yet played at pretty much every Bon Jovi concert.

Wanted Dead or Alive, the strongest song Bon Jovi ever made, was a testament.
It was the loneliness they had been unable to articulate at the time;
Coming out, guns blazing.

Next stop:
Raise Your Hands!

~Suzanne Beenackers
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

“His trademark song with a horn section!” | Social Disease | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/UCjDUqo8Sk0

#23 Social Disease
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

The untold story!
Social Disease is the least appreciated track of breakthrough album Slippery When Wet (1986).

But if you know its legendary roots?
This might just change your mind!

In this video:

1. Welcome to another episode 00:00
Of Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs.
A series we do in chronological order. We’re at their third album.
Which at the time, for many people was their Only Album!

2. 4th song of side A! 01:17
Cassette (and vinyl!) listeners have a completely different context, where the closer from side A and the first song from side B, hold a special place.

3. About this not very well regarded song 02:58
Quote from:
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/bon-jovi-songs-ranked/
Where the song has even dropped 15 points, since I printed this article.

4. Praise for Tony Kuzminski 06:03
Who has earned his right to say certain things.

5. Social Disease Live 1990 06:40
And why it was paired up with the Bob Dylan cover 7 Days!

6. It’s THE horn section song of the album 08:15
The signature trademark of producer Bruce Fairbairn! He would become legendary for always adding one horn-song to all rock records he produced.

7. The Early Death of Bruce Fairbairn 10:18
Of unknown causes in 1999. And with countless accolades to his name, all in the field of rock and heavy metal.

8. How Bruce Fairbairn was a key success factor for this record 10:40
Credited for really amalgamating the band.

9. Bruce Fairbairn played the trumpet himself 14:50
And played together with one other musician, for these horn recordings.

10. How this story will leave its mark 15:34
We will never listen to it again, without appreciating this story behind it.

11. the meaning of the song 15:55
And the confusion around of the lyrics.

link to a page with interview clippings:
https://twostorytown.com/social-disease

Ultimately it really is “just” a song for fun, and meant to be lighthearted.

12. How the early death of Bruce Fairbairn gives it its meaning 17:55
Seize the day.
Carpe Diem.

Next stop:
Wanted Dead or Alive!

~Suzanne

๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

“It took 4000 songs!” | Livin’ on a Prayer | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/-p9mkXIMZ50

#22 Livin’ on a Prayer
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

Livin’ on a Prayer, was the second single of their breakthrough album Slippery When Wet (1986).
And part of an effective two puncher!
Before the year was over, You Give Love a Bad Name and Livin’ on a Prayer had not just put Bon Jovi on the map;
It had given them superstar status.

In this video:

1. Welcome to the Song of Songs! 00:00
Setting myself up for failure, obviously.

2. about Slippery When Wet album 01:11
And the core role for Livin’ on a Prayer

3. The secret behind the success of Slippery 01:31
Enter: songwriter Desmond Child

4. The Rock Star Maker 02:15
What Desmond Child did really really well, at that time.

5. Bon Jovi’s lukewarm approach 03:20
The boys did not plan on just letting Desmond write them a few world hits!

6. “Look what I am carrying in my Backpocket!” 04:25
Unknowing of their standoffish involvement, Desmond Child won them over in 5 minutes.

7. The Assignment: Write a working class song! 06:15
And who Tommy and Gina really are.
And that there are multiple songs which feature them.

8. The body of work from Desmond Child 09:30
4000 songs written; 1200 songs recorded; 80 Top 40 hits; 10 Top 10 hits.
Source: This 13 minute interview Desmond Child
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHtf69yUM-4&t=127s

9. The moral of this story 10:15
“You have to write 4000 songs to get 10 really good ones!”

Next stop:
Social Disease!

~Suzanne

๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

“It was big!” | You Give Love a Bad Name | Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs (new video)

new story on YouTube:
click here to see it->
https://youtu.be/gfv-XZ8U_MY

#21 You Give Love a Bad Name
| life lessons in Bon Jovi songs

You Give Love A Bad Name, was the first and flagship single of their breakthrough album Slippery When Wet (1986).
A big album, for a big decade.

In this video:

1. Welcome to Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs 00:00
The slowest moving series on YouTube! ๐Ÿ˜‰
And my Big Decision, to unstuck this channel and get it rollin’.
Link to my Dutch yoga channel, which will continue yoga:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA81I4RdVvgtGK99T3Io3Ew

2. Slippery When Wet album 02:22
And the well-known story behind the album cover.

3. The STORY behind this song! 03:53
Was inadvertently already covered earlier this year, when discussing a song on their previous album. So I m not going to repeat my take on what I think this song is about.
But here is the blogpost!
https://rockstarwriternijmegen.com/2024/01/09/a-meta-on-jbj-and-diane-lane-secret-dreams-by-bon-jovi-fahrenheit-album-1985-blog-post-pre-work-for-youtube-video/
Because I think the song is about Diane Lane!

4. What this song represented 04:48
Being the first single, You Give Love A Bad Name was in a way the spokesperson for the album.

5. What made this album, and with that Bon Jovi, so special 05:45
All quotes from the book Let It Rock by Neil Daniels.

6. Saving the best for last: The 2024 REBIRTH of this song!!! 14:45
Watch it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7jPnwVGdZ8
The Fall Guy | Official Trailer

7. The actual life lesson in this Bon Jovi song 17:00
+
a reference to the aforementioned blogpost:
https://rockstarwriternijmegen.com/2024/01/09/a-meta-on-jbj-and-diane-lane-secret-dreams-by-bon-jovi-fahrenheit-album-1985-blog-post-pre-work-for-youtube-video/

Next stop:
Livin’ On A Prayer!

.
~Suzanne
๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie
โ˜•๏ธ Buy me a coffee
๐ŸŒŽ Paypal

 

You can follow all content on:
Twitter, Facebook, and I am new on Instagram.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

get all articles without ever visiting social media and read without ads?
subscribe to my
ย SUBSTACK
free memberships provided
The Socials:

Instagramย  Twitter Rock Star Writer Facebook Facebook Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver LinkedIn YouTube

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
Online bookshop

Businesses

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

Dutch:

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

A Sexual Awakening | Let it Rock by Bon Jovi (Slippery album, 1986) | blog post { pre-work for YouTube video }

video: One of the last performances of Let it Rock. The song would disappear from the setlist after the New Jersey Syndicate Tour.

I create
“Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs” videos for YouTube.
This blogpost is the pre-work.

“Let It Rock” is the first song on Bon Jovi’s sales-through-the-roof, mega-successful album Slippery When Wet.

The song was played live both on the Slippery When Wet Tour (1986-1987) as well as its successor the New Jersey Syndicate Tour (1988-1990).
Bar a few collector-worthy vinyls that showed up on the Google search, it was never a single a
nd the song wasn’t played anymore after these tours either, with the exception of an occasional appearance the 2010 Circle Tour.

Probably fueled by its rarity, the song has become a fan-favorite, and I would say it is the unexpected gem, the secret weapon, that solidified the album.
“Let it Rock”, although never revealed to the broader public, was the proverbial icing on the rock n’ roll cake, that made the album Slippery When Wet work, in particular because of its intro:
An originally unnamed instrumental composition on keyboard (it’s not even in the official sheet music book!) that became known in the internet era as “Pink Flamingos”.

But in the 80s it was simply the first minute of side A of the album.
The first unforgettable, 57 seconds, your first impression of the album.
And we ALL know, how important those are!

Let It Rock was also the song which on the Slippery Tour had the questionable honor of having its hallmark intro clipped, and being shamelessly pasted in front of the performance of the B-side opener of the album, Raise Your Hands!
And not just 57 seconds because Pink Flamingos was turned into keyboardย  player and composer David Bryan’s time to shine on the stage, as he took the familiar opening tunes of the Slippery album to a whole new level for the live audience.

An audience which, I can only imagine, must have been slightly disappointed when it was then treated to Raise Your Hands, and not Let It Rock!
Usually (I am not that big of a connaisseur to have numbers or percentages) Let It Rock would get played, later in those shows. But without its characteristic intro.

So it is those first 57 seconds of the album, the part that would later be known as “Pink Flamingos” that actually make the song, and therefor the album, work.
I would go as far as to say that although the album sales were obviously driven by their hit singles, You Give Love a Bad Name, Livin’ On A Prayer and Wanted Dead or Alive;
It was in fact the David Bryan’s composition that made the album itself, stand out.
That made it more than a collection of hits and that push it right out of the gateway, from good to provocative. Unforgettable. Epic.

After 57 seconds, the song breaks into what is obviously the “real” intro; A series ofย  whoo hoo hooos, moving up, and then another moving down the ladder, effectively supported by a heavy, slow pulsing push, of guitar-driven rock!

And then?
“Aaahhh” (01:17)
In a moment of silence we hear an erotic, close to grunting, sigh!

Jon Bon Jovi’s first individual contribution to the Slippery When Wet album was, in my opinion, a faux orgasm.
A feature that, perhaps understandably, would never be repeated live.

Now as we have all been professionally warmed up, the actual, actual, Let It Rock begins.
And with every beat, it manages to hammer you deeper into your desires, your power, your darkness, your strength!
Its pace slightly slower than you would like, or would expect, keeping you on the edge, yearning for more.

My own experience with Let It Rock is a very personal one, as I credit this song for my early sexual awakening.
I mean I was, sexually awakened from as long as I can remember. Details which I will omit here, because they’re probably too much information.
Yet my early teens had been a time when I was recalibrating.

I had had my first idol, a Dutch teen idol only a very few years older than me, so it was nothing radical or out of the ordinary.
But although I was still collecting his articles and pictures, the intensity of idolization had lessened, and I was on the lookout for something else.
Or to be more exact;
Someone else.

So when You Give Love A Bad Name, and Livin’ on a Prayer dropped, in the final five months of 1986, I was open for business.
But I definitely took my time, before I made my choice.

The most likely time of me getting the cassette of Slippery When Wet would have been summer 1987, for my 15th birthday.
It was then, that I heard Let it Rock.

And although it would still take almost a year at that point, before I would get my first boyfriend, Bon Jovi, their music, and the idol Jon Bon Jovi, had already started keeping me company.
Their three singles, You Give Love a Bad Name, Livin’ Onย  A Prayer and the 1987 single Wanted Dead or Alive, had opened the door, they had me engaged for sure.
But it wasn’t until I had that album, the actual immersion in their music, that gave me the full, exciting, and satisfying thrill of being a Bon Jovi fan.

And although my first boyfriend and me were a difficult match, and our circumstances challenging, I was sexually curious and not afraid of this totally new physical experience of being with a tall and by all standards impressive, 17, 18 year old young man.

And when early 1988 I got my second boyfriend, I actually got a sex life that was so absolutely wonderful, I would still sign up both for a man like that, as well as for a sex life like that, although in all probability, the two went hand in hand ๐Ÿ˜‰

And it wasn’t until years, decades later even, that I understood how all that had happened.
How, in a world where so many girls and in particular sexually adventurous girls have all these bad experiences, a sex life I would still die for, was bestowed upon me.

It was because in the solitude of my bedroom in the attic, I had exposed myself day after day, night after night, to the cassette of Slippery When Wet.
It had taught me pure, uncensored, and unapologetic, sex.

It had been an initiation.

.
~Suzanne
Rock Star Writer

โ˜•๏ธย Buy me a coffee
๐Ÿฅณย PayPalMe
ย 
voor Nederland ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ Tikkie van de week

Other stories about my fan years as a teen
in the book A Boyfriend Like Jon Bongiovi

The accompanying Life lessons in Bon Jovi songs video on the topic ofย 
Let it Rockย 
will be recorded and will be published on my YouTubeย around the 15th of April 2024.

The next article in this series will appear around 20 April 2024 about:
You Give Love A Bad Name
Subscribe to this blog to receive it in your Inbox

.

That was it!ย 

Thank you for reading my Rock Star Writer blog!
Subscribe to the blog, to get them in your mailbox.
You can find the subscription button on this page, probably on the top right.

SOURCES for this series:

I
https://bjtours.jimdofree.com/the-albums/1986-slippery-when-wet/

II
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/bon-jovi-songs-ranked/
“All 334 Bon Jovi Songs, Ranked Worst to Best”
by Anthony Kuzminski

my businesses since 2023:

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

+ My new Dutch company

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

This Rock Star Writer blog is an element of “Rock Star” [phase 3]

Title: “Rock Star”
or “Rock Star yoga/ business/ writer”

artists: Suzanne Beenackers, little bear Puuxย  ย  ย  ย  ย  ย 
art form: writing + YouTube videos
leg 1: earliest expressions, mixed work, July 2019 – March 2022
leg 2: The Void April 2022 – January 2023
leg 3: Storytelling 17 January 2023 –ย 

4 blogs
1. Rock Star Writer
2. About Bon Jovi concerts: Daily Bon Jovi Yogaย 
3. World Between Worlds
4. Dutch blog: Suzanne Beenackers

3 YouTube channels, all rebooted late May 2023
1. English YouTube Stories of Bon Jovi and the White Tigress
2. Nederlandse YouTube de Club, Yoga voor Generatie X (Dutch)
3. YouTube Rock Your Business

2 Facebook pages
1. Rock Star Writer on Facebook
2. Dutch: Suzanne Beenackers Schrijver Facebook met beertje Puux

1 Twitter account
my personal Twitter account

1 Instagram
as probably the last person joining there!ย 

๐ŸŒ๐ŸŒŽ ๐Ÿ“š๐Ÿ›’
An online bookshop

& One company since February 2023:

Catacombe
become the Rock Star you were born to be

+ My new Dutch company, expected late May 2023

de Club
yoga voor generatie X

Books

You can find my books The Little Mistress Who Turned Into A Baby Koala
A Boyfriend Like Jon Bongiovi
and White Tigress Yoga Workbook
at the bottom of this page:
https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/rockstarwriter

If you live in The Netherlands, Belgium or Germany, you can also order these books from me – just go to the bottom of this page:
https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/rockstarwriter
to check out which ones you want, and write me an email at s_beenackers@hotmail.com.
Payment is via PayPal or bank transfer.