Bon Jovi
USA, 1983–now
New Jersey band formed in 1983 by Jon Bon Jovi with guitarist Richie Sambora. Slippery When Wet, with 'Livin' on a Prayer' and 'Wanted Dead or Alive', combined heartland rock writing with hard rock production.
MusicRoots documents 6 artists who influenced Bon Jovi and 0 artists Bon Jovi influenced in turn. Every connection cites a published source.
Who influenced Bon Jovi?
- Bruce Springsteen — Fellow New Jerseyan Springsteen's heartland-rock sincerity is the emotional core of Bon Jovi — Jon has repeatedly named him a defining influence and mentor.
- Aerosmith — Aerosmith's smooth, saucy hard-rock grooves are a direct model for Bon Jovi's fiercest melodies.
- Thin Lizzy — Thin Lizzy's hefty twin-guitar hooks feed Bon Jovi's metallic side — the anthemic hard-rock craft under the hair-metal sheen.
- Van Halen — Van Halen's Sunset-Strip hard rock was the contemporary template Bon Jovi's arena-metal sound built on.
- Led Zeppelin — Led Zeppelin's monumental hard rock is among the classic-rock foundations under Bon Jovi's anthems.
- Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes — Jon Bon Jovi calls him his reason for singing, and names him alongside Springsteen rather than behind him. Southside Johnny produced the first band Bon Jovi was in and let them open for him while he was still at school.