Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi
born: 02-03-1962
birth place: Perth Amboy, NJ, USA

John Francis Bongiovi Jr was born in New Jersey, and was then raised in nearby Sayreville. Both of Jon’s parents - Carol Sharkey and John Sr - were US Marines.

Jon spent most of his adolescence bunking school to opt for music activities instead and he ended up playing in local bands with friends and his cousin Tony who owned the then famous New York recording studio, the Power Station. One demo in particular, Runaway caught the attention of the local New Jersey radio station and Jon recruited a band to support the song. Bon Jovi’s first studio album, self-titled, went gold in the charts and Runaway became their first Top 40 hit. It was at this time that Jon’s cousin Tony Bongiovi apparently sued Jon and the band by claiming that he’d been responsible for their creation and unique sound. In 1985, the band’s second album 7800 Fahrenheit was released and also gained a gold record sale status yet Jon and his co-members felt that their fame wasn’t at the level they were hoping for.

The release of the finished work in 1986 was the huge hit the band had been waiting for. Following the group’s success, Jon Bon Jovi was asked to assist in producing Cher’s ‘comeback’ album, Cher, as a solo influence. Jon co-wrote and sang backing vocals on Cher’s single We All Sleep Alone and also produced several other tracks on the album, later going on to co-produce Cher’s best-selling multi-platinum album Heart of Stone in 1987.

In 1989, Jon married his high school sweetheart Dorothea Hurley and the couple remain together today, with four children.

Meanwhile, Bon Jovi’s fourth album New Jersey was released in September of the same year. The album topped the American Billboard charts for a month and included five Top 10 singles. The film and album were released in 1990 and gave Jon his first solo number one single with the hit Blaze of Glory. The soundtrack also peaked at number three in the charts and Jon’s input was recognised with both Grammy and Academy Award nominations plus a Golden Globe win for Best Original Song. A second single from the film’s soundtrack album, Miracle, also had a successful release in reaching the number 12 chart position and featured a then unknown Matt LeBlanc in the video.

Jon reunited with the rest of his band members in 1992 with their new work, Keep The Faith. The album didn’t manage to meet the success of the group’s previous two hit releases and spent only a fortnight in the top 10.

In 1994, Bon Jovi released a greatest hits album, Cross Road. Jon’s first significant acting part came in 1995 in the film Moonlight and Valentino alongside Gwyneth Paltrow and Kathleen Turner. Jon’s first solo album, Destination Anywhere was released 1997 and was a success. In 2000 after a five year break, Bon Jovi reunited for their seventh studio album, Crush. It’s My Life earned the band a Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group while Crush won Best Rock Album.

Synching the band’s constant success in the musical world, Jon continued to take acting roles and starred in two significant hits in 2000. Bon Jovi’s eighth album, Bounce followed suit of its predecessors by zooming straight to the number two slot in 2002. This was the band’s highest chart debut in their 20 year career, proving that their winning song writing formula was unbeatable.

In the years that have followed Bounce, Jon Bon Jovi has successfully continued to synch his acting career, most recently in the hit US TV series, The West Wing (2006) alongside Bon Jovi’s acclaimed musical status, releasing a further four albums. 2007 marks the release of the band’s ninth studio album, Lost Highway with a tour to promote it.