New Jersey is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Bon Jovi, released on 19 September 1988 through Mercury Records. The album was produced by Bruce Fairbairn and recorded at the Little Mountain Sound Studios in Vancouver, Canada.
The album was the follow-up to the band's 1986 breakthrough album, Slippery When Wet, and reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart in its second week of release after making its debut at No. 8. It remained at No. 1 for four consecutive weeks. It produced five Billboard Hot 100 top ten singles, the most top ten hits to date for any hard rock/heavy metal album, including "Bad Medicine" and "I'll Be There for You", which both reached No. 1. The album was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album also debuted at No. 1 in UK and was the band's first UK No. 1 album. New Jersey was released by the Soviet state-owned record company "Melodiya", being the first American album ever released in USSR.
Background
The album was recorded very shortly after the Slippery When Wet Tour, because the band wanted to prove that they were not just going to be a one hit wonder. The album was initially planned to be a double album; however, this idea was rejected by the record company because they were skeptical about the higher price point and decided they would only release a single album. One working title for the album was Sons of Beaches, which parodied the title of their previous album, Slippery When Wet.
Recording and production
The album was produced by Bruce Fairbairn like its predecessor and recorded at the Little Mountain Sound Studios in Vancouver, Canada. It marked the final collaboration between Bon Jovi and producer Bruce Fairbairn.
When the Slippery When Wet Tour ended in October 1987 the band were inactive for about three to four weeks. Then Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora began making demos for 17 songs which would make up the first batch of songs written for the album. However, they began to feel a high level of pressure because they did not feel as though they had "the amazing song." Jon Bon Jovi said that "I really wanted to do it again, not for monetary reasons - I have plenty of money - but it was such an amazing feeling to have done what we’ve done. There was a real fear of not being able to write You Give Love A Bad Name again." Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora sat together and wrote the song "Love Is War" but Jon Bon Jovi wanted to write a song that would prove to be just as successful as "You Give Love A Bad Name" so desperately that it came out with exactly the same chord progression. They later started on the second batch of songs and they wrote "Born To Be My Baby" and "Bad Medicine" with Desmond Child. "Born To Be My Baby" was originally recorded acoustically, however the producer Bruce Fairbairn persuaded them to re-record it with electronic instruments in a harder rock and much more metal style. Jon Bon Jovi has since said that he believed the song would have made #1 on the charts if it had been released in its original form. This song has a similar theme to "Livin' On A Prayer," as it's about a young working class couple struggling to make ends meet.
Although the glossy production and anthems from Slippery When Wet remained, the band wished to show a level of diversity on the album. The album is much more experimental with a long, atmosphere-building intro on "Lay Your Hands On Me", harmonica and organ duels on "Homebound Train" and a flamenco guitar intro on "Wild Is the Wind". "Ride Cowboy Ride" is a short song functioning as an introduction to "Stick To Your Guns" and was recorded in mono. The song is credited to "Captain Kidd and King of Swing", the nicknames of Bon Jovi and Sambora. "Love for Sale" was also recorded when the band were drunk during a party in a place called Chalet Sound in New Jersey.
Release and reception
New Jersey debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 chart but climbed to No. 1 the following week and spent four weeks at the top spot. It eventually sold 7 million copies in the United States. The album debuted at No. 1 in Canada, the UK, Switzerland, Sweden, New Zealand and Australia. New Jersey also holds the record for the hard rock album to spawn the most Top 10 singles, with five singles charting on the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart in United States. No other hard rock or heavy metal album has ever equaled or broken this feat. "Bad Medicine" and the ballad "I'll Be There for You" both hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Born to Be My Baby", "Lay Your Hands on Me", and "Living in Sin" reached the Top 10.
Track listing
2014 Deluxe Edition
New Jersey was released on July 1, 2014 as a 2CD "Deluxe Edition", which included the original album remastered along with b-sides and previously unreleased demos from the New Jersey/Sons of Beaches sessions. The "Super Deluxe Edition" includes both discs plus a DVD containing the documentary Access All Areas: A Rock & Roll Odyssey and New Jersey: The Videos. Both titles were previously available on VHS.
Charts
Certifications
Personnel
- Jon Bon Jovi - lead vocals, guitar
- Richie Sambora - guitar, background vocals
- Tico Torres - drums, percussion, background vocals on Born to Be My Baby and Love for Sale
- David Bryan - keyboards, background vocals
- Alec John Such - bass, background vocals
- Bruce Fairbairn - Producer, Percussion, Horns
- John Allen - Engineer
- Peter Berring - Arranger, Vocals, Vocal arrangement
- Chris Cavallaro - Engineer
- Scott Fairbairn - Cello
- Audrey Nordwell - Cello
- Bob Rock - Engineer, Mixing
- George Marino - Mastering at Sterling Sound, New York
- The Sweet Thing - Vocal association
- Hugh Syme - Artwork, Design
- Chris Taylor - Assistant engineer
- Jim Williams - Assistant engineer
- Tim White - Photography
- Cameron Wong - Cover Photography
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