LIVIN' ON A PRAYER

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"'Livin' on a Prayer'" is Bon Jovi's second single from their ''Slippery When Wet'' album. It is perhaps their most well-known song.
Jon Bon Jovi did not like the original recording of this song, which can be found as a hidden track on ''100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong''. Richie Sambora convinced him the song was good, and they reworked it and included it on their ''Slippery When Wet'' album. It became their signature song, spending four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987. It also hit number four on the UK singles chart.

Contents

Lyrical interpretation

Music Video

References in Other Songs

Trivia

Chart Sucession

Lyrical interpretation

The song is about a fictional working class couple, Tommy and Gina, who struggle to make ends meet and maintain their relationship.
This is the first time that Sambora used the talk box as a lead instrument.
The first verse of the song appears to be about their younger days; Tommy "used to work on the docks" but the "union's been on strike, he's down on his luck". Gina works at a diner, "'workin' for her man".
The second verse appears to be set much later. Gina "dreams of running away" implying that they have once again fallen on hard times.
Some have interpreted the lyrics to be anti-labor-union, as the striking labor union seems to be the catalyst for the troubled chain of events for Tommy and Gina. However, others have pointed out that the song does not clarify the circumstances behind the strike, and that the rest of the song does not appear to have a political message.
"I wrote that song during the Reagan era and the trickle-down economics are really inspirational to writing songs..." - Jon Bon Jovi [1]

Music Video

The video for the song featured shots of the band rehearsing, then playing in front of a crowd. The first half of the video when the band is rehearsing is black and white, and the second half of the video, onstage, is in color.
In the beginning of the video, he has a harness attached, and later in the music video he "soars" over the crowd by overhead wires.
The music video was shot at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, Minnesota

References in Other Songs

Bon Jovi made several references to lyrics in "Livin' on a Prayer" in subsequent songs.

★ In the 1988 song "99 in the Shade" from ''New Jersey'', Jon Bon Jovi sings "Somebody even tells me Tommy's comin' down tonight, if Gina says it's alright," referring to the characters of "Livin' on a Prayer"

★ In the 1992 song "Fear" from ''Keep the Faith'', Jon Bon Jovi sings "take my hand, I know we'll make it", similar to the line from "Livin' on a Prayer", "take my hand, we'll make it, I swear." The two songs share similar themes.

★ Jon Bon Jovi has said that the 1995 Bon Jovi song "Lie to Me" from ''These Days'' is about the characters Tommy and Gina, although they are not mentioned explicitly in the song

★ In the 2000 hit single "It's My Life" from ''Crush'' is the line "this is for the ones who stood their ground, for Tommy and Gina, who never backed down", again referring to the fictional characters. Additionally, in the music video, it is revealed the lead male character is named "Tommy" when his mother calls on him to take out the trash.

★ In the 2005 song "Novocaine" from ''Have a Nice Day'', "Livin on a Prayer" is referenced in the line "there's a different kind of meaning now to livin' on a prayer."
Some other bands referenced Tommy and Gina in their songs, too.

★ Bowling for Soup's Punk Rock 101 includes the lyric "Like Tommy and Gina/They're livin' on a prayer".

★ Stellar Kart has covered this song also.

★ A brief a cappella set of Livin' on a Prayer was included as part of the November 7th episode of the TV show Gilmore Girls.

★ The Audition covered this song in Kerrang!'s CD Higher Voltage (June 07).

Trivia

★ In 2006, online voters rated "Livin' On A Prayer" #1 on VH1's list of "The 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s".

★ For a commercial about the Arena Football League that Bon Jovi did with John Elway, he asks the quarterback who is suiting up to go into the fictional game. "What? Are you living in the past?" To which Elway says, "Better than living on a prayer."

★ The song is often played during Chicago White Sox home games, during an offensive rally when the Sox need a big clutch hit. It usually draws an enthusiastic crowd response.

★ The song's chorus was used in an old Filipino Zesto orange juice commercial in the 1990s. It went, "Cool and refreshing, that's the way to go-o. Oh! Way to go, Zesto!".

★ The Auburn University Marching Band recently began playing the song at home football games when a big offensive or defensive play is needed. The student section often sings along.

★ The Band of the Fighting Irish has performed the song at numerous University of Notre Dame football halftimes, and it remains a crowd favorite for all sporting events at the university.

★ The Boston College marching band performs this song during home football games when the team is rallying. The student section enthusiastically sings along, partially as a testament to the "prayer" reference and the Catholic background of the university.

★ In New Zealand, "Livin' On A Prayer" Was Number one on the C4 music channel show's "U choose 40", on the 80's Icons list. Also, it was Number One on the sing-a-long classics list

★ Livin on a Prayer was one of the theme songs for the 2004 presidential campaign of Democrat John Kerry

★ The George Mason Patriots often play this song as their kind of "Theme Song".

★ Livin on a Prayer is often played at Penn State Football games in Beaver Stadium to the accompaniment of over 100,000 fans.

★ During halftime at Philadelphia Soul arena football games, the song is played, paying tribute to their owner Jon Bon Jovi.

★ The song was also sung by American Idol season 6 winner Jordin Sparks on May 1, 2007 as her pick for Bon Jovi week on the show. The performance was considered one of her worst ever on the show.

★ When Bon Jovi plays the song in concert, they frequently end it with the guitar riff from Derek and the Dominos' "Little Wing".

Chart Sucession