Livin' on a Prayer

"Livin' on a Prayer"
Single by Bon Jovi
from the album Slippery When Wet
B-side"Wild in the Streets"
ReleasedOctober 1986
Recorded1986
Genre
Length4:11 (album version)
4:23 (Rock Band 2 edit)
5:07 (DualDisc remix)
5:16 (Crossroads re-record version)
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Bruce Fairbairn
Bon Jovi singles chronology
"You Give Love a Bad Name"
(1986)
"Livin' on a Prayer"
(1986)
"Wanted Dead or Alive"
(1987)
Music video
"Livin' on a Prayer" on YouTube

"Livin' on a Prayer" is a song by the American rock band Bon Jovi from their third studio album, Slippery When Wet. Written by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and Desmond Child, the single, released in late 1986, performed strongly on both rock and pop radio and its music video was given heavy rotation at MTV, giving the band their first song to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart and their second consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit.[7]

Regarded as the band's signature song, "Livin' on a Prayer" has topped fan-voted lists and re-charted around the world decades after its release. In 2013, the song was certified triple platinum for over 3 million digital downloads and has since sold over 13 million worldwide, making it one of the best selling singles of all time.

  1. ^ "Smashed Hits: Livin' On A Prayer". BBC News. November 27, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  2. ^ Beaujour, Tom; Bienstock, Richard; Eddy, Chuck; Fischer, Reed; Grow, Kory; Johnston, Maura; Weingarten, Christopher R. (August 31, 2019). "50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  3. ^ Sleazegrinder (December 4, 2015). "The 20 Best Hair Metal Anthems Of All Time Ever". Louder Sound. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Browne, David (September 6, 2001). "Why are Bon Jovi suddenly musical saints?". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  5. ^ Breihan, Tom (February 3, 2021). "The Number Ones: Bon Jovi's "Livin' On A Prayer"". Stereogum. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
  6. ^ Deusner, Stephen (February 18, 2017). "We're all livin' on a prayer: How a hair band anthem from the least cool '80s rockers became a classic". Salon. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  7. ^ "AllMusic (Bon Jovi charts & awards) Billboard singles".


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