I'll Be There for You (Bon Jovi song)
| "I'll Be There for You" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Bon Jovi | ||||
| from the album New Jersey | ||||
| B-side | "Homebound Train" | |||
| Released | April 4, 1989 | |||
| Format | 7", CD Single | |||
| Recorded | 1988 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock,[1] glam metal | |||
| Length | 5:46 | |||
| Label | Mercury Records | |||
| Writer(s) | Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora | |||
| Producer | Bruce Fairbairn | |||
| Bon Jovi singles chronology | ||||
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"I'll Be There for You" is a song by American hard rock band Bon Jovi from their 1988 album New Jersey, was written by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. The single of the song was ranked number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on the Mainstream rock charts.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Background
Originally released on the 1988 album New Jersey, it became the band's third single from the album when it was released as a single in 1989. As the band (and hard rock music) was at its peak popularity at this time, the song quickly climbed to the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their fourth and final number one single. The song has remained as one of Bon Jovi's signature songs and a classic in the power ballad genre. The song was also a peek into a more mature sound heard on their following albums Keep the Faith and These Days.
Some think the verses have an eerily and uncredited similarity (both musically and melodically) to John Lennon's Beatles' track "Don't Let Me Down" (recorded during the Get Back sessions) and the chorus was claimed, by some fans of the late '80s hard rock genre, to have been culled from an unreleased song by Joel Ellis of Cats in Boots and Heavy Bones.[3][4] Joel Ellis has said that Lehua Reid (Richie Sambora's ex-fiancée) regaled him with anecdotes regarding Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora 'sitting at the piano for hours with a box full of tapes they got from people and going through the songs looking for stuff they could rip off and laughing about it, your [Ellis'] song was played over and over and over'.[4]
On March 16, 2011, James Durbin performed the song on the 10th season of American Idol.
[edit] Music video
The video for the song features the band performing on a dark stage with an almost monochromatic blue color due to the stage lighting, with close-ups of each member, most notably lead singer Jon Bon Jovi and guitarist Richie Sambora. The video footage then switches midway to black-and-white footage from a Bon Jovi concert at the old Wembley Arena in London, England.
[edit] Homebound Train
"Homebound Train", the B-side to "I'll Be There for You", is notable for being one of the band's heaviest songs, and also for the brief back-and-forth keyboard and harmonica solos leading up to the guitar solo. It is a heavy metal song opposed to its A-side that is a Power Ballad/Love Ballad. When played during The Circle Tour, it was sung by Richie Sambora.
[edit] Charts
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia | 23 |
| Canada | 2 |
| Germany | 67 |
| Ireland | 6 |
| The Netherlands | 22 |
| Switzerland | 15 |
| United Kingdom | 18 |
| United States | 1 |
[edit] References
- ^ "Allmusic - New Jersey - Review". William Ruhlmann. Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r2252. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
- ^ "Allmusic (Bon Jovi charts & awards) Billboard singles". http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p3734/charts-awards/billboard-singles.
- ^ "If you have a juicy original,dont send it to BON JOVI". Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=27917612598&ref=mf. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
- ^ a b "Joel Ellis Interview". Sleaze Roxx. 2006-03-07. http://www.sleazeroxx.com/interviews/ellisint.shtml. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
| Preceded by "Like a Prayer" by Madonna |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single May 13, 1989 |
Succeeded by "Forever Your Girl" by Paula Abdul |
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