Bon Jovi is one of the few rock bands that first achieved commercial success in Japan before they went on to worldwide stardom. Japanese fans welcomed them from the early stage of their career, allowing them to headline several rock festivals in mid '80s. That's why Bon Jovi "keeps the faith" with Japanese fans, never failing to visit Japan during their tours and releasing a number of Japan-only albums. They even recorded a song 'Tokyo Road' on their second album, '7800 Fahrenheit'.

Bon Jovi got its start between Jon Bon Jovi (b. John Francis Bongiovi Jnr., 2 March 1962, New Jersey) and his high school friend and keyboardist David Bryan (b. 7 February 1962, New Jersey). Encouraged by their local radio hit, 'Runaway', they recruited Richie Sambora (b. 11 July 1959, New Jersey), drummer Tico Torres (b. 7 October 1953) and bassist Alec John Such (b. 14 November 1956), and formed a permanent band, Bon Jovi, named after his new surname.

The band signed a recording contract with Polygram in 1983, and released self-titled debut in 1984. 'Bon Jovi' yielded a hit with 'Runaway', which was a re-created version by the band. Though they had moderate success with 'Bon Jovi' and 1985 follow-up, '7800 Fahrenheit', it was not until 1986 that their third effort, 'Slippery When Wet' brought them to superstardom. Bon Jovi began its remarkable four-year run of back-to-back hits, beginning with 'You Give Love A Bad Name', their first No.1 hit and the first cut from 'Slippery When Wet', which also produced such hits as 'Livin' On A Prayer' and 'Wanted Dead Or Alive'. The album sold more than 14 million copies and set the group on extensive world tours.

Late '80s was the commercial heights of Bon Jovi, who continued their success with 1988 'New Jersey', which included chartbusters 'Bad Medicine', 'Lay Your Hands On Me' and 'I'll Be There For You'. Bon Jovi occupied the #1 slots in America's pop charts with their trademark pop metal songs. In addition, their success was owing in large part to the photogenic frontman Jon Bon Jovi, jumping on the bandwagon of MTV, which was booming in '80s.

Exhausted after years of tours, the band took a break and spent a few years of solo careers. Jon Bon Jovi recorded an album for 'Young Guns II' and worked with the likes of Daryl Hall & John Oates, Stevie Nicks and Alice Cooper, while Richie Sambora collaborated with Eric Clapton on his solo debut, 'Stranger In This Town' in 1991.

The watershed and challenging album 'Keep The Faith' went platinum in 1992, and was followed by their first greatest hits collection, 'Crossroad' (1994) which marked the band's 10th anniversary. Despite the departure of founding bassist Alec John Such from the band, they entered the studio to record their fifth studio album, 'These Days' and released it in 1995.

Bon Jovi entered a recording hiatus again after 'These Days' tour in 1996. Jon pursued an acting career and appeared in the 'Moonlight And Valentino' (1995), 'Leading Man' (1996), 'Homegrown' (1998) and 'U-571' (2000), and the final season of TV series 'Ally McBeal'. He also released his official solo debut, 'Destination Anywhere' in 1997, while Sambora issued his second solo effort, 'Undiscovered Soul'.

Five years from 'Keep The Faith', the huge anticipation surrounding their sixth album, 'Crush' was matched by its success, selling more than seven million copies and winning two Grammy nominations. The album found the band returning to their basic, pop metal sounds, and showcasing more mature sounds, blended with adult-oriented ballads. The band was fully back in action, going on a world tour in support of the album and releasing their first live album, 'One Wild Night 1985-2001' and Japan-only compilation, 'Tokyo Road'.

Bon Jovi returned in 2002 with yet another radio-friendly rock album, 'Bounce', inspired by the 9/11 and recorded to encourage the people. The album proved that the band was more active than ever. The band wastes no time in releasing an acoustic reinterpretation of their hits, 'This Left Feels Right - Greatest Hits' in October 2003.

It is clear that Bon Jovi is set fair for the next decades with songs as inspiring and anthemic as their hits in the past two decades.