Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer Lyrics

Livin' on a Prayer is Bon Jovi's second chart-topping 45 from their 12x Platinum Slippery When Wet album. Written by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, and Desmond Child, the single, released in late 1986, was well received at both rock and pop radio and its music video was given heavy rotation at MTV, giving the band their first No. 1 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

The song is about a fictional working class couple, Tommy and Gina, who struggle to make ends meet and maintain their relationship. Tommy "used to work on the docks" because "union's been on strike, he's down on his luck". Gina works at a diner, "workin' for her man". While some have loosely interpreted the Lyrics to be anti-labor, inferring that the striking labor union is the catalyst for the troubled chain of events for Tommy and Gina, others have pointed out that the song does not clarify the circumstances behind the strike, and the lone, vague reference could just as easily be interpreted as a pro-labor message with bosses' attacks forcing the union to go on strike. In fact, Jon Bon Jovi explained that he "wrote that song during the Reagan era (1980-88) and the trickle-down economics are really inspirational to writing songs".

Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora wrote this with Desmond Child, a prolific songwriter who was brought in by the record company to give them a more commercial sound like he did for Kiss on "I Was Made For Lovin' You." The characters Tommy and Gina were based on a real life situation Desmond encountered in the late '70s with his then girlfriend, Maria Vidal, who he was living with. According to the notes in his Desmond Child & Rouge: Runners In The Night album, Desmond was a New York taxi cab driver and Maria was a waitress in a diner.

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, however, convinced him the song was good, and they reworked it with a new bass line, different drum fills and the use of a talk box to include it on their upcoming album Slippery When Wet.

Livin' on a Prayer has become the band's signature song, topping fan-voted lists and re-charting around the world decades after its release. The original 45 single release sold 800,000 copies in the United States, and in 2013 was certified Triple Platinum for over 3 million digital downloads.

The music video was recorded at the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, California and was directed by Wayne Isham.