"Wanted Dead or Alive" is a power ballad[4][5][6][7] by American rock band Bon Jovi. It is from their 1986 album Slippery When Wet. The song was written by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora and was released in 1987, as the album's third single. During a February 20, 2008 encore performance in Detroit, Jon Bon Jovi told the crowd about running into Bob Seger at a Pistons game. As he introduced his song "Wanted Dead or Alive", he said it was inspired by Seger's "Turn the Page" hit and called the song the band's anthem.[8] The song peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 13 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, making it the third single from the album to reach the Top 10 of the Hot 100. As a result, Slippery When Wet was the first glam metal album to have 3 top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 2001 a live version from the album One Wild Night Live 1985–2001 was released as a single featuring a promotional music video. In 2003 a new version was released on the album This Left Feels Right and this version was also released as a single with a promotional video.
The song's title pays homage to Jon's admiration for Old West heroes, and how he identifies with them as being hated and loved at the same time ("wanted dead or alive", so to speak). During an interview on Inside the Actors Studio, Jon said he got the inspiration for the song early one morning when he could not sleep while riding in a tour bus. The "lifestyle of every rock band" was similar to that of outlaws in that each was, "a young band of thieves, riding into town, stealing the money, the girls, and the booze before the sun came up."[10]
Jon said during a concert in Detroit, Michigan, on February 20, 2008, that the song "absolutely positively was influenced by [Bob] Seger's 'Turn the Page'."[11] Bon Jovi performed "Turn the Page" during a concert in Toronto, Ontario on July 21, 2010. Afterward, Jon told the audience he remembered listening to this song in 1985 while traveling on a tour bus in the midwest and telling Richie Sambora, "We got to write a song like this." The following year the duo composed "Wanted Dead or Alive".
In Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet Special Edition, Jon and Richie perform the acoustic version of "Wanted Dead or Alive" live, and before singing they mention they wrote the song in Richie's mother's basement a year ago (1985 or 1986) and Richie says "Mom, this is for you" and Jon thanks her by saying "Thanks for Richie's mom for not doing the laundry the day we wrote this song, it's called 'Wanted Dead or Alive'". In this version, Richie and Jon take turns singing during the second and the last verse. The guitar solo is performed on one of Sambora's trademark multi-neck12-stringOvation guitars, rather than switching to an electric guitar for the solo and last verse of the song.
Reception
Les Claypool of Primus chose the song for The A.V. Club column "HateSong", where musicians choose songs they dislike. Claypool, who called the song a "wretched soundscape", reflected, "Bon Jovi was actually a big influence on Primus back in the day. Basically, the influence was that we wanted to make music that was the polar opposite of Bon Jovi."[14]Jeff Tweedy of Wilco expressed similar disdain for the song, commenting, "This song sucks, and you should not like it."[15]
^"Tom Cruise to sing Guns N' Roses, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi on 'Rock Of Ages' soundtrack". NME. 2012-05-02. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
^"Why are Bon Jovi suddenly musical saints?". EW.com. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
^Spanos, Brittany (2016-11-11). "Readers' Poll: 10 Best Bon Jovi Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
^Sciarretto, Amy (November 8, 2012). "Tate Stevens Rocks Bon Jovi's 'Wanted Dead or Alive' on 'X Factor'". Taste of Country. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
^"Tipping Cows in Fields Elysian - The Singles Jukebox - Stylus Magazine". stylusmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
^Sciarretto, Amy (April 27, 2012). "Tom Cruise to Sing Def Leppard, Guns N' Roses Songs on 'Rock of Ages' Soundtrack Album". Noisecreep. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
^Ramirez, Carlos (May 18, 2011). "Road Songs: Top 10 Touring Tunes". Noisecreep. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
^Graham, Adam. "Bon Jovi keeps fist pumping at Palace." Detroit News. n.p. 21 Feb. 2008. Web. 9 July 2012.
^"Bon Jovi Chart History (Digital Song Sales)". Billboard.
^"Bon Jovi - Wanted Dead Or Alive (live)" (in German). Charts.de. Media Control. Archived from the original on December 7, 2014.
^"Bon Jovi - Wanted Dead Or Alive (live)" (in Dutch). Dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien.
^"Australian Music Report No 701 – 28 December 1987 > National Top 100 Singles for 1987". Kent Music Report, via Imgur.com. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
^"Top 100 Hits for 1987". The Longbored Surfer. Archived from the original on January 4, 2016. Retrieved December 17, 2015.