在祷告中活着 (1986)

"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.

Regarded as Bon Jovi'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. Bon Jovi released an alternative version, "Prayer 94", on the 1994 greatest-hits album Cross Road.

Composition

Sheet music for the song shows a key of E minor. The tempo is "moderate rock" at 122 beats per minute in common time. The key modulates to G minor for the final chorus. Sambora played the main guitar riff using a talk box, giving it a distinctive sound.

Song history

Jon Bon Jovi did not like the original recording of this song, which is present as a hidden track on 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong. Lead guitarist Richie Sambora, however, convinced him the song was good, and they reworked it with a new bassline (recorded by Hugh McDonald uncredited), different drum fills and the use of a talk box to include it on Slippery When Wet. The song spent two weeks at number one on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, from January 31 to February 14, 1987, and four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, from February 14 to March 14. It also hit number four on the UK Singles Chart.

The album version, timed around 4:10, fades out at the end. However, the music video game Guitar Hero World Tour features the song's original studio ending, where the band revisit the intro riff and end with a talk box solo; this version ends at 4:53. The original ending is also playable on the similar video game Rock Band 2, though edited in this case (thereby eliminating the talk box solo at the end). The version included on the 2005 DualDisc edition of Slippery When Wet has an extended version of the original ending, with a different talk box solo playing over the riff (possibly taken from an outtake of the song); this version, which fades out at the end like the standard version of the song, ends at 5:06.

Bon Jovi recorded an alternative version, "Prayer 94", for the 1994 greatest-hits album Cross Road. Rolling Stone named it one of "seven pop music remakes that never should have happened", criticizing its alteration of the song's "greatest strength", its chorus melody, and speculating that it was "a play for respectability" after the rise of grunge.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks – in which New Jersey was the second-hardest hit state after New York, suffering hundreds of casualties among both WTC workers and first responders – the band performed an acoustic version of this song for New York. Bon Jovi performed a similar version as part of the special America: A Tribute to Heroes.

In 2022, Mike Reno, vocalist of the band Loverboy, said he was certain the backing vocals he recorded for this song are used.

Reception and legacy

Billboard said that "metal muscle meets gritty reality in a tough, clanging rocker." Cash Box said that "Solid chorus and ringing guitar highlight Jon Bon Jovi’s gutsy singing."