If you grew up during the 1980s, you know that metal was pretty much divided into two camps: the good time, party metal that dominated MTV with bands like Motley Crue, Dokken, Scorpions, and Van Halen, and the no-frills, extreme artists that were pushing the boundaries of what “heavy” meant like Metallica, Slayer, Venom, Sepultura, and Bathory.

While I generally considered myself to be of the latter camp, I also liked girls and girls liked Bon Jovi, who fell squarely in the first camp. And so it was that I found myself at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis on the night of July 19th, 1985. I was just shy of 15 and my girlfriend’s mom drove us the 60 miles from our hometown to see Bon Jovi opening for Ratt. In the interest of full disclosure, I was a pretty big Ratt fan and actively hated Bon Jovi (in part, no doubt, due to the fact that my girlfriend was obsessed with singer Jon Bon Jovi).

Bon Jovi
Slippery When Wet
U.S.: CD | MP3
UK: CD | MP3
Recorded April – August 1986
Released August 18, 1986 (U.S.)

Remember when Bon Jovi was good? Before the “˜90s and “˜00s when they honked up the orangey residue of Bounce, the wretch of Have A Nice Day, and the bile of Crush, Bon Jovi was the rock band to listen to. Their output in the “˜80s was rarely surpassed and many of those tracks still hold up as classic arena rock tunes. Bon Jovi albums from the “˜80s were very good, but Slippery When Wet in particular had King Midas’ shiny fingerprints all over it.

By the end of 1985 Bon Jovi had released two albums. Despite being unremarkable and containing slightly more filler than killer, Bon Jovi and 7800° Fahrenheit sold pretty well. On August 18, 1986, Slippery When Wet was released in the U.S. and Bon Jovi’s popularity exploded.

Jon Bon Jovi.

He’s a huge star now, but back before he got his big break in the music industry in the early 1980s, the singer was sweeping floors for cash at his cousin’s recording studio, where they just so happened to be making Christmas In The Stars: Star Wars Christmas Album. During the making of the album, the young Bon Jovi got a chance to make his first professional recording on the song, “R2-D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas.”

Listen to the song here below. It’s SO good. Trust me, just one listen and you will not only love it, you won’t be able to stop listening to it. R2-D2 makes an appearance on the track, as does Anthony Daniels as C-3PO.