Bon Jovi: 7800° Fahrenheit (1985) Review

Back in the 1980s, a band’s second album would often make or break their career.

Such was the level of competition on the Sunset Strip, one mis-step usually resulted in instant replacement and years of hard work being flushed down the drain.

So with that in mind, Bon Jovi can consider themselves rather fortunate.

Sophomore album 7800° Fahrenheit (awesomely named after “the melting point of rock”) is the underwhelming follow-up to their solid-if-unremarkable debut.

Offering listeners nothing which can compete with – or built upon – massive hit single Runaway, the band wastes large chunks of the disc’s 48 minute run-time attempting to copy the guitar gymnastics which every other rock act was doing circa 1985.

Too Much Too Fast

Jon Bon Jovi blames the album’s failure on burnout.

Having already played hundreds of gigs prior to releasing their 1984 debut, manager Doc McGhee is said to have signed them up to play an astonishing six concerts per week for another 10 months straight (!).

To make matters worse, McGhee was keen to capitalize on the positive feedback which was coming from their live audiences, so he instructed Bon Jovi to release a fresh record while still on the road – but didn’t consider that they were in no fit state to do so.

“I don’t consider this record part of our history.

The whole process just didn’t feel right, you know?

We had no time to make it, and we hadn’t figured out who we were as musicians. Plus, every member of the band – especially me – was distracted by a really heavy touring schedule, and personal issues which had been caused by us being away from home for so long.

We chalked this record up to experience and moved on, because none of us want to revisit that mental state ever again!”

– Jon Bon Jovi

“I don’t consider this record part of our history.

The whole process just didn’t feel right, you know?

We had no time to make it, and we hadn’t figured out who we were as musicians.

Plus, every member of the band – especially me – was distracted by a really heavy touring schedule, and personal issues which had been caused by us being away from home for so long.

We chalked this record up to experience and moved on, because none of us want to revisit that mental state ever again!”

– Jon Bon Jovi

Glimmers Of Potential

Despite the negativity within the band, there are occasional glimmers of potential on 7800° Fahrenheit.

Lead single In & Out Of Love is an absolute banger, and is the only track from this record which remained in their live setlist beyond 1986.

Meanwhile, there’s enough promise in the ambitious Tokyo Road and catchy follow-up single The Hardest Part Is The Night to hint that Bon Jovi were on the cusp of writing something truly great, had they been given ample time to do so.

Bon Jovi: 7800° Fahrenheit

Thankfully, the commercial failure of 7800° Fahrenheit didn’t destroy Bon Jovi.

Instead it persuaded them to re-think their strategy.

By taking some much-needed time off, and then returning to the studio 18 months later feeling fresh and energised, the results spoke for themselves.

So the lasting legacy of 7800° Fahrenheit is not so much about the music, but rather the lifestyle.

The biggest positive they can take away from this period of time is that the “tag team” of Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora sounded like battle-hardened veterans at the tender young age of 23 – progress you can’t help but make when you play 300 shows every year! – and this relentless work rate put them light years ahead of their rivals when it came to onstage chemistry.