"You Give Love a Bad Name"
U.S. vinyl single picture sleeve (also used for theSlippery When Wet album)
Single byBon Jovi
from the albumSlippery When Wet
B-side	"Raise Your Hands"
Released	July 23, 1986
Studio	Little Mountain (Vancouver,Canada)
Genre	Glam metal[1][2] hard rock[3][4]
Length	3:42
Label	Mercury
Songwriters	Desmond Child Jon Bon Jovi Richie Sambora
Producer	Bruce Fairbairn
Bon Jovi singles chronology
"Silent Night" (1985) "You Give Love a Bad Name" (1986) "Livin' on a Prayer" (1986)
Music video
"You Give Love a Bad Name" onYouTube
Alternative cover

"You Give Love a Bad Name" is a song by Americanrock bandBon Jovi, released as the firstsingle from their 1986 albumSlippery When Wet. Written byJon Bon Jovi,Richie Sambora, andDesmond Child about a woman who has jilted her lover, the song reachedNo. 1 on the U.S.Billboard Hot 100 on November 29, 1986, and became the band's first number-one hit. In 2007, the song re-entered the charts at No. 29 afterBlake Lewis performed it onAmerican Idol. Despite the lyrics of the chorus, the song should not be confused with "Shot Through the Heart", an unrelated song from Bon Jovi's 1984self-titled debut album.^[5]

The chorus tune of "You Give Love a Bad Name" was originally recorded byBonnie Tyler under the title "If You Were a Woman (And I Was a Man)" with different lyrics commissioned by its producerJim Steinman. Dissatisfied with its success in the US and the UK (which he attributed to reticence on the part of her label in promoting it), Desmond Child re-wrote the song with Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora.^[6]

Upon the release of theAva Max song "Kings & Queens" in 2020, comparisons were drawn with that song, "You Give Love a Bad Name", andBonnie Tyler's "If You Were a Woman (And I Was a Man)", and reviews highlighted Desmond Child's credit as a songwriter for "Kings & Queens".^[7]

Cash Box called it a "jackhammer single" that could push Bon Jovi to massive success and said that "Jon Bon Jovi’s grinding vocal and the anthemic production spellA-O-R."^[8]Billboard called it "hard rock, raspy and aggressive."^[9] In a retrospective analysis, Chris Molanphy expressed his disgust at the song, calling its lyrics "sub-Meat Loaf" (Meat Loaf being best known for his work with Steinman).^[10] However, he did credit it for introducing the genre ofhair metal to the mainstream. He also noted in another commentary how the song shared many similarities with Steinman's songs due to Child's involvement, saying "Steinman might as well have [produced it]", due to Child using devices such as its verbose title and anthemic chorus, likening it to"'Bat Out of Hell' infused withAqua Net".^[11] It was placed at No. 20 onVH1's list of the "100 Best Hard Rock Songs".^[4]

Themusic video for the song used all-color concert footage (the only all-color video song fromSlippery When Wet) and photogenic shots primarily of Jon Bon Jovi, as well as other band members in concert. This video was filmed at theOlympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. Bon Jovi was now being managed byDoc McGhee, who realized that Bon Jovi needed a video for MTV. Doc hired video directorWayne Isham, who had directed videos for Doc's other band,Mötley Crüe. The two bands were competitive with each other and Mötley Crüe felt betrayed that Wayne would direct one of Bon Jovi's videos. Wayne had the band's name painted on the stage and made sure that the band did not see it until they began shooting. Bon Jovi had been opening for38 Special but became a headlining act after the video debuted.

• 7-inch single

1. "You Give Love a Bad Name" – 3:53
2. "Raise Your Hands" – 4:17

• 12-inch single

1. "You Give Love a Bad Name" – 3:53
2. "Raise Your Hands" – 4:17
3. "Borderline" – 4:10

• 7-inch picture disc single

1. "You Give Love a Bad Name" – 3:53
2. "Let It Rock" – 5:24

• CD Video single

1. "Let It Rock" – 5:24
2. "Raise Your Hands" – 4:17
3. "Without Live" – 3:32
4. "You Give Love a Bad Name" – 3:53
5. "You Give Love a Bad Name" (video) – 3:53

• List of glam metal albums and songs
• "Kings & Queens"

• Bon Jovi songs
• 1986 singles
• 1986 songs
• Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
• Cashbox number-one singles
• Mandaryna songs
• Songs written by Desmond Child
• Songs written by Richie Sambora
• Songs written by Jon Bon Jovi
• Music videos directed by Wayne Isham
• Song recordings produced by Bruce Fairbairn
• Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
• Mercury Records singles

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