Maps of Music

Lost Highway (2007)

Where the lyrics of Lost Highway take you, and where it was really made.

Bon Jovi's first country-music-influenced album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, the band's first No. 1 debut in its history.

Key places

Nashville sessions at Blackbird Studio (2007)

Recording site Blackbird Studio — The band recorded half of Lost Highway at Blackbird Studio in Nashville, with the other half recorded at Hollywood studios. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Hollywood sessions at NRG Recording (2007)

Recording site NRG Recording Studios (Hollywood) — NRG Recording Studios in Hollywood is one of the two studios named as recording locations for Lost Highway, alongside Blackbird Studio in Nashville. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Lost Highway: tenth studio album by American rock band Bon Jovi
• Released 19 June 2007 in the US through Island Records
• Produced by John Shanks and Dann Huff
• Blends the band's rock sound with elements of country music
• The band's first studio album in the country music genre
• Debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, the band's first album to debut at No. 1

Background

• Follows the success of a country version of 「Who Says You Can't Go Home」, a duet with Jennifer Nettles that reached No. 1 on the U.S. country chart in May 2006
• Two songs made with other artists: 「We Got It Going On」 featuring Big & Rich, and 「Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore」 featuring LeAnn Rimes
• Jon Bon Jovi described it as not a country album, but a 「Bon Jovi record influenced by Nashville」
• Band members went to Nashville in September 2006; by December they had written, recorded and prepared ten of twelve songs
• After the Have a Nice Day Tour, personal changes in the members' lives shaped the songwriting

Recording

• Half the album recorded at Starstruck Studios and Blackbird Studios in Nashville
• The other half recorded at Henson Recording Studios and NRG Recording Studios in Hollywood
• John Shanks and Dann Huff each produced six songs
• Jon Bon Jovi later re-mixed the album because he felt the mix lacked dynamics and range

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Bon Jovi is an American rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983.
• Jon Bon Jovi began performing live in 1975 at age 13 with his first band, Raze.
• The band was named Bon Jovi on the suggestion of Pamela Maher, following the model of two-word bands such as Van Halen.
• Its debut album Bon Jovi was released on January 21, 1984, with the single "Runaway" reaching the Billboard Hot 100 top forty.

Members

• The current lineup is Jon Bon Jovi, David Bryan, Tico Torres, John Shanks, Phil X, Everett Bradley, and Hugh McDonald.
• Original bassist Alec John Such left in 1994; he died in 2022.
• Guitarist and co-songwriter Richie Sambora left in 2013.

Career

• Slippery When Wet (1986) brought global success, with "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Livin' on a Prayer" reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
• New Jersey (1988) produced five Billboard Hot 100 top-ten singles, a record for a hard rock album.
• Keep the Faith (1992) marked a shift to a more mature sound.
• "Always" (1994) became the band's biggest-selling and longest-charting single.
• Crush (2000) and "It's My Life" introduced the band to a younger audience.
• "Who Says You Can't Go Home" (2006) won a Grammy and became the first rock band single to top the Billboard country chart.
• The band has sold more than 130 million records worldwide and was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Metacritic: average score of 64 out of 100, based on 12 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews
• AllMusic (Stephen Thomas Erlewine): 3 stars out of 5, saying Lost Highway recalls nothing so much as a latter-day Bon Jovi record in how it balances fist-pumping arena anthems with heavy doses of sentiment
• BBC (Helen Groom): positive, noting the huge sing-along choruses remain while the band tries something a bit different
• Blender (Karen Shoemer): 3 stars out of 5
• Entertainment Weekly (Whitney Pastorek): B-, saying Bon Jovi made a slightly above-average Bon Jovi disc with many more songs about driving
• The New York Times (Nate Chinen): positive, yielding unsurprising but reasonably strong results
• Rolling Stone (Rob Sheffield): 3 stars out of 5
• Yahoo! Music UK (Luke Turner): 7 out of 10

Reappraisal

• Critical opinion was mixed, with praise for the arena choruses and criticism of the familiar sound

Records

• Debuted at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 with 292,000 copies sold in its first week
• UK Album Chart: No. 2, with 79,000 copies in the first week
• Japan: No. 1 debut, 73,212 copies in the first week on Oricon
• Entered the Dutch, German and Swiss charts at No. 1 in its first week
• Certified platinum by the RIAA in October 2008

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Band members went to Nashville in September 2006 to write and record with country writers and artists.
• The title track takes its name from Lost Highway Records, a Nashville label formed by Luke Lewis.
• 「Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore」 was first cut in a lower key for a male singer; after failed attempts with several singers, the band recorded it with LeAnn Rimes.
• The Lost Highway Tour was moved forward to fall 2007 after the album did better than expected.
• On 24 June 2007, Bon Jovi opened The O2 Arena in London, coinciding with the album's release.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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