Jon Bon Jovi's 1986 hit "Livin' On A Prayer" almost never happened! During a Q&A session onboard the Norwegian Pearl, the legendary rocker said that he nearly scrapped the song. He explained, “Ultimately, the song was so unique. It didn’t sound like anything. You know, ‘Runaway’ had eight notes, like a lot of songs on the radio at the time. Even ‘[You Give Love a] Bad Name’ was reminiscent of other songs that were on the radio. ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ didn’t sound like anything. So, I was sort of indifferent. I thought, ‘Well, it’s different, but is it a rock song? Is it us?”
He continued, “Granted, we wrote it on acoustic guitars, so there was no drum beat or anything. There was no bass line.”
Bon Jovi's only regret is that the song's key change, which continues to be a challenge for him. He laughed and said, “I want you to know, every night for 36 years."