Bon Jovi "Crush"

Crush is the seventh studio album by American rock band Bon Jovi. It was released on June 13, 2000, by Island Records. It was produced by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, and Luke Ebbin. The album marks the longest timespan between studio albums for the band, with five years between the release of These Days (1995) and this album. After the initial plan to team up with producer Bruce Fairbairn fell through because of his death a year earlier, Bon Jovi and Sambora hired Luke Ebbin to update their sound with a smattering of loops and impressive arrangements.

Despite the long break, the album was just as successful as their previous releases and helped introduce the band to a new generation of fans. The success of the album was largely due to the lead single "It's My Life" which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, while the album itself was nominated for Best Rock Album. Crush was certified double platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America.

After a five-year hiatus, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora released solo albums. In 1999, Jon Bon Jovi was planning to release a third solo album but the band started work on their new album in the summer of 1999. Its working title was Sex Sells. Posters using this title are seen in and around New York in the video for "Real Life" – the band's then most recent single. Another working title was One Wild Night. The latter was resurrected for a live compilation the following year.

An initial plan to team up with producers Bob Rock and Bruce Fairbairn fell through because of the latter's death. An audition process was set up, but the band was uninterested by the producers interviewed. Eventually Bon Jovi asked A&R executive John Kalodner if he knew up-and-coming producers, and he recommended Luke Ebbin. He was brought to Bon Jovi's home studio in New Jersey, and took a demo with only vocals and acoustic guitar to add programming, string and background vocal arrangements. On his return, Ebbin was hired. The choice was fortuitous as it allowed Bon Jovi to update their sound with a smattering of loops and impressive arrangements.

Track listing

1. "It's My Life" Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Max Martin 3:44
2. "Say It Isn't So" Bon Jovi, Billy Falcon 3:33
3. "Thank You for Loving Me" Bon Jovi, Sambora 5:09
4. "Two Story Town" Bon Jovi, Sambora, Dean Grakal, Mark Hudson 5:10
5. "Next 100 Years" Bon Jovi, Sambora 6:19
6. "Just Older" Bon Jovi, Falcon 4:29
7. "Mystery Train" Bon Jovi, Falcon 5:14
8. "Save the World" Bon Jovi 5:31
9. "Captain Crash & The Beauty Queen from Mars" Bon Jovi, Sambora 4:31
10. "She's a Mystery" Bon Jovi, Peter Stuart, Greg Wells 5:18
11. "I Got the Girl" Bon Jovi 4:36
12. "One Wild Night" Bon Jovi, Sambora 4:18
13. "I Could Make a Living Out of Lovin' You" (Bonus track) Bon Jovi, Sambora, Falcon 4:40
14. "Neurotica" (Bonus track in Australia and Japan) Bon Jovi, Sambora 4:45