Jon Bon Jovi file photo.

Given that Bon Jovi dominated MTV in the 80s, you’d think one of their songs from “New Jersey” or “Slippery When Wet” would be their most popular music video. “You Give Love a Bad Name” and “Livin’ On A Prayer” were staples of the MTV playlist in the 1980s. But surprisingly, neither of those are the most watched videos the band has on their official YouTube channel.

Bon Jovi’s most-viewed music video on YouTube has racked up over a BILLION views. It wasn’t one of their popular 80s megahits. It wasn’t even a 90s song. Stumped? It’s a song that definitely had the 80s Bon Jovi sound though. Richie Sambora uses the famous “talk box” and it even references one of their 80s anthems.

From least to most views, here are the 20 music videos fans have watched the most on the official Bon Jovi YouTube channel, including that mysterious #1 from the 2000s.

  • #20: "Always"

    This is the only Bon Jovi song that appears twice on this countdown. This one is the “alternate version.” It came out 15 years after the song was a hit for Bon Jovi in 1994.

  • #19: Bon Jovi - (You Want To) Make A Memory

    You might have never heard of this one. The band released it back in 2007, but it didn’t do well on the charts. It peaked at #27 here in the U.S. The band even tried releasing different versions for country and pop radio in hopes to get airplay. It didn’t work. The song did score a GRAMMY nomination though.

  • #18: Misunderstood

    This one from 2002 wasn’t a big hit for Bon Jovi either. It’s most known in Brazil where it was featured prominently in a soap opera storyline. This one earned the band a GRAMMY nomination too.

  • #17: These Days

    A serious song that touches on homelessness and other problems of the 90s. It was the title track of their 1995 album, which had a lot of darker song themes on it, as opposed to their uptempo earlier hits.

  • #16: We Weren't Born To Follow

    This is another one the GRAMMYs loved but commercially, it flopped. It didn’t even crack the Top 40 when it was released in 2009. It was most known as the song used in the commercials for the baseball playoffs that year.

  • #15: Bad Medicine

    Are you as surprised as I am this wasn’t one of their most viewed videos!? The late Sam Kinison even makes a cameo in this one. It was the band’s third #1 hit. This is 1 of 2 music videos shot for the song, where concert goers are given cameras to film the music video.

  • #14: In These Arms

    Filmed during the Keep The Faith tour, this one seems to be a favorite among the band’s more hardcore fans.

  • #13: Have a Nice Day

    This one gets compared a lot to the song that we’ll get to when we hit the #1 most watched music video on this countdown. Jon Bon Jovi has said in interviews that the title can be taken either way you like… at face value… or as in, this conversation is over.

  • #12: Hallelujah

    Taken from “Stripped: Raw and Real,” this is a powerful rendition from 2007.

  • #11: Born To Be My Baby

    Oddly this one wasn’t included in Bon Jovi’s greatest hits album Cross Road in 1994 but it did make the cut on the next one in 2010. At the end when you see the band celebrating and hugging each other, it was when they were told New Jersey had become the #1 album in the U.S.

  • #10: This Ain't A Love Song

    This one was shot at a Buddhist temple in Thailand. The spot has a crazy history – it was built at the cremation site of the King’s older brothers who fought in a duel to succeed their father. They both died. That definitely ain’t a love song.

  • #9: Never Say Goodbye

    This one takes us all back to high school. The weird thing about this one – it never hit #1. Not because it wasn’t popular. It was never officially released as a single. Fans and radio stations loved it and played it anyway.

  • #8: Runaway

    The band’s first single from 1984. There’s a good reason you don’t hear Jon and Richie’s classic harmony on this one. Richie Sambora wasn’t even in the band yet when the song was recorded three years earlier.

  • #7: Wanted Dead or Alive

    Another one I would’ve guessed would top this list, but no. It doesn’t even crack the top 5. The music video was shot on the road. The song was written in Riche’s mother’s basement. Jon thanked Riche’s mom for not doing the laundry that day so they could write it.

  • #6: I'll Be There For You

    Another one of the band’s #1 hits. The footage at the end of this music video was shot in London at Wembley Arena.

  • #5: Bed of Roses

    This is another one of those songs you don’t hear much anymore. It was a hit briefly in the early 90s for Bon Jovi. Word is Jon wrote it while he was hung over in a hotel room.

  • #4: You Give Love a Bad Name

    Another one that I can’t believe isn’t #1 on this list. The band had a new manager when this song came out. Doc McGhee knew how important MTV was so there was a big budget for this one. It was filmed at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. When they shot this video, Bon Jovi was opening for .38 Special. Not long after, it was the other way around.

  • #3: Always

    This one is usually more remembered for the music video than the song. It was on MTV constantly in those last few years MTV played music videos. Jack Noseworthy, Carla Gugino, Jason Wiles and Keri Russell have cameos.

  • #2: Livin' On A Prayer

    Is there any music video as iconic as this one? Apparently there is because this one lands at #2. It seemed like the prototype for all 80s rock music videos at the time. Jon flies in that harness at Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles as the crowd goes wild. Loverboy’s Mike Reno insists that they used his backing vocals in the song.

  • #1: It's My Life

    Yep! This is THE most watched Bon Jovi music video on YouTube. While it was a popular hit, it came long after the band’s biggest success. It’s My Life was really an introduction of the band to a new generation of fans, while certain elements from Bon Jovi’s 80s sound are definitely present. There’s that famous “talk box” and the references to Tommy and Gina from “Livin’ On A Prayer.” Tommy and Gina even make a cameo in the music video. Paul Anka even covered this one!

  • How did this one not make the list?

    Probably because it was the opening song when I first saw Bon Jovi in concert back in 1989, “Lay Your Hands on Me” is a personal favorite.  The opening drums building to the band hitting the stage takes me back to that night when I was 16 years old. This is pure 80s cheesetastic GOLD right here!

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