Treasures From Half-Priced Books: Bon Jovi Picture Disc

I frequent Half-Priced Books and, while they sell mostly books, they also sell records. I collect records so I like to look through the vinyl just to see what they have. Sometimes they have some interesting LPs, but I never would have imagined that I would have found collectible vinyl at Half-Priced Books. During my most recent excursion I found Bon Jovi's New Jersey 12 inch picture disc.

New Jersey is Bon Jovi's fourth album. It was released in 1988, and the date of this posting is actually the 26th anniversary of the release of this album. Doing a little bit of online research it looks like the picture disc was a UK release. That's the band looking very 80s on the the front. The back is just their New Jersey logo (lots of blue with the band name and the name of the album).

My favorite song from New Jersey is Born to Be My Baby. You can listen to a 30 second preview on Amazon.

                              

 

 Their New Jersey album really solidified Bon Jovi's status as a great rock band. Their first album (Bon Jovi) was decent, but then their second album (7800° Fahrenheit) was a total flop. There is literally one song from their second album that I like - and I'm a Bon Jovi fan. Their third album, Slippery When Wet, is a great album that really sets the tone for the Bon Jovi we've come to know and love over the years. Then this album - their fourth album - is similar in style and quality to Slippery When Wet. With the release of New Jersey Bon Jovi demonstrated that they just needed to get their bearings and figure out what works for them, and from then on they've released hit after hit.                     

I collect rare records so this was a very exciting find for me. I seem to have good luck with Bon Jovi at Half-Priced Books. I recall one day I was looking for their album Slippery When Wet. I wasn't looking for it specifically, I just had awareness that that was an album I would like to get my hands on as I was flipping through the records. Then Slippery When Wet leapt out at me. The cover art is supposed to look like the album name drawn in raindrops on a dark car, so it took a few seconds for me to process what I had found. Half-Priced Books never disappoints.