Hey God

"Hey God" is a song from Bon Jovi's 1995 album These Days. Although it did not chart in the United States, it became a moderate hit in Canada, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

"Hey God"
Single by Bon Jovi
from the album These Days
ReleasedJune 17, 1996
Length6:11
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora
Producer(s)Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Peter Collins
Bon Jovi singles chronology
"These Days"
(1996)		 "Hey God"
(1996)		 "Real Life"
(1999)

Background

As with most of the songs on These Days, "Hey God" is one of Bon Jovi's darker songs. It brings together different stories of people living on the edge of breakdown and despair, such as a father who claims his family are "two paychecks away from living out on the street", a single mother with a wayward son who has been convicted of killing a police officer, and a young man growing up in the ghetto. Throughout the course of the song, each of these characters cries out for spiritual help.

Richie Sambora claimed that inspiration for the song came when he was sitting in his limo and made eye contact with a derelict huddling in a cardboard box on the pavement. Sambora's sense of guilt at this was immense and after discussing the incident with Jon Bon Jovi, they wrote "Hey God".

Chart performance

The song charted at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart and number 44 on Canada's RPM Top Singles chart.[1][2]

Live performances

"Hey God", like most of the songs from the album, is rarely played live by the band. A performance of the song can be seen as part of the encore from the Live From London DVD. In 2008, the song made a comeback in some of the band's concerts during their Lost Highway Tour.

Charts
Chart (1995–1996) Peak
position
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[2] 44
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[3] 58
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[4] 18
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[5] 35
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[6] 37
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7] 27
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[8] 14
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[1] 13
UK Rock and Metal (Official Charts Company)[9] 1
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References
  1. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 3, 2012.
  2. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2729." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  3. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13 no. 28. July 13, 1996. p. 20. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  4. "Bon Jovi: Hey God" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved November 3, 2012.
  5. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (27.7. – 2.8. '96)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). July 27, 1996. p. 42. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
  6. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 26, 1996" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  7. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bon Jovi – Hey God" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 3, 2012.
  8. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  9. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 27, 2019.


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