Wanted Dead Or Alive (5:08)

‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ is a song from Bon Jovi’s 1986 album Slippery When Wet. The song was written by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora and was released in 1987 as the album’s third single. The song peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it the third single from the album to reach the Top 10 of the Hot 100. “Slippery When Wet” was the first hard rock album ever to have 3 top 10 hits on it.

The song’s title pays homage to Jon’s admiration for Old West heroes, and how he identifies with them as being hated (wanted dead or alive). Jon Bon Jovi said during a concert in Detroit, Michigan on February 20, 2008 that the song “absolutely positively was influenced by Seger’s ‘Turn the Page.’

The song is featured in the movies “Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man” and “Wild Hogs”; also it is featured as playable content in the video game ‘Rock Band’ and in ‘Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned’. This song is also the theme song for Discovery’s TV show about Alaskan crab fisherman, “Deadliest Catch.”