Released October 11, 1994 Length 72:22 | Recorded 1982–1994 Release date 11 October 1994 | |
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Studio Little Mountain Studio (Vancouver, British Columbia)Emerald Studio (Nashville, Tennessee)A&M Studios (Los Angeles, California)The Warehouse (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)The Power Station (New York City, New York) Producer Tony BongioviJon Bon JoviRichie SamboraBruce FairbairnBob RockPeter CollinsDanny KortchmarLance Quinn Similar Bon Jovi albums, Rock music albums | ||
Cross Road is the first greatest hits album by American rock band Bon Jovi, released on October 11, 1994 by Mercury Records. The album contains hits from between Bon Jovi (1984) and Keep the Faith (1992) and two new tracks: the hit singles "Always" and "Someday I'll Be Saturday Night", as well as a new, updated rendition of "Livin' on a Prayer" entitled "Prayer '94" available only on the North American versions.
Contents
"Runaway" was never recorded with the current band, though at that time there were plans to put a "Runaway '94" on the album but it was never recorded. The diner located on the cover of the album is the Roadside Diner in Wall Township, NJ, near the crossroads of Route 33 and Route 34.
"Always", the album's first single, became Bon Jovi's highest selling single in the United States, spending six months on the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 and was also an international hit which helped the album peak at number one in 13 countries. Cross Road was the best-selling album of 1994 in the UK. The album is Bon Jovi's best selling album in many countries, and continues to sell well. The album has sold over 21.5 million copies worldwide, and has been cited as one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2005, Cross Road was re-issued as a 3-disc box set under the name "Deluxe Sound & Vision", which included the original remastered album, a bonus CD containing b-sides, rarities and fan favourites, and the Live from London DVD. The original remastered album was released in 1998. A video, also entitled Cross Road, was simultaneously released, containing 16 of the band's music videos.
Release and reception
In the United States, the album debuted and peaked at number 8 on the Billboard 200 of November 5, 1994. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the album had sold 4,951,000 copies in the US as of September 2011, including 324,000 copies sold in 2006.
In the United Kingdom, Cross Road debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and spent a total of five non-consecutive weeks atop the chart, later becoming the best-selling album of 1994. The album was certified six times platinum by the BPI. The album topped the charts in several other European countries, including Austria, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Switzerland. In 2007, it was also certified octuple platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry for selling 8 million copies across Europe.
The album became Bon Jovi's first number-one set in Japan, where it has sold more than 1.1 million copies. It spent two weeks at number one in Australia and in 2010 it was certified eleven-times platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association for shipments exceeding 770,000 copies. The album also debuted at number three on the New Zealand Albums Chart, peaking at number one in its second week and later being certified sectuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand.
The album itself won Metal Edge magazine's 1994 Readers' Choice Awards for "Album of the Year" and "Best Hits or Compilation Album". Its namesake home video was voted "Best Video Cassette," and the single "Always" was voted "Song of the Year" and "Best Video Clip".
Track listing
The song "Good Guys Don't Always Wear White" is featured in the movie The Cowboy Way. Although Bon Jovi also released a music video to the song it was never released as a single.
Personnel
Credits adapted from Cross Road's liner notes.
Songs
1Livin' On A Prayer4:10
2Keep the Faith5:45
3Someday I'll Be Saturday Night4:40