Riff Tone

You Give Love a Bad Name

Bon Jovi

Guitarrock1980s

Original Gear

GuitarKramer Jersey Star (Richie Sambora signature, 1986, white, Floyd Rose tremolo)

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 head with Marshall 4x12 cabinet (studio recording, 1986)

PickupsSeymour Duncan JB (bridge humbucker), two single coils (neck/middle, likely Seymour Duncan SSL-1s)

Amp Settings

gain7

bass6

mid7

treble7

reverb2.5

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording for 'Slippery When Wet' (1986). Gear confirmed by period interviews and era-correct photos. Sambora used the bridge humbucker for the main riff. No evidence of pedal use for the riff section; distortion from amp. Effects like chorus/flanger are not audible in the riff section. No evidence of rack or pedal delay/chorus/flanger on the riff.

Tone Character(10)

tight and punchycrunchy, saturated Marshall tonearticulate palm-muted riffingbright and cuttingpercussive attackfocused midrangeslight amp reverbbridge pickup biteaggressive chordingminimal ambience

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate skill due to its fast tempo, tight palm muting, and precise chording, but does not involve advanced techniques or complex chord voicings.

Sources

Best pedal for Bon Jovi's "You Give Love A Bad Name"Bon Jovi - You Give Love a Bad Name Guitar - Reddit Help with Mustang LT25 settings : r/GuitarAmps - Reddit

This tone has been researched 16 times by the community

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account