You can't blame Bon Jovi fans for thinking the band had Dire Straits on their mind while recording their latest album, 2020. In addition to having a track titled, “Brothers In Arms” — like Dire Straits' blockbuster 1985 set, the tune “Blood In The Water” has an intro that one could be tricked into believing was played by Mark Knopfler himself — it sounds so much like his own “Brothers In Arms” track.
Ultimate-Guitar.com transcribed some of Jon Bon Jovi's chat with Kyle Meredith, where he explained, “Let me first say, yes, Knopfler and Dire Straits were high on my list of favorite bands growing up. In fact, I remember at one point in my life — absolutely Number One. So the feel of a Knopfler character like that, yes. And then the title of 'Brothers In Arms' on another song.”
He went on to say, “I was aware of their most commercially successful record, but on the other hand, I knew I had the verses, and when that lyric (brothers in arms) came out of my mouth, I was like, 'This could be a problem,' until I looked up the dictionary definition, and it was 'shared common experience.' And I said, 'Ah, no, I can defend the position.' Typically in war, the shared common experience as I was using it for life, I said, 'No, I can defend this, the slogan 'brothers in arms.'”
Bon Jovi admitted that he's always worn his inspirations on his sleeve: “And yeah, my influences are definitely felt throughout this record, I'd be lying if I said I didn't have (David) Bowie — to Dire Straits, to John Fogerty, to the Beatles. . . Sure, anyone who doesn't have influences is a liar (laughs).”
Jon Bon Jovi can't overestimate the importance of a killer song title — and he has the hits to back it up: “Typically — not always — but typically, it does starts with a title. For me, that dictates the feel and then, subsequently, the chord progression and a story; the lyrics. But a lot of times, y'know, the title tells you the story.”
