The story behind how Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles made history “Who says you can’t go home?”

Billboard has been publishing a chart of country songs since 1958, but it took nearly half a century for a rock band to take the top spot. The rock band in question – Bon Jovi – didn’t enter unfamiliar chart territory on their own. When recording “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” for their 2005 album Have a nice dayJon Bon Jovi knew he had a potential crossover hit on his hands. He also knew he would need some help with the vocals to make it a true country song.

Jennifer Nettles, who had just recorded her debut album with country trio (now duo) Sugarland, turned out to be the duet partner Bon Jovi needed for “Who Says You Can’t Go Home.” Although Sugarland will continue to top BillboardOn the Hot Country Songs chart five times, it was Nettles’ collaboration with the New Jersey rock band that gave her her first No. 1 hit on that chart. Had Bon Jovi’s initial plan – which included a more established country star – succeeded, the history-making moment with Nettles may never have happened.

A Match Made in Country Crossover Over Haven

Of all the rock bands that could have made it big in the country, Bon Jovi ranks as one of the least surprising candidates. One of their biggest hits, “Wanted Dead or Alive,” features acoustic guitar and lyrics centered around Wild West themes. (The song received full country treatment when Chris Cagle sang it in 2005.) As a solo artist, Jon Bon Jovi wrote and recorded the soundtrack for the 1990 western movie. Young Guns II. Eight years later, one of the songs that followed Fire of Glory The album – “Bang a Drum” – reached the Hot Country Songs chart when Bon Jovi recorded it as a duet with Chris LeDoux.

Just as Jon Bon Jovi had set himself up for cross-over success, Nettles was a good candidate to recruit a song with rock, pop, and country appeal. While her early work with Sugarland was undoubtedly country, Nettles’ previous bands-Soul Miner’s Daughter and the Jennifer Nettles Band-played in a style closer to folk-rock. Bon Jovi was well aware of Nettles’ rock credentials, as he said CMT Inside In 2006, “She comes from a rocky background and fell in the countryside. She could have been a pop star, for sure, or will be in the future.

Keith Urban got the first shot

Although Nettles turned out to be the right vocalist for the job, she only got the gig because Bon Jovi’s first choice didn’t work out. They originally recorded “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” with just Bon Jovi’s vocals, but he wanted to see how it would sound with a country singer accompanying him. He brought in Keith Urban to provide the vocals as well as the banjo. Bon Jovi and Urban already had a connection Have a nice day Co-producer John Shanks co-wrote several songs with Urban, including “Someone Like You” and “You’re My Better Half.”

The Bon Jovi-Urban duet did not achieve the desired results, as their voices sounded too similar. Bon Jovi decided the song might work better with a female vocalist, and an executive at Universal Music Group recommended Nettles. The duet with nettles made it a cut Have a nice dayalthough the original non-binary version also made the album and was her second single.

The impact of “Who Says You Can’t Go Home”

Bon Jovi and Nettles’ version of “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” spent two of its 27 weeks on the Hot Country Songs chart at number one. The duo received a 2007 Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. Bon Jovi’s original version was the only song from Have a nice day To eliminate the top 40 of bulletin board Hot 100, peaking at #23. Bon Jovi and Nettles filmed the video for “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” at a Habitat for Humanity construction site in Philadelphia. Bon Jovi produced the video to raise awareness of the organization’s work, and it has been viewed more than 18 million times on YouTube.

“Who Says You Can’t Go Home” was Bon Jovi’s first entry into the country charts, but it won’t be their last. On their upcoming album The Lost HighwayThey ventured further into country music. Two of the album’s five singles – “(You Wanna) Make a Memory” and “So We Can’t Be Strangers Anymore” – made it to the Hot Country Songs chart, the latter a duet with LeAnn Rimes. The band will collaborate with Nettles again on “Do What You Can,” a song about dealing with the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. It peaked at 28 days BillboardQatar Broadcast Chart for September 2020.

Genre-wise, Bon Jovi went home again after his first foray into country music, as did each of his next three albums afterward. Have a nice day. Went to number 1 day bulletin boardTop Rock Albums Chart (as well as on bulletin board 200). With “Who Says You Can’t Go Home,” the band showed that they have the versatility to attract fans of a different kind. Considering that part of their chart history spans decades, this is no small feat.