Bon Jovi
Seaside Hgts, NJ 1988 3
Bon Jovi, Seaside Heights, NJ, 1988. ‘88 was a big year for me. I worked with Bon Jovi earlier in the year, and they came to me to shoot the album cover for their next album, New Jersey. I was over the moon—this was a big moment! I had long hair, cowboy boots, bangle bracelets, and my Porsche; Bon Jovi and Jersey, I thought I was pretty cool.
I knew the Jersey shore like the back of my hand, and these guys were part of its fabric. This was a stepping stone in my career, I could just feel it, and I was going to do it big. I scouted this amusement pier that jutted out into the ocean in Seaside Heights. I met the owner, and I talked him into letting us shoot there. The day was wild...I mean, it was summer at the Jersey Shore with Bon Jovi. Word got out about the shoot, and suddenly, a thousand kids showed up, screaming for the band. I had to have the police lock arms to walk them from the Winnebago to set—the very public beach. It felt like a scene from A Hard Day’s Night—pure pandemonium.
Despite all the chaos, I had to keep focused and get the guys to look good for the shoot. We shot on the beach and got these iconic shots, with Jon in his custom New Jersey coat, and then we moved up to the amusement park. I got them on all these rides—the twirl-a-wheel spinning around—it really matched the chaos of the moment, with all the fans screaming from down below. It was a crucial moment for me—an album cover, on my home turf, and the beginning of a lifelong relationship with the band.
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