Hey God
1996 single by Bon Jovi
"Hey God" is a song from American rock band Bon Jovi's sixth studio album, These Days (1995), released as the album's fifth and final single on June 24, 1996. Although it did not chart in the United States, it became a moderate hit in Canada and several European countries.
Background
As with most of the songs on These Days, "Hey God" is one of Bon Jovi's darker songs. It brings together different stories of people living on the edge of breakdown and despair, such as a father who claims his family are "two paychecks away from living out on the street", a single mother with a wayward son who has been convicted of killing a police officer, and a young man growing up in the ghetto. Throughout the course of the song, each of these characters cries out for spiritual help.
Richie Sambora said that his inspiration for the song came when he was sitting in his limo and made eye contact with a derelict huddling in a cardboard box on the pavement. Sambora's sense of guilt at this was immense and discussed the incident with Jon Bon Jovi, who was inspired by the view out of the window from 57th St. and Broadway in New York, where a man wearing an Armani suit was next to a man who's sleeping on the street. They then wrote the song in Jon's basement.
Chart performance
The song charted at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart and number 44 on Canada's RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2617306. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1995 and 1996.
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