When Bon Jovi released its self-titled debut in 1984, the band had a hit with "Runaway," but they weren't remotely the global phenomenon they would soon become.
In January 1986, the two began writing songs for the band's third album at the Sambora family home. The band eventually moved into a small recording facility in Sayreville, New Jersey, called Century Studios to rehearse and develop the material.
And they didn't simply write a handful of songs and head into the studio.
They reportedly wrote around 30 songs.
Then they did something that was pretty unusual for a rock band in 1986:
They asked teenagers what they thought.
The "Pizza Pie Jury"
Bon Jovi was rehearsing near a local pizza place where teenagers regularly hung out.
Instead of ignoring them, the band invited a group of them into the studio to hear the songs.
Jon Bon Jovi later recalled that approximately 30 local kids effectively became the jury for the album, reacting to the material and helping the band determine which songs were strongest.
Think about that for a second.
One of the biggest rock albums of the 1980s was partially shaped by the opinions of a bunch of New Jersey teenagers hanging around a pizza parlor.
And apparently, they had pretty good ears.