"In And Out Of Love" is a fantastic, catchy hard rocker to lead off the album. This is the only song that got any noteriety on this album. It stands up in quality to other, better-known Bon Jovi rockers. But then comes a couple of amazingly tuneful, emotional, yet rocking anthems. "Price Of Love" and "Only Lonely" amaze me every time I hear them with their pretty yet rocking sound. I love these songs as much as anything these guys have ever done.

Next comes "King Of The Mountain", a fun hard rocker but not overly noteworthy. Following is the great power ballad "Silent Night", which to me stands up in quality to later Bon Jovi ballads. "Tokyo Road" is impossibly tuneful and yet rocking, while "Hardest Part Is The Night" is another heartfelt, amazing anthem/power ballad.

The last three tracks are also great, from the catchy anthem/rocker "Always Run To You" to the straight ahead rocker "To The Fire" to yet another amazingly melodic anthem "Secret Dreams" (try to get that song out of your head if you play this album in order and don't play another album immediately after).

The bottom line is this: the debut self-titled effort got these guys on the map and had the breakout hit "Runaway", while the album after this one "Slippery When Wet" sold millions (rightfully so) and made these guys huge. Nonetheless, to me this album is as good as either of those efforts and any Bon Jovi album for that matter. If you like huge hooks and harmonies in your rock and roll, then you absolutely should like this album. For me, a must-have in my Bon Jovi and hard rock music collection.


The REAL Review of 7800 Degrees Fahrenheit   April 4, 2003
D. Rausch (United States)
13 out of 21 found this review helpful

(2.5 Stars)
Don't worry, I'll speak from honesty more than from ego. Well well, so here is the "Black Sheep" in the family, the least praised album in the Jovi catalog, and the most avoided by everyone, including the band! Even I say that maybe some random people out there will love this album and NOT really be into Bon Jovi. Why? This album does not cater to the emotions and aesthetics of all subsequent albums, hence I also maintain the flip side of that, that you could also be one of the biggest Jovi fans in the world and not be big on this album. The bottom line is there is a definite separation in the function of this album from the "Bon Jovi Purpose" which we have come to know and love (or unfortunately for some people, hate) as evidenced through the rest of their history.
I, one of the biggest Bon Jovi fans in existence, do not see any value in those who try to say how intense THEY are by having been hooked BEFORE the Slippery days. I may or may not have liked Bon Jovi in '85, had I been older than 5 years old and able to tell such things, but this album contains very little of what is so great about the band. Please note the begging exception is "Silent Night," a hell of a power ballad before they were really even considered a "formulaec" song form. This song bleeds emotion all around, from the excellent keyboard lick (for the time) to Richie's sustained power chords, to Jon and Richie's Harmonies. THIS indeed was a huge embryo for the future. I would suggest to get the album just for this song!

Ok. Now for the rest of the album. Everything said, I find myself drawn to the album at times. It really is "mood" music! The band was struggling with relevant songwriting at the time, and through all the "women problems" they were going through at the time, something great came out of it, and now we have THE "relationship-miserable" album!!! Whenever your love life is anything but sunny and happy, use the album as the functional catharsis. When you are in such unfortunate moods, you don't beg for musical excellence, original lyrics, or, even great songwriting. You want to relate to something and you need something to do. Well, you want other things as well, but that would be a tangent... So you put on this album. Most of the songs say the same thing, though I might add, there IS a certain level of diversity here that also would prove embryonic for later efforts. Highlights are the piano on "Price of Love", the bridge to "Only Lonely," the guitar riff on "Always Run To You," and pretty much all of "Tokyo Road."

So through a fluke, we have a somewhat relevant album!!! Which of course does ironically only strengthen the respect I will always have for them. And if you are a hardcore fan, you absolutely can't be lacking an album (though you probably already have them all!), so do not avoid this. Just be educated as to what you are getting into! And then maybe, in some very unexpected way, this album too will love you back.


My first one...   January 17, 2001
B. GOODWIN (LIMA, OHIO United States)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

This is the first one I got from these guys and man was this CD a blast. Alot of fun songs and some very wild guitar playing from Richie. This album has alot of songs that kick it in and alot of ballads that laid the foundation of what was in store for the future. This is a well played and well written CD that has probably been forgotten once "Slippery" & "New Jersey" came out. If like Bon Jovi and haven't gotten this one yet, please do so today.


I don't see what's wrong with this.   August 13, 2004
P. Woods (England)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

I don't see why many BJ fans and even BJ themselves hate this album. This album is hardly any different from "Slippery when wet" or their self-titled debut. This is definately one of favourite BJ albums at this moment. This album is just the same to their other 80s albums. The album starts off with cool rocking anthems, then goes a bit into ballads, then comes back to rocking again.

1. In and out of love: One of the strongest songs on the album. Extremely catchy track and very hard rocking. 5/5
2. Price of love: This starts off slow, but then it turns into another rocking track. This one does tend to get boring after a few listens. 3.5/5
3. Only lonely: A hard, yet very emotional track. One of my favourites on the album. A strong song with good riffs and vocals. 5/5
4. King of the mountain: This is quite a fast, catchy song, but at times it sounds a bit like rap. But it's still fun. 4/5
5. Silent night: Probably the slowest song on the album, but it's very peaceful. Powerful and beautiful. 4.5/5
6. Tokyo road: It has a really irratating intro, but once the song breaks out it's really an enjoyable listen. Sounds very much like something from "Slippery when wet". Another rocking track. 4/5
7. The hardset part is the night: This is my favourite song on the album. Another hard, but slow anthem. Sang very well and a brilliant guitar sound at the start. 5+/5
8. Always run to you: No comment. 4/5
9. (I don't wanna fall) To the fire: The main riff of this song sounds like something from an army movie. An enjoyable listen, but it's one of the weaker tracks. 3.5/5
10: Secret dreams: A very melodic track. A bit slow again, but it's a top song to end the album with. 4.5/5

So, this is a review coming from a casual BJ fan. No sonds on this album are below average, not even average. So, if you liked "Slippery when wet", "New Jersey" or their debut then you'll like this one too. One of their heaviest albums.


Bon Jovi's Most Underrated Record   July 10, 2006
Bradley Headstone (New York)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

This 2nd record of Bon Jovi's never really became as popular as most of his later records. (Especially 'Slippery When Wet,' 'Keep the Faith,' or even 'Crush.') Nevertheless, this is quite arguably his best record. It's an interesting flaw in the market that often someone's arguably best record is not usually the one that sells the most. The best way for me to begin is to say this record screams: "WELCOME TO THE 80s!" After his respectable 1st record, Bon Jovi was to unleash his real abilities. 'In and Out of Love' is a powerful opener that defines the direction of this record. 'Price of Love' maintains the intense tone AND quality of the record; 'Only Lonely' combines sorrow and intensity quite well; 'King of the Mountain' is more upbeat and actually quite thrashy; 'Silent Night' releases the tension for awhile and offers us a moment of well done sorrow; 'Tokyo Road' starts with an oriental tone but then jumps to the other extreme and quite well at that. 'Hardest Part Is the Night' is arguably the greatest song on the record. It is a sad toned song that maintains a strong intensity. The contrasts seem to flatter each other well. 'Run to You' is a more simple song, but it keeps the tone of the record; 'Fall to the Fire' is another high point. It's a haunting song that has intense lyrics, and the choruses only make it more haunting; 'Secret Dreams' keeps the tone of the record and ends it on a happier note. This may not be his most popular record, but listening to it will probably make you wonder why. I have heard all his records from 'Bon Jovi' to 'Have a Nice Day.' And '7800' never lost its place as my favorite one.