The band even went through an elaborate cowboy-themed photo shoot for the proposed cover. Photographer Mark "Weissguy" Weiss worked on images of the band dressed in cowboy-style clothing, matching the Western imagery associated with the song.
The cowboy concept didn't make the final cut.
Neither did the title.
And then there was the infamous original idea for the actual Slippery When Wet cover.
The Album Cover That Almost Was
The original cover was considerably more provocative than the one everybody remembers.
It featured a woman in a wet yellow T-shirt with the words "Slippery When Wet" incorporated into the image.
Record executives reportedly became concerned that some major retailers might refuse to carry the album because of the artwork. Jon Bon Jovi also disliked the bright pink border that had been added to the photo.
So the band needed another idea — and they needed it quickly.
The replacement was almost hilariously simple:
A wet black plastic garbage bag with the words "Slippery When Wet" written across it.
That image became one of the most recognizable album covers of the 1980s.
And here's a collector's fact: some Japanese editions retained the original wet T-shirt artwork, making those versions particularly interesting to Bon Jovi collectors.
And Where Did the Name Come From?
The title itself reportedly came from the band's time in Vancouver.
According to stories from the band, the members visited a Vancouver strip club called No. 5 Orange while they were recording.
The experience apparently inspired the phrase "Slippery When Wet," which the band felt perfectly captured the attitude they wanted for the album.
It's one of those very 1980s rock-and-roll origin stories that sounds almost too ridiculous to be true — but the story has been repeatedly associated with the album's creation.