Sioux Falls Gets Shoutout in New Bon Jovi Documentary

New Jersey rock gods Bon Jovi are celebrating 40 years as a group this year triggering a flood of memories for fans and band members alike.

And Sioux Falls is part of a 'big deal' in Bon Jovi's storied past.

Hulu has dropped the four-part documentary, Thank you, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, which chronicles all of the ups and downs for the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers, and in episode two ('Nowhere to Everywhere'), South Dakota's largest city gets a shout out for being the backdrop to one of the band's biggest moments.   

It was October of 1986 and Bon Jovi's third studio album, Slippery When Wet, was working its way up the Billboard chart after being released two months earlier (August 18).

At the time, Bon Jovi was still considered an opening act and was in the process of touring with .38 Special when they hunkered down for a night at the Holiday Inn in Sioux Falls before heading to the old Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota for an October 12 show.

While in South Dakota, official word came in that Slippery When Wet would hit number-one on the album chart beginning October 28, knocking Fore! from Huey Lewis and The News from the top spot.

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It was Bon Jovi's first-ever number one album, lasting two weeks before giving way to Boston's Third Stage in November. It also topped the charts in six other countries.

In the Hulu documentary, Jon Bon Jovi remembered the moment:

We were in Sioux Falls, South Dakota opening up for .38 Special. (We were) calling everyone we could on the pay phone. We got Telexes from people.

Drummer Tico Torres also shared his recollection of the milestone:

We did this group hug at the Holiday Inn the first time we heard number one. It was a big deal.

That wasn't the last time the album would reach lofty heights. It would eventually rank as the number-one album for all of 1987 in the United States and give the band their first two chart topping singles, 'You Give Love a Bad Name' and 'Livin' on a Prayer'.

You can catch all four parts of Thank you, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, streaming now on Hulu.