The original line-up of Bon Jovi will reunite on stage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony this coming April. Former members Alec John Such, the group’s original bassist who left in 1994 and guitarist Richie Sambora who quit in 2013 will join up with fellow founding members Jon Bon Jovi, David Bryan (keyboards) and Tico Torres (drums) for their first performance together since a one-off show in 2001.

In a recent interview with Billboard, Torres said, “It’s hard to predict what you’re going to go through, but speaking to Alec on the phone, it was wonderful. We took that journey together at certain times as a group, and I think it’s wonderful we can re-enact that – not only fur us, but for the fans. I think when you get together with old friends, there’s always going to be some deep emotions within that.”

The New Jersey natives, who won the fan vote this year with over 1 million votes, have been eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for 9 years and keyboardist Bryan feels that it’s about time they got in. “It’s a little late, but we’re in the club,” he said. “It’s a wonderful club to be in, from Elvis and the Beatles and the Stones, and you feel like it’s definitely a club to be in. It’s a great honor.”

Sambora expressed gratitude for the recognition in an interview with Rollingstone, “Hey, I’m in the queue with Bob Dylan, Mick and Keith and Clapton, all my heroes and all the guys I grew up trying to emulate. They are my heroes and my teachers. To be in that line is kind of surreal. I don’t know if I believe it yet. It’s that kind of an honor.” He also said, “This has been in the wind for a while. And then the fans started ponying up like crazy. That’s what we do this business for anyway. I’ve said this often: You can put on a show and if the fans don’t show up, it’s not a show, is it? The fans are just as important as we are, really.”

Bon Jovi will be inducted into the Hall of Fame by Howard Stern on April 14, 2018.