Monday, May 31, 2010

What I've learnt: Jon Bon Jovi on fame, family and life on the road

Some interesting/amusing tidbits from Jon via the Times Online, such as:
If I wasn’t a rock star, I’d be the ringmaster in a circus.
and
The best book I’ve ever read is The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari. It gets to the core of what we’re doing here. I’m not really driven by possessions, and the nomadic lifestyle has something to do with that. You realise you can live out of a bag and the rest of the stuff is fun to play with, but not necessary.
But I think my favourite is:
I want the Beatles’ In My Life played at my funeral. You don’t want something upbeat. I’ll be dead, for God’s sake, I don’t want anyone else to be happy. I’m going to make ’em all pay for the bonus at the end, which is my estate. They’re going to have to suffer for hours. I want Catholic guilt and misery.
You can read the full article here, ignoring the part where they wrongly referred to 7800 Fahrenheit as Bon Jovi's first album.

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Even more Meadowlands videos

A selection of videos from the third night (May 29, 2010)...

DRY COUNTY - Sounds stronger than it did the first night. Amazing song.


I'D DIE FOR YOU


JUST OLDER


JUMPIN' JACK FLASH / I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD


SOMEDAY I'LL BE SATURDAY NIGHT (electric) - Cool jam near the end.


DIAMOND RING


IN THESE ARMS


And a couple of earlier videos that I didn't post here or here...

RAISE YOUR HANDS from the first night (tour debut)


BED OF ROSES from the second night - This isn't the first time they've played "Roses" this tour but this is probably the best performance of it, vocally at least. Jon's going for (and hitting) the original notes as opposed to singing the This Left Feels Right melody over electric instruments.

East Rutherford (Meadowlands) 3rd night set list

Best of the Bon Jovi Meadowlands shows that kicked off with the unexpected opening of "Who Says" and continued with the inclusion of killer rare songs like "Just Older", "I'd Die For You", "Living in Sin".... not to mention my beloved "Dry County" again.

Thanks to Brian (Titan4Ever2488) and everyone else who tweeted for the PBP.

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, USA - NEW MEADOWLANDS STADIUM - MAY 29, 2010
Who Says You Can't Go Home
We Weren't Born to Follow
You Give Love a Bad Name
In These Arms
Born to Be My Baby
Just Older
We Got It Goin' On
Raise Your Hands
When We Were Beautiful
Superman Tonight
Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars
Bad Medicine
It's My Life
Love's the Only Rule
Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals]
Living in Sin w/ Chapel of Love [Dixie Cups cover]
I'll Be There For You
Something for the Pain [acoustic]
Diamond Ring
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead w/ Jumpin' Jack Flash [Rolling Stones cover]
I'd Die For You
Work for the Working Man
Someday I'll Be Saturday Night
Keep the Faith

ENCORE:
Dry County
Wanted Dead or Alive
Livin' on a Prayer

Friday, May 28, 2010

More Meadowlands videos

Some more videos from Bon Jovi's Meadowlands shows so far.

DRY COUNTY (May 26, 2010) - Here's another, much closer video of "Dry County" from the first night.


NEVER SAY GOODBYE (May 27, 2010) - Jon forgets the lyrics, but I'm not sure which was funnier: the lyric flub or Richie's amused glances at Jon.


ALWAYS (May 27) - I never, ever get sick of Bon Jovi playing "Always".


HAVE A NICE DAY (May 26) - I don't know about anyone else but this is definitely my favourite of the so-called "It's My Life" lead singles. I love the screens here too.


RUNAWAY (May 26) - This is the performance where the sound infamously died.


LOVE'S THE ONLY RULE (May 26) - Love the screens here too, and this song is still epic despite Jon not being able to go into the crowd like he did in the arenas.

East Rutherford (Meadowlands) 2nd night set list

Bon Jovi's Meadowlands sequel! I'm a tad disappointed we didn't get "Happy Now" as an opener or "Homebound Train" for Richie, but we did get "Never Say Goodbye", "Always" and "Bed of Roses", none of which I could ever complain about. And the fact that "Something for the Pain" has been retained for the stadium shows gives me hope that I'll actually have a shot at experiencing it live. :D

Thanks again Brian (Titan4Ever2488) and everyone else for the PBP.

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, USA - NEW MEADOWLANDS STADIUM - MAY 27, 2010
Blood on Blood
We Weren't Born to Follow
You Give Love a Bad Name
Whole Lot of Leavin'
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
Have a Nice Day
When We Were Beautiful
Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars
Bad Medicine w/ Bad Case of Loving You [Robert Palmer cover]
It's My Life
Love's the Only Rule
Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals]
(You Want To) Make a Memory
Bed of Roses
Never Say Goodbye [acoustic]
Something for the Pain [acoustic]
Someday I'll Be Saturday Night [acoustic]
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
Work for the Working Man
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Keep the Faith

ENCORE:
Always
Wanted Dead or Alive
Livin' on a Prayer

Thursday, May 27, 2010

East Rutherford (Meadowlands) videos

A few videos from Bon Jovi's opening show at the new Meadowlands Stadium.

BLOOD ON BLOOD - The grand opening.


I'LL BE THERE FOR YOU - Great view of this.


DRY COUNTY - Not the best vocal performance, with Jon seeming a little shy about the big notes, but decent first attempt. It's my favourite song anyway, and I'm confident it'll get better with a few more performances. If Bon Jovi played "Dry County" at my show, I'd be just like that "OH MY GOD" guy you can hear in this video, only higher pitched and probably with some tears of joy. ;)


Fireworks display that ended the main set:


LIVIN' ON A PRAYER

Meadowlands reviews

Here are some reviews of Bon Jovi's opening night at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

From Mike Kerwick on NorthJersey.com:
Twelve songs into this christening — his hair soaked, his face bathed in a glistening coat of sweat — Jon Bon Jovi offered his review of the show.
“It’s a good thing there isn’t a roof on this place,” he told the crowd. “I’d be about blowing it off.”
Read the full review here.

From Tris McCall for The Star-Ledger:
It was a spirited rendition of "Bad Medicine," and Jon Bon Jovi was working the crowd. Here was the rocker as consummate showman, throwing arms and elbows, pouting for effect, cupping his hand over his ear in faux exasperation with the audience enthusiasm level, whomping them up into a frenzy, asking for more.
Read it in full here.

And David Hinckley for Daily News:
With a crisp sound system that felt like it was pumping thunder into the cavernous $1.6 billion stadium, Bon Jovi delivered precisely the upbeat, fist-waving anthems the mostly middle-aged crowd had come to hear.
Full review at this link.

Videos in the next post.

East Rutherford (Meadowlands) 1st night set list

Grand opening of Meadowlands! After all the talk of new lyrics for "Dry County" it seems Bon Jovi stuck to the classic version -- but they did play it, so we got a rarity, and it opened the encore. And if we want to push things a little, "Raise Your Hands" (making its tour debut) might even count as a rarity now despite being a regular to the point of being overplayed in previous tours. Apparently the sound system also died completely for about 40 seconds during "Runaway". Thanks to Brian (Titan4Ever2488) for the PBP.

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, USA - NEW MEADOWLANDS STADIUM - MAY 26, 2010
Blood on Blood
We Weren't Born to Follow
You Give Love a Bad Name
Whole Lot of Leavin'
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
Raise Your Hands
Runaway
When We Were Beautiful
Superman Tonight
We Got It Going On
Bad Medicine w/ Roadhouse Blues [The Doors cover]
It's My Life
Love's the Only Rule
Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals]
Hallelujah [Leonard Cohen cover]
I'll Be There For You
Something for the Pain [acoustic]
Someday I'll Be Saturday Night [acoustic]
Have a Nice Day
Work for the Working Man
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Keep the Faith

ENCORE:
Dry County
Wanted Dead or Alive
Livin' on a Prayer

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Meadowlands Eve...

Not long to go before Bon Jovi opens the new Meadowlands Stadium and according to Billboard.com's Twitter:
Jon Bon Jovi rewrote the lyrics to "Dry County" for the new meadowlands opening shows about 5 hours ago via web
I read that it now includes lyrics alluding to the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill that's been going on since April.

Meanwhile Jon has talked about the shows in this article on NorthJersey.com:
"I worry about dumb stuff like allergies," the 48-year-old singer confessed during a roundtable with writers this afternoon at the Jumeriah Essex House in Manhattan. "Like going out there and sneezing. I never worry about singing or playing or the band’s performance, the production or anything like that. I’m more into, 'Can I breathe tonight?' 'Did my mother get a good seat?' The dumb stuff."
Read the full article here.

Jon Bon Jovi quits smoking? Really?

According to Contactmusic via Q Magazine, Jon finally did away with his little nicotine habit because he didn't want to pay extra premiums on life insurance.
"I swore off them before the tour and I'm happy to say that I haven't picked them up again.

"(I quit because of) the cold hard truth. I tried to get life insurance and the price with smoking was so ridiculous it was enough to p**s you off and just throw them in the garbage. So it was cold f**king turkey."
Read the article here.

Well, I'm rapt if that's true, even if the reasons behind it raised a giggle. And if it is true (or if Jon is careful about not being photographed or filmed smoking ever again) I'm thinking the Rudd Government here in Australia should think about hiring Jon as an ambassador for their tobacco tax: "Revenue raising? Hell no! It really does help you quit!" ;)

Monday, May 24, 2010

Memphis wins at Drama Desk Awards

And the accolades keep rolling in for Memphis, with the David Bryan-Joe DiPietro musical picking up the following awards at the 2010 Drama Desk Awards:
  • Outstanding Musical
  • Outstanding Actor in a Musical (Chad Kimball)
  • Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Montego Glover)
  • Oustanding Music (David Bryan)
Memphis was also nominated for Outstanding Choreography (Sergio Trujillo), Outstanding Book of a Musical (Joe DiPietro), and Outstanding Orchestrations (Daryl Waters and David Bryan) but missed out on those.

Nevertheless, well done again to Dave and the Memphis team!

Lefsetz e-mail of the day: Bon Jovi loses fan

Bob Lefsetz, writer of the Lefsetz Letter received an e-mail about Bon Jovi from one of his subscribers. It came after Lefsetz linked to a New York Times article about VIP packages. The e-mail is very scathing... here's but a taste.
The group managing BJ at this time is flat out insulting. I take my seat and the guy next 2 me asks what I paid, I tell him and he begins to laugh out loud. He goes on to tell me that he paid nothing, was given free tickets by the management team and that people like me pay for his tickets. He had been drinking but I couldn’t stop listening. He went on and on and told me that the band makes all their money from people like me who are dumb and foolish enough to spend the money (which was confirmed by the NYT article). He said that by me essentially buying 10-12 tickets it allows them to give freebies out to give the illusion that a show is a sell-out when it really isn’t.

The next 2 hours I don’t remember anything. I was so sick to my stomach I couldn’t even enjoy the show. I don’t remember any of it. I felt raped. I felt violated beyond words. Not to mention the bad experience backstage where I was offered a wondrous chance to take a picture with a certain members guitar.

Until the day I die I will let everyone I come in contact know about the experience, how its not worth it, how I was hurt and how I was lied to and taken advantage of. Ill never see this band again, buy their music or send a single cent their way. They may have gotten my $$$ but they’ve lost my loyalty forever.
You can read the full e-mail here.

OUCH. Thoughts?

Lorenza Ponce: Have violin, will travel

Lorenza Ponce tends to divide Bon Jovi fans (some love her; some hate all things country or all things violin, and by extension any association she has with Bon Jovi). But since a lot of my Twitter followers dig her and her new album Soul Shifter, and presumably some of them also read my blog, I thought I'd link to this article about her in the Asbury Park Press (Besides, she talks about Bon Jovi too):
“One thing I learned from Bon Jovi — it’s good to be on top,” Ponce said, with a laugh. “They live a great lifestyle. But, it’s a lot of hard work and they are incredibly disciplined. Everything is geared to the show — working out, eating, vocal warm-ups. Everything is scheduled to be gig-ready. And that’s why they’re so successful. It’s a job. They love it, but they know they have to take it seriously. They don’t always get the best press or whatever, but there’s a reason why they’ve lasted. You can go crazy and drink and last for five years, or you can have the discipline that Jon has and still be performing at the top after 25 years.”
Lorenza also talks about her diverse musical background, social networking, and working with Sheryl Crow. Read the full article here.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Bon Jovi back in the studio

As posted on Bon Jovi's Facebook and Twitter accounts:
day off... recording a couple new songs for you - jbj about 9 hours ago via Facebook
New songs! Presumably that's for the greatest hits? I wonder if the proposed second year or so of the Circle tour is actually going to be a Greatest Hits tour (kind of like how the Crossroads tour slid into These Days)...

John Shanks, Richie Sambora and Jon Bon Jovi in the studio

David Bryan Memphis interview

David talks about his Tony Award nominated musical Memphis and the social power of rock 'n' roll in an interview with New York radio station Q104.3's Jim Kerr show the day after the Hershey concert.

Listen to the interview and check out some photos at this link. "Gonna do something special" at the Tonys, hey?

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Hershey set list + review

The resumption of the Circle tour, and the first outdoor/stadium gig, brought Bon Jovi sure brought some odd set list placements if nothing else. I'm expecting something spectacular for the Meadowlands shows beginning May 26. ;)

HERSHEY, PENNSYLVANIA, USA - HERSHEYPARK STADIUM - MAY 19, 2010
Blood on Blood
We Weren't Born to Follow
You Give Love a Bad Name
Whole Lot of Leavin'
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
When We Were Beautiful
We Got It Goin' On
Superman Tonight
Bad Medicine
It's My Life
Love's the Only Rule
Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals]
(You Want To) Make a Memory
I'll Be There For You
Something for the Pain [acoustic]
Runaway
Work for the Working Man
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Keep the Faith

ENCORE:
Wanted Dead or Alive
Livin' on a Prayer

And here's a review by Kira Schlecter for the Patriot-News:
They are still the purveyors of good-time, vaguely Americana rock ’n’ roll, full of hope, defiance and love conquering all.
Read the full review here.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Memphis wins at Outer Critics Circle Awards

It would be remiss of me not to say congratulations again to our king of the keys David Bryan and the Memphis team for this latest round of accolades. :)
New York, NY (May 17, 2010) Outer Critics Circle, the organization of writers and commentators for all media covering New York theatre announced today its award winners for the 2009-10 season in 23 categories....
Memphis took out awards in the following categories:
  • Outstanding New Broadway Musical
  • Outstanding New Score
  • Outstanding Choreographer (Sergio Trujillo)
  • Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Montego Glover)

Open for Bon Jovi at the O2!

Step onto one of the most famous stages in the world at London's 02 arena, in front of a sold out audience as opening act for one of the biggest rock bands in the world - BON JOVI! The band are offering YOU this fantastic opportunity to reach out to a massive audience and be part of their legendary live show. If you are in a band, looking for a break - then this is as good as it gets. Enter now and face a judging panel of the music industry's key players, including Bon Jovi's own management company. We are looking for 5 fresh and promising new bands to fill the opening nights at The 02 arena.
The shows are on June 7, 8, 10, 11 and 13. You have until May 31, 2010 to enter.
Head to www.openforbonjovi.com for more details.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Confused about Bon Jovi special editions?

Since the announcement of the Bon Jovi special edition album re-releases, there has been a lot of confusion about the promised live bonus tracks and the exclusive "Bon Jovi Vault" that purchasing the albums is supposed to unlock.

Anyway the special editions came out in the US a couple of days ago and The Goddess Hathor has posted this blog which might help clear a few things up. Apparently:
  • There are a few different packages available from different places;
  • The Vault is only available in the United States, from May 18, 2010 to November 11, 2011.
Head to Hath's blog for the details, including a confirmed list of all the live bonus tracks on each album.

I don't know yet if international fans will get something different in the Vault or nothing at all.

milomom has also posted about the albums in the Special Editions thread on JoviTalk:
Each CD unlocked only that portion of the vault that corresponds to that CD. An additional live track from each CD was available for streaming, but I can't buy the tracks until May 18. Silent Night is the track from Fahrenheit, and Raise Your Hands is the SWW track. Validating each CD also loaded photos from that timeframe into a gallery in the vault.
She also mentioned that Walmart was selling the CDs in normal jewel cases but cheaper, while Best Buy had the digipacks.

Bon Jovi and Daughtry on American Idol

Bon Jovi performs "Superman Tonight".


Jon's Facebook vlog from backstage is available at this link.

And for the Daughtry fans, here are Chris and the boys performing "September" on the same episode.

Oliver Stone wants Memphis the Movie

Last month it was reported that David Bryan and Joe DiPietro's musical Memphis has been fielding serious offers to turn the show into a film.

Well, it seems Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone is among those interested.

From BroadwayWorld.com:
Stone is a big fan of the show which he's seen twice already and that he's been taking meetings with David Bryan. A representative for Stone confirms the director is interested in the project, telling the publication, "He's thinking about it."

As is Memphis-born pop star Justin Timberlake, according to the New York Post.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

If I Was Your Mother...

I love this song. I don't expect to ever hear it live -- it has very taxing vocals, and I think was only ever played a couple of times and not since 1993 -- but if Mr Jon Bon Jovi wants to prove me wrong, he can go ahead. ;)

Anyway, I thought I'd blog it because it does loosely fit the theme of the day. Happy Mother's Day, y'all. ;)

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Obie O'Brien interview and "Only Lonely" special edition bonus track

Obie O'Brien's interview with radio station 93.3 WMMR is now up on the Bon Jovi site. It includes a soundcheck recording of "Only Lonely" from the 80s, which will be released on the upcoming special edition of 7800° Fahrenheit.

Listen to the interview here.

"When We Were Beautiful" video up on Universal

Universal Music Portugal has Bon Jovi's new video for "When We Were Beautiful" up on its website. The vocals are live (from Dallas I think) but the music is from the album track. Check it out here.

Friday, May 7, 2010

David Bryan to miss June 13 Bon Jovi show in London

Bon Jovi will be without king of the keyboards David Bryan at the O2 Arena on June 13, 2010. David's going to the Tony Awards -- Memphis has been nominated for eight awards, including Best Musical, Best Orchestration and Best Original Score.
“It will be the first show I’ve ever missed since I was 16 years old playing with Jon [Bon Jovi],” Bryan told Broadway.com at the 2010 Tony Nominee Press Reception on May 5. “I’ve never missed a show. When my father passed away, I waited two days to bury him ‘cause I had two shows to do. And he would have understood that, ‘cause he was a musician, too.”
Read the full article here.

This could be Dave's chance to really shine... hope Memphis scoops the pool!

Meadowlands Grand Opening Raffle

Help The Breast Cancer Research Foundation in its efforts to prevent breast cancer and to find a cure in our lifetime, and, in return, you could be enjoying this ultimate Bon Jovi Concert Experience.

Take part in this raffle before May 19, to be in the chance to win the following prize:

  • Winner and guest will enjoy two floor level seats to Bon Jovi’s “The Circle World Tour” at
    the New Meadowlands Stadium grand opening concert (7:00 PM, Wednesday, May 26, 2010)
  • Winner and guest will enjoy two tickets to “The VIP Experience” and attend a special backstage tour before the concert; including dinner with the actual crew (The VIP Experience takes the ultimate Bon Jovi fan and makes them part of the crew with a behind the scenes look at one of the hottest rock and roll bands around. For the first time, Bon Jovi fans get to experience what life is like as a "crew member" on the 2010 Bon Jovi Circle tour. Winner and guest will get to Walk on Stage where the band performs and get to see and photograph all of the various aspects and technology that it takes to run the show. At the conclusion of this VIP experience, the Winner and their guest will enjoy dinner in catering with some of the actual crew. Please note: There is no interaction with the Band)
  • Winner and guest will enjoy 2 night hotel accommodations at the luxurious, 5-star,
    Plaza Hotel (May 26th & May 27th, 2010, single room, double occupancy, valid through March 5, 2011)
  • Winner will receive 2 round-trip business class Delta Airline Tickets (limited to Delta Airlines domestic routes in the continental United States, valid through May 30, 2011)
  • Winner and guest will dine at two of New York City’s most exclusive restaurants Nobu Fifty Seven and the Red Eye Grill (Excludes: Alcohol, Tax, & Gratuity, valid through March 4, 2011)
  • Winner or guest will receive a haircut & styling from a senior stylist at Bumble and bumble
  • Winner will receive a cash prize in the amount of $1,421.75 to mitigate the Winner's tax liability that results from winning the raffle. This prize is withheld and paid, on behalf of the Winner, directly to the IRS ($1,175.00) and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ($246.75)

To order raffle tickets at $2 each (minimum purchase 5 tickets) or to find our more, visit Celebrities For Charities.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Memphis nominated for 8 Tony Awards

Things are looking decidedly rosy for David Bryan with Memphis the musical nominated for eight Tony Awards:
  • Best Musical
  • Best Book (Joe DiPietro)
  • Best Original Score (Joe DiPietro, David Bryan)
  • Best Actor in a Musical (Chad Kimball)
  • Best Actress in a Musical (Montego Glover)
  • Best Costume Design (Paul Tazewell)
  • Best Direction of a Musical (Christopher Ashley)
  • Best Orchestrations (Daryl Waters, David Bryan)

It was reported about a week ago that Memphis is also in line to become a movie.

Congratulations Dave and good luck! :)

Glee, Daughtry and Bon Jovi

In her interview with Ellen DeGeneres on May 4 actress/singer Lea Michele (aka Rachel from Glee) says she almost hit Jon Bon Jovi with her car but "he smiled nicely" about it.

Meanwhile, Bon Jovi and Daughtry are set to reunite on American Idol's "Movie Week" on May 12. Here's a duet with Chris Daughtry from the Lost Highway tour (with "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" intro). It was Jon's birthday in Philadelphia back in 2008.

Hugh McDonald talks about his Carvin bass

That's right, the man in the shadows, long-time "unofficial" Bon Jovi bassist Huey McDonald can actually speak. :P Here he is promoting the Carvin SB series bass.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Jon Bon Jovi at Linked Against Leukemia event

Here's a video of Jon performing "Wanted Dead or Alive" at the Coty-DKMS Linked Against Leukemia Gala on April 29, 2010.



According to violinist Lorenza Ponce, "Who Says You Can't Go Home", "Livin' on a Prayer", and "Hallelujah" were the other songs played.