Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Hangin' with the Bongiovi kids

A couple of stories on Jon Bon Jovi's two eldest children.

Hamptons Magazine did a little interview with Stephanie, who's now 17 and working at the Blue Parrot.
Does dad have an influence on your music tastes?
I’ve always loved The Beatles; my dad had me singing to their music when I was a little kid. I even have their old vinyl records, which I still play.

What do the Bongiovi’s do together as a family activity?
Every Tuesday night, we watch Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Channel.
Read the full article here.

Meanwhile, Page Six (New York Post) reports that Jesse James got to meet NBA basketballer Dwyane Wade:
Bon Jovi drove his 15-year-old son to Southampton restaurant Madame Tong's Redeux to meet Wade at a dinner hosted by Hamptons media mogul Jason Binn. A source told us: "Jesse is a big Wade fan. He and Jon spent a lot of time talking to Wade and his girlfriend Gabrielle Union."

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Rafael strikes again: What Do You Got? A guitar!

Rafael Luz is a teenage guitarist from Brazil who shot to fame in the Bon Jovi community after recording a solo for "We Weren't Born to Follow" that inspired Richie Sambora to add his own solo to the album version of the song.

Well, Rafael's back. :) Check out his cover of Bon Jovi's latest single "What Do You Got". His version includes an extended guitar solo ending that rocks up the song a little.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

It's Hard Letting You Go live from the O2

I officially forgive The Powers That Be for releasing a completely unnecessary pro shot of "Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars" from London.... because "(It's Hard) Letting You Go" is now up on Bon Jovi's official videos page.

Watch the performance at this link.

Wanted Dead or Alive baby

In the tradition of the "Baby hates Miley Cyrus" video, here's another kid rocking out to Bon Jovi.

Friday, August 27, 2010

New single: What Do You Got - audio and lyrics

Bon Jovi's new single premiered on 95.5 PLJ today and can now be listened to on BonJovi.com. You can also get the mp3 at this link.

Here are the lyrics according to my ears... feel free to make corrections.
Everybody wants something, just a little more
We're makin' a living and what we're living for
Rich man or a poor man, a pawn or a king
You can live on the street, you can rule the whole world
But it don't mean one damn thing

What do you got if you ain't got love?
Whatever you got just ain't enough
You're walkin' a road but you're goin' nowhere
Tryin' to find your way home but there's no one there
Who do you hold in the dark of night?
You wanna give up but it's worth the fight
You can have all the things that you've been dreaming of

If you ain't got someone you're afraid to lose
Everybody needs just one someone to tell them the truth
Maybe I'm a dreamer but I still believe
I believe in hope, I believe that change can get us up off our knees

What do you got if you ain't got love?
Whatever you got just ain't enough
You're walkin' a road but you're goin' nowhere
Tryin' to find your way home but there's no one there
Who do you hold in the dark of night?
You wanna give up but it's worth the fight
You can have all the things that you've been dreaming of
If you ain't got love, it's all just keepin' score
If you ain't got love, what the hell we doin' it for?

I don't wanna have to talk about it
How many songs I gotta sing about it?
How long you gonna live without it?
Why does someone somewhere have to doubt it?
Someday you'll figure it out

What do you got if you ain't got love?
Whatever you got, it just ain't enough
You walk on that road but you're goin' nowhere
Tryin' to find your way home but there's no one there
Who do you hold in the dark of night?
You wanna give up but it's worth the fight
You can have all the things that you've been dreaming of
If you ain't got love, it's all just keepin' score
If you ain't got love, what the hell we doin' it for?

(Whoa oh oh oh) Ohh, what do you got if you ain't got love?
(Whoa oh oh oh) Ohh, what do you got if you ain't got love?
(Whoa oh oh oh) Ohh, what do you got if you ain't got love?
(Whoa oh oh oh)

More Greatest Hits (Australian) news

From the website of Australian radio station Triple M:
The special edition is a 30-song 2-CD set made up of the standard greatest hits CD and a second disc of fan faves like "Blaze Of Glory" and "Keep The Faith" and, wait for it, four new songs!
...
The new single "What Do You Got?" goes to radio tomorrow, August 28. The Greatest Hits album will be available November 5.
Looks like it might be a slightly earlier release Down Under (compared to November 9) and they've said The Ultimate Collection will have 30 tracks instead of 28... International bonus tracks? Or just inaccurate rounding? ;)

Read the full post here.

What Do You Got to debut on 95.5 PLJ

Photobucket

From the website of New York radio station 95.5 PLJ:
At 7:45am on Friday morning, Scott & Todd will have the WORLD PREMIERE of the brand new Bon Jovi single, "What Do You Got," from the greatest hits CD that hits stores on November 9th.

Tune in for the world premiere!
International IPs are blocked from listening but you can try either using a proxy to get around it or wait for someone to (hopefully) post a decent quality rip.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

New info on Greatest Hits: First single What Do You Got!

This is from Backstage JBJ:
Bon Jovi GREATEST HITS will be a 16-song single disc chock full of the band’s biggest chart-toppers including “Livin’ On A Prayer,” “Always,” “It’s My Life,” “Wanted Dead or Alive,” and “Who Says You Can’t Go Home.” Two new songs, including lead single “What Do You Got,” round out the tracklisting. “What Do You Got?” will hit radio airwaves globally at the end of August.

Bon Jovi GREATEST HITS - THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION will be a 28-song two disc edition made up of the GREATEST HITS CD from the standard edition and a second disc featuring beloved fan favorites including “Bed of Roses,” “Blood on Blood,” “These Days,” and “Keep The Faith” plus the third and fourth new tracks created for this project.

The four new songs (“The More Things Change,” “No Apologies,” “This Is Love, This Is Life” and the first single, “What Do You Got?”) were written specifically for inclusion in this compilation.

This is quite exciting... Firstly because common sense prevailed and they're releasing a career spanner and not just a post-Cross Road release... Secondly because we'll be hearing a new song very soon... and thirdly because "This Is Our House" has thankfully been left off. :P

The two-tiered approach caters to different levels of fans, which I think is a good move for a band like Bon Jovi.

Image from Facebook:

Captain Crash + I Don't Like Mondays on BonJovi.com, Greatest Hits Nov 9

As part of BonJovi.com's themed weeks:

Like the other videos and MP3s released so far, they are live cuts from the O2 arena in London.

(Sorry, about the "WHYYYY?!" earlier. I know a lot of people love "Captain Crash". Hell, so do I when it comes on. But of all the songs you could release it was one we didn't need.)

And... the new Greatest Hits album now has a release date: November 9, 2010. (Our favourite leaker, Richie Sambora called it last month but apparently it's now been confirmed on the Backstage JBJ website.)

Friday, August 20, 2010

Will Memphis live in Zac Efron?

According to Page Six, Zac Efron is reportedly keen to play the male lead in the movie adaptation of Memphis:
Insiders speculate that Efron is interested in the lead role of Huey Calhoun, a 1950s-era Memphis radio DJ played onstage by Chad Kimball.

Sources said Efron hung out with the cast during intermission and gushed over female lead Montego Glover. "When Montego came over, Efron said, 'I just can't stay away from the show,' " reports a witness.

Efron also attended the show in July on the same night he and "[High School] Musical" co-star Corbin Bleu spent $2,000 at Flashdancers.

Although there are no concrete plans yet to adapt "Memphis" for the big screen, Efron isn't the only actor in the hunt. Justin Timberlake saw the show in May, about the same time director Oliver Stone checked it out.
Read the full article here.

The Memphis the Musical blog also mentioned this story.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Dry County + Diamond Ring from London on BonJovi.com

I think I'm a little behind due to my home internet being cut off since Friday thanks to an error from the phone company. But as part of the themed weeks on BonJovi.com, "Dry County" from the O2 has been posted on the official videos page (direct link here). Live audio of "Diamond Ring" is scheduled to go up today.

EDIT: "Diamond Ring" is now up. Listen to it here, or access the mp3 directly at this link.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Wild is the Wind live audio

Obie O'Brien has released a live audio track of "Wild is the Wind" from the O2 arena as part of the Bon Jovi themed weeks on BonJovi.com. (This week is dedicated to Slippery When Wet and New Jersey).

Listen to the track here, or access the mp3 directly at this link.

Bon Jovi to play Argentina + Follow Jovi Bits!

Bon Jovi will have a date with Argentina in October:

October 3, 2010 - Bueno Aires, Argentina - Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti (River Plate Stadium)

This from BonJovi.com:
Exclusive presales for Banco Frances clients starts on August 20th by Ticketek system, phone # 5237 7200 or by internet www.ticketek.com.ar, official box offices and other retail outlets around the Country. Sales for public in general start on August 27th at the same retail outlets.
Been a long time coming, so it's great that South America is finally getting to see the band again. :)

In other announcements, one of our own, JoviBecky has a blog called Jovi Bits... and she'd love it if you checked it out and became a follower. Just click on the image below before August 20, and leave her a comment to let her know Lee-Ann (@lilkenobi) sent you. ;) Don't forget to follow the blog (there's a widget on the left hand side of the page).

Photobucket

And yes, there's obviously potentially something for me in this, but I try to help the Jovi commmunity regardless. :)

Meanwhile BonJovi.com has posted a video of "Let It Rock" from the O2 arena as part of its Bon Jovi themed weeks but it's the same vid that was released in June. Not that it isn't a good performance. ;)

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Chile concert + Love for Sale live audio + JBJ on ABC7

I can't find the link to the article on the impossible-to-navigate BonJovi.com anymore, but anyway, a tour date has been announced for Chile:

October 1, 2010 - Santiago, Chile - Estadio Nacional


Exclusive Zona Entel pre sale with 20% discount from 8 to 14 August. General Public Sale as of August 15, Zona Entel 10% discount Sold by Ticketmaster - www.ticketmaster.cl - 690 2000 and authorized sales points

It's listed on the tour page, as well as in the announcement about Backstage JBJ pre-sales for Chile, Peru and Costa Rica.

Now for the Bon Jovi themed weeks that are forcing me to actually visit that godforsaken site... :P Obie has released a live audio recording of "Love for Sale" which you can listen to here or access the mp3 directly at this link. Earlier in the week, a video of "Raise Your Hands" from the O2 was released on the Videos page.

I'm a tad confused, since I thought this week was meant to be themed around Bon Jovi and 7800 Fahrenheit, but so far we've had a song from Slippery When Wet and New Jersey. I'm not complaining about the releases themselves; just wondering why the only evidence I've seen that this week is about the first two albums is the fact that merchandise related to those eras is on special. :P

I didn't tune into the stream of Live from London, given I own it on DVD and have watched it countless times on musicMAX as well, but apparently it was a huge success.

And finally, here's an interview on ABC7 with Jon Bon Jovi ahead of the Chicago shows. Jon talks about the city of Chicago, playing live, his influences and the changing music industry, and seems to imply that he DOES want to play songs from The Circle but isn't digging the reaction he's been getting to them. (I've drafted an "open letter" of sorts about The Circle which I'll post sometime during this break in the tour).

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Damned, Dry County, Blaze, Pain, Faith, Turn the Page from Chicago

As promised, some choice videos of Bon Jovi's second night at Chicago's Soldier Field (July 31, 2010), and the final show of this North American leg.

IF LOVING YOU IS WRONG / DAMNED - The ever-emotional intro followed by a damn funky song that should be played more often. (Yes, pun so intended.)


DRY COUNTY - Jon sings an extra verse at the end! I can't really make out the words though. This is my favourite song so it'd be cool to get in Perth but given the 10:30 curfew it's probably unlikely.


BLAZE OF GLORY


SOMETHING FOR THE PAIN - I want this in Perth too but I'd settle for ANYTHING from These Days.


TURN THE PAGE (featuring Kid Rock)


And let's throw in this from the first night (July 30) too.

KEEP THE FAITH / SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL - Very cool... but am I the only person who thinks the orgy of fireworks going off on the screens look a bit odd?


The Circle Tour resumes in Mexico City on September 24, 2010.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Bon Jovi themed weeks and Wednesday movie nights

In my previous post, I asked what we were going to do during the tour hiatus. Well, the Bon Jovi camp obviously has some ideas about what we could be doing... this from BonJovi.com:

We are proud to announce exciting new features coming to BonJovi.com just for YOU this August and September - Bon Jovi Themed Weeks and Wednesday Movie Nights!

As a special thank you to Bon Jovi fans everywhere, we'll be taking you with us for the next six weeks on a journey to explore how Bon Jovi grew to be such legendary rockers, focusing on two albums per week and including rare photos, discounts on era-specific merchandise, new live videos every Monday, audio from Obie every Tuesday, and an online movie streaming every Wednesday!

We'll be starting on August 2nd with Bon Jovi's first two albums: Bon Jovi and 7800 Degree Fahrenheit. We'll post 2 exclusive music videos, unveil rare, era-specific photographs, give you discounts on era-specific merch, and to top it all off, we'll be streaming the "Bon Jovi Live From London DVD" on Wednesday, August 4th at 7:00 p.m. EDT.

Visit bonjovi.com to learn more and get started - and to get your hands on discounted merch while it lasts! You can also grab our Bon Jovi widget and add it to your personal blog, fan site, or favorite social network!

Below you will find the theme schedule for the coming weeks:

August 2-8, 2010: Bon Jovi and 7,800 Degrees Fahrenheit
Movie: "Bon Jovi Live From London" DVD

August 9-15, 2010: Slippery When Wet and New Jersey
Movie: "The Crush Tour" DVD

August 16-22, 2010: Keep The Faith and These Days
Movie: "This Left Feels Right" DVD

August 23-29, 2010: Crush and Bounce
Movie: "Lost Highway: The Concert" DVD

August 30 - September 5, 2010: Have a Nice Day and Lost Highway
Movie: "Live at Madison Square Garden" DVD

September 6-12, 2010: The Circle
Movie: "When We Were Beautiful" DVD

Be sure to check the site every day for the new content and deals starting Monday, August 2nd!
Oh great, they're going to make me actually visit that hideously designed website. :P Anyway, "Raise Your Hands" from the O2 Arena in London is currently up on the Official Videos page.

Speaking of videos, I will have some from Chicago in my next post.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Chicago night 2 set list + Blog contest winner + JBJ E! interview

This set isn't confirmed yet, as we were relying on second hand sources via Twitter, but Bon Jovi's final show of this North American leg seemed to demonstrate that the second night in a city is usually better than the first. There was no "Keep the Faith" but got "Happy Now", "Damned", "Blaze", "Something for the Pain", "Dry County" (reportedly with an additional verse) and Seger's "Turn the Page" again.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, USA - SOLDIER FIELD - JULY 31, 2010
Happy Now
We Weren't Born to Follow
You Give Love a Bad Name
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
Blaze of Glory
It's My Life
Damned / (If Loving You is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right [Luther Ingram cover]
We Got It Goin' On
Bad Medicine / Oh, Pretty Woman [Roy Orbison cover]
Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals]
Turn the Page [Bob Seger cover/ft. Kid Rock]
I'll Be There For You
Something for the Pain [acoustic]
Runaway
Work for the Working Man
Have a Nice Day
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Someday I'll Be Saturday Night

ENCORE:
Dry County
Wanted Dead or Alive
I Love This Town
Livin' on a Prayer

Videos on the BJCT blog as they come, and I'll be showcasing some on Blame It On The Love too.

The winner of the Live Before You Die blog contest was also announced on BonJovi.com... Congratulations to Katie from Louisville. You can read her winning entry at this link.

And finally, Jon Bon Jovi caught up with E! prior to the Chicago concerts...


And that's it! No Bon Jovi gigs to follow for over a month. Whatever will we do with ourselves in that time? :P