Tag: Jon Bon Jovi
2 Bon Jovi – What About Now (2013)
Bon Jovi has just released their 12th Album, What About Now. Those of you looking for another Slippery When Wet or New Jersey, you will have to keep looking, this album isn’t it. I can’t even call this a hard rock album, it simply is not. What About Now is more of a mainstream pop rock album.
Jon Bon Jovi’s voice is in fine form, and he sounds great, but the music is too poppy to hold my interest for very long. Bon Jovi has always been a band that has spread its wings and tried it’s hand at different musical styles. While as a hard rock album, this may be an epic fail, as a pop rock album, it isn’t too bad. The music just isn’t what I want to hear on a Bon Jovi album. I long for the hard rock style that made Bon Jovi famous. I guess the millions of dollars the band is making touring has allowed them to become a genre defying act. Good for them, bad for the hard rock fans out there.
What About Now might not be the epic disaster that the countrified clay pigeon Lost Highway was, but it still won’t hold much appeal to the hard rock fans out there. The big stadium anthems and heavy riffs of their earlier music can’t be found on the new album. That is the style of Bon Jovi music I enjoy, and for that reason I just can’t get into listening to this.
What About Now leaves me with this final thought, “What About The Rock”!? It is still okay to rock Jon! Your new album does not.
This is perhaps a shallow perspective on What About Now, but this hard rock fan probably won’t give this CD any more plays beyond today.
If you have an open mind, and are a fan of pop/rock or possibly even Christian rock, by all means, give What About Now a shot. If your taste in music leans towards the harder style of rock or heavy metal music, you will probably want to avoid this album. Tread at your own risk!
Rating: 
Out of 10
Track Listing:
1. Because We Can 
2. I’M With You
3. What About Now
4. Pictures of You
5. Amen
6. That’s What The Water Made Me
7. What’s Left of Me
8. Army of One
9. Thick as Thieves
10. Beautiful World
11. Room At The End of The World
12. The Fighter
Bon Jovi is:
Jon Bon Jovi – lead vocals, guitar
Richie Sambora – guitar, backing vocals
Hugh McDonald – bass, backing vocals
Tico Torres – drums
David Bryan – keyboards, backing vocals
2 New Video – Bon Jovi – We Weren’t Born To Follow
Check out Bon Jovi’s new video, “We Weren’t Born To Follow” below! The band’s new album, The Circle is in stores now.
Vodpod videos no longer available.
4 Bon Jovi – The Circle (2009)
When Bon Jovi released their previous album, Lost Highway, I was more than a little harsh on the band. I was not fond of band’s country direction in the least bit. I swore off Bon Jovi until they returned to playing rock music. Lucky for me,and their long time fans they have. It took a couple of years, but the band is back with a new rock album, The Circle. This album treads a fine line between pop and rock. Bon Jovi is no stranger to crafting tunes in this fashion, and they are quite good at it. Their pop metal days are long over, and if you are looking for another dose of tunes in the vein of their early material. You won’t find it here.
The opening cut, “We Weren’t Born To Follow” is more of a pop/rock tune, but it reminds me of the music that was on the 2005 CD, Have A Nice Day.
“When We Were Beautiful” has this jangly guitar tone that has an almost U2 feel to it. This song has a sing along chorus that will translate well in Bon Jovi’s live show. I must admit that this song is kind of a grower. I didn’t care for it at first, but a few repeat plays I have changed my mind.
The bass line on “Work for the Working Man” took me all the way back to Slippery When Wet. It literally sounds as if it was ripped off of the Bon Jovi classic “Livin’ On a Prayer”. With that being said, “Work for the Working Man” isn’t a bad tune, but it isn’t great either. The background vocals don’t really work for me. It just seems kind of silly.
“Superman Tonight” is another song that has some serious hit potential. The chorus is catchy and memorable. This is one of my favorites on The Circle.
The voice coder intro in the beginning of “Bullet” give the song a familiar Bon Jovi feel. Finally some heavier riffs show up in the song “Bullet”. Richie Sambora finally cuts loose a little on this tune, and I am thankful. This album needed a heavier tune, and this is it.
“Thorn in My Side” keeps the pace going well, and is one of the more rockin’ songs on this disc.
“Live Before You Die” is a story teller type of song. Bon Jovi has done a few of these songs in the past, and I have never really cared for these. This is an ok tune, and I am sure it will appeal to some folks.
Just when I was starting to get a little bored, “Brokenpromieland” comes along and makes me hit replay a couple of times. I love Sambora’s guitar tone on this song.
“Love is The Only Rule” almost sounds like a Neil Diamond tune with some heavier riffs. Every time I hear this tune, Jon Bon Jovi’s vocal delivery reminds me of that for some reason. The funny thing is, it works for the most part.
Is it just me, or does “Fast Cars” sound like a Coldplay tune? The keyboards and guitar tone sound more like that band than a Bon Jovi tune. I didn’t really care for this tune very much.
The Circle will be in stores tomorrow. Is it worth picking up? While I don’t think this is the best Bon Jovi album, it is far from their worst. The production from John Shanks is top notch, but the album could have used a few heavier moments. If you are looking for the big monster pop metal rockers like the band used to put out in the eighties and early nineties, you aren’t going to find them on The Circle. This is a solid pop rock album with a few hard edges here and there.
Rating: 
Out of 10
Track Listing:
1. We Weren’t Born to Follow
2. When We Were Beautiful
3. Work for the Working Man
4. Superman Tonight
5. Bullet
6. Thorn in My Side
7. Live Before You Die
8. Brokenpromiseland
9. Love’s the Only Rule
10. Fast Cars
11. Happy Now
12. Learn to Love
Bon Jovi is:
Jon Bon Jovi – lead vocals
Richie Sambora – guitars, backing vocals
Tico Torres – drums, percussion
David Bryan – keyboards, piano
Hugh McDonald – bass
Charlie Judge – additional keyboards and strings
3 Dead dolphin surfaces outside Jon Bon Jovi’s house
A family of dolphins has been living on a prayer for months in two New Jersey rivers — and now the sixth of them has floated belly-up outside Jon Bovi’s house.
It was the third to surface in the past two weeks, of an original family of 16 that spent several months in the cold waters of the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers.
It turned up outside the Jersey rocker’s Middletown home in the Navesink.
0 Jon Bon Jovi’s Philanthropic Efforts to be Honored at Food Bank For New York City’s Sixth Annual Can-Do Awards Dinner
Chef/Author Mario Batali and Susan Cahn Co-Chair
Food Bank For New York City — which provides 300,000 free meals a day to New Yorkers in need — announced today it will honor iconic musician and philanthropist, Jon Bon Jovi, for his philanthropic efforts at the organizations Sixth Annual Can-Do Awards Dinner on Tuesday, April 21, at Abigail Kirsch’s Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers on the Hudson River. Co-chairing the dinner is Chef/Author Mario Batali and his wife Susan Cahn. The evening will include cocktails followed by dinner, awards, a live auction and yet-to-be announced musical performances. Previous Can-Do honorees include the Edge of U2, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michael Stipe, Helena Christensen, Mario Batali and Stanley Tucci.
Self-reliance, optimism and community are key concepts Jon Bon Jovi refers to, not just in his music, but also when articulating his desire to aid Americans without affordable housing, job training, counseling and other such services. These concepts are a common thread among all the charities, corporations, and private donors that he has united in unique partnerships over the past several years. Jon Bon Jovi’s on-going support for local, national and international organizations has resulted in millions of dollars raised while bringing heightened awareness to the issues that adversely impact humanity.
Some of Jon Bon Jovi’s notable charitable works include the Habitat for Humanity; Kenneth Cole’s RSVP to Help campaign, as well as the launch of a limited edition outerwear collection with Kenneth Cole New York with proceeds benefiting HELP USA; Project HOME in Philadelphia, and of course his own Philadelphia Soul Charitable Foundation. Founded in 2006, the Philadelphia Soul Charitable Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing about positive change and helping the lives of those in need “one Soul at a time.” The Philadelphia Soul Charitable Foundation exists to combat issues that force families and individuals into economic despair with programs and partnerships targeted at breaking the cycle of poverty and homelessness. Through 2008, Jon Bon Jovi and the Soul Foundation have provided funding to provide 140 units of affordable housing for low-income individuals and families.
As a result of his efforts, Jon Bon Jovi and his foundation were recently honored at the 2008 Billboard Touring Awards with the Humanitarian Award, which recognizes the philanthropic efforts of a touring professional, and named 2008 Sponsor of the Year by Habitat For Humanity Detroit, in recognition of his many outstanding contributions to HFH Detroit and its mission of providing a simple, decent place to live. Additionally, he recently performed “A Change Is Gonna Come” duet with Bettye LaVette on the Lincoln Memorial steps at the “We Are One” Obama Inauguration Concert in Washington, DC, and was the featured performer at the Commander in Chief Inaugural Ball.
The Can-Do Awards Dinner is instrumental in helping to provide support for the 1.3 million New Yorkers who rely on soup kitchens and food pantries to survive. Every dollar donated to the Food Bank provides five meals. This is a pivotal year for the Can-Do Gala as the recession deepens and unemployment continues to rise. Already the level of need has reached crisis proportions. The number of New York City residents having difficulty affording needed food has spiked to nearly 4 million — doubling from approximately 2 million in 2003 — representing almost half of all New York City residents.
“Jon Bon Jovi has demonstrated an uncommon commitment to ending hunger. We applaud his passion, his compassion and his generosity of spirit,” said Dr. Lucy Cabrera, President and CEO of the Food Bank For New York City. “These are dark days. Never in the history of the Food Bank have we seen so many New Yorkers struggling to put food on the table, a trend we anticipate will worsen in the coming year. We could not do what we do without the support of people like Jon who continuously say, I ‘Can Do.’ His presence here tonight will certainly insure that many more New Yorkers will truly ‘Have A Nice Day’.”
Food Bank For New York City recognizes 26 years as the city’s major provider of food to New Yorkers in need. The organization works to end food poverty and increase access to affordable, nutritious food for low-income New Yorkers through a range of programs and services that focus on food sourcing and distribution, education and nutrition, financial empowerment, disaster relief, policy and research.
Food Bank For New York City sources and distributes food to more than 1,000 food assistance programs, assisting the approximately 1.3 million New Yorkers who access emergency food. The Food Bank provides food safety, networking and capacity-building workshops; manages nutrition education programs for schools, after-school and emergency food programs; operates food stamp outreach and education programs; operates senior programs, a soup kitchen and food pantry; coordinates the largest civilian Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program in the country; and develops policy and conducts research to inform community and government efforts to end food poverty throughout New York City. For every dollar donated to the Food Bank, 96 cents goes toward food acquisition, distribution and programs. For additional information, visit www.foodbanknyc.org
Tickets start at $500 and can be purchased by calling 212.249.6188 or by emailing benefitoffice@foodbanknyc.org.
Website: http://www.foodbanknyc.org/
25 Bon Jovi – Lost Highway (2007)
Some CD’s should come with yellow and black warning labels that say, “Play at your own Risk!”
Lost Highway is the CD that I knew I would have trouble listening to. The band has thrown away their hard rock sound, for a pop rock / country hybrid that sounds nothing like their past CD’s.
I found this CD completely devoid of the great hooks that Bon Jovi has been known for. If anything Lost Highway is a boring sellout that will probably be played to death on multiple radio formats. If Bon Jovi continues down this musical highway, I doubt they will be covered at the Hard Rock Hideout any longer.
Judging from the 63 used copies that I saw at Amazon today, Bon Jovi fans are discarding this disc faster than Mercury Nashville can print them.
There is one song that almost sounds like old Bon Jovi. If you listen to one song, play We Got It Going On. Load that song on your hard drive, then take the CD outside, and use it for a Clay Pigeon. You will get more enjoyment out of it that way.
The song Make a Memory is getting massive amounts of play on the radio right now, and has hit #1 on VH1’s Top 20 countdown.
I just don’t get it. I find this song, and disc boring. It is hard for me to believe that this is the same band that put out Slippery When Wet. If I was the guitar player, I think I would find myself in rehab. I would have drink myself into a coma, if I had to play these incredibly monotonous tunes.
Don’t waste your money on this CD. There are far better discs out there than this one.
Rating: 
Out of 10
Track Listing:
1. Lost Highway
2. Summertime
3. Make a Memory
4. Whole Lot Of Leaving
5. We Got It Going On
6. Any Other Day
7. Seat Next To You
8. Everybody’s Broken
9. Stranger (feat. Leann Rimes)
10. The Last Night
11. One Step Closer
12. I Love This Town
Bon Jovi is:
Jon Bon Jovi – lead vocals, acoustic guitar,
Richie Sambora – guitars, backup vocals
Tico Torres – drums, percussion
David Bryan – keyboards, piano, backup vocals
Hugh McDonald – bass, backup vocals
