Source: Oregon Live

Jon Bon Jovi has gone from arena rock to arena football and back again. The veteran pop rocker (and co-owner of the Philadelphia Soul of the Arena Football League) and his band, Bon Jovi, return Sunday to the Rose Garden.

The New Jersey band remains commercially viable, while peers from its 1980s "hair metal" past live on past hits. Bon Jovi, which also includes guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan and drummer Tico Torres, is touring behind its ninth studio album, "Have a Nice Day," which debuted at No. 2 in September. The band's members have abandoned the teased bangs of yesteryear but still cling to anthemic rock, which helped launch their act 22 years ago.

Bon Jovi, 44, took some time recently to discuss the relevance of his band, his well-publicized side career in football and what he has sacrificed to become, and stay, a success.

You're headlining arenas and stadiums on your own, while showcasing new material.

We're proud of that. We work really hard for it. But you take the good with the bad. We've had our up years and down years. I never thought that we wouldn't be big because every kid has a chip on his shoulder about his band, but I never thought in 1984 what I would be doing in 2006.

During your salad days, your sound was pervasive. However, today it's not as typical. Fewer young American bands craft big, anthemic songs that you can sing along with.

We're just being as true to ourselves as we can possibly be. We've never strayed from what we know. Obviously, some people still like our style of music.

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