Source: Richmond Times Dispatch

The numbers are staggering: more than 120 million albums sold worldwide and 19 Top 40 singles during a 25-year career.

Bon Jovi is a success machine, no doubt, even though the group is frequently criticized for crafting mass-market pop/rock songs with big, throaty choruses and little substance.

That's a claim the band members would greet with a collective shrug.

Who says you can't go home? they asked on their recent country smash. Well, who says you can't maintain a thriving career by appealing to people's commercial sensibilities?

The Jersey boys' double-decade career — making them one of a dwindling crop of genuine rock stars who can still sell out stadiums — is proof that they continue to tap into their fans' psyche.

"Lost Highway," the band's 10th studio album, released last summer, tried to capitalize on the frequent crossovers between the country and pop charts and maintain the momentum from 2006's Grammy-winning duet with Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles, "Who Says You Can't Go Home."

"Lost Highway" became the first of the band's career to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart and was certified platinum earlier this month.

Last week, the band launched the companion tour in Omaha, Neb., trotting out a blend of early hits ("Runaway"), fan-adored album cuts ("Blood on Blood") and country-tinged tunes from the current album ("I Love This Town").

A few days before the tour kickoff, members Richie Sambora (guitar), David Bryan (keyboards) and Tico Torres (drums) chatted with reporters about what else is going on in Jovi-land.

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