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28 May 2003 - Vienna, Austria Concert Review 30 May 2003
The "longtime lucky charm" of Bon Jovi rules the Ernst Happel Stadium again

A review by Gabor.

The May 28th Bon Jovi concert in the Ernst Happel Stadium might have closed the best two weeks of my life, because I saw my two fave artists, Paul McCartney (Budapest, May 15th) and BJ again, now in two weeks time! It won't get any better than this!
I've seen BJ in Budapest, 1996 and Vienna, 2001, but the Bon Jovi show yesterday in Vienna was the best one without a doubt. The Budapest show was too short and only consisted of hit singles, and there were sound volume problems at the otherwise fantastic Vienna 2001 gig. But now everything was perfect: it was a long show (more than 2 and a half hours)with great setlist, good sound volume and light & laser tecnique.
The supporting act, Live, who started after 19:00, was nothing special. But when Jon, Richie, Dave, Tico and Hugh appeared on the stage at 20:30, there was standing ovation for them. Bounce, the It's-my-life-wannabe title track of the new album was the opening song of Bon Jovi's set. I have to admit that I'm not too keen on the studio version, but it kicked ass live. Livin' On A Prayer, the great classic was the 4th played song and it really made the crowd go wild. I looked around in the seating areas of the stadium and from 6-year-old kids to 60-year-old grandpas everybody was standing. The case was the same for almost every following song. Seeing 50 thousand lighters during Wanted Dead Or Alive was also a moment I will never forget. It's My Life was another highlight, of course. Richie's version of I'll Be There For You (my fave BJ song) was great, but I hope that I will finally have the chance to hear it from Jon on the next tour. The only minor disappointment was The Distance - it's a very good song, but the live version sounded weird. Jon's vocals and Richie's guitar sounded like two different songs played at the same time.
The encores were not quite like they are written here: Blaze Of Glory and In These Arms were in the first encore and NOT in the base show, all the other encore songs were in the second encore. In These Arms was another crowd-pleaser, Jon's voice was especially strong here. Talking about Captain Crash, I don't understand the people on the messae board who state that the audience doesn't like this song. A lot of people sang the lyrics and even those who didn't know the words did the famous left - right handwaving that was seen on The Crush Tour DVD as well. I think that the very last two songs were unplanned. Twist & Shout brought a little Beatles feeling (although the song itself was not a Beatles one, they just covered it) and These Days sounded good, too, with another passionate Jon performance.
What else? Dear Jon, Richie, Dave, Tico and Hugh - thanks for this incredible show! I can't wait to see & hear you again! And I'd really like to see a Budapest date next time, I think I deserve it!!!:)But I'm willing to travel to Vienna for it anyway, a BJ concert is worth it!

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