Great article in the Bergen Record. He did an interview with Richie.

http://www.bergenrecord.com/page.php...VFeXk2MzM4Nzk3
Bon Jovi succeeds by living life, every day

Sunday, February 9, 2003

By BRIAN ABERBACK
Staff Writer



Guitarist Richie Sambora says Bon Jovi hasn't changed much since the band formed 20 years ago this month.

Some may scoff at such a notion. After all, Bon Jovi has sold nearly 100 million albums worldwide over the past two decades and continues to sell out arenas and stadiums while most of its Eighties peers are lucky to pack a nightclub. And after kicking off the National Football League season last September with a live, televised performance from Times Square, the band performed at this year's Super Bowl.

But Sambora says today's Bon Jovi is essentially the same group of New Jersey guys who set out to write fun, catchy, positive rock songs. Fifteen years ago, the band mirrored its own struggles and hopes in "Livin' on a Prayer." On recent hits, "It's My Life" and "Everyday," group leader Jon Bon Jovi sings about self-determination and seizing the day, no matter what your status in life. The times may have changed, Sambora says, but the message has stayed the same.

"We've always had the threads of optimism run through our songs," Sambora said by phone from his California home; he switched coasts after marrying actress Heather Locklear in 1994. "How could we not? We're a bunch of kids from New Jersey. I grew up in Woodbridge on a dead-end street next to a swamp and now I'm married to Heather Locklear and in one of the biggest rock-and-roll bands in the world."

The "kids," now in their 40s, play two sold-out shows at Continental Arena Monday and Tuesday supporting Bon Jovi's latest album, "Bounce."

The group's continuing success is remarkable. Bon Jovi, which also includes keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, and touring bassist Hugh McDonald, rose to stardom in 1986 during the hair-band craze. Jon Bon Jovi's teased coif and pinup looks, and the band's rock anthems and power ballads propelled the band's breakout album, "Slippery When Wet," to sales of 12 million.

While Bon Jovi's positive attitude endeared the band to its fans, the group also became poster boys for all that was wrong with good-time party rock. All style, no substance, the critics said. When the party ended, Bon Jovi would be forgotten, those same critics said.

The band, however, wasn't listening.

"We were never a critics' band," said Sambora, 43. "We were always a people's band. It can hurt you if you start paying too much attention [to critics]. You can start believing what they're saying instead of what's in your heart."

By 1992, the grunge explosion and its themes of anger, alienation, and emptiness had sounded the death knell for most hair bands, several of whom made embarrassing attempts to adapt to the new style. Bon Jovi stuck to its guns and released "Keep the Faith," which went platinum.

So why has Bon Jovi been able to keep its fans, and gain new ones, while so many contemporaries - Poison, Cinderella, and Ratt, to name a few -failed? Sambora said people simply like hearing upbeat, melodic rockers and ballads. More importantly, he said, the band's almost constant touring has kept its music in front of the people.

Even a five-year hiatus didn't diminish the group's popularity. Following the break, during which Jon Bon Jovi launched an acting career, the band released "Crush" in 2000. Buoyed by the smash single "It's My Life," the album was the year's surprise hit.

Bon Jovi rode the momentum of "Crush" and released "Bounce," its eighth studio album, in October. It entered the Billboard charts at No. 2.

Three new songs - "Everyday," "Bounce," and "Undivided" - are inspired by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Being a New Jersey band, Bon Jovi couldn't help but address the tragedy, Sambora said. Jon Bon Jovi lives in Middletown, one of the communities hardest hit.

Rather than directly explore the pain and emotions people felt after the attack, as fellow New Jersey native Bruce Springsteen did on his album "The Rising," Bon Jovi wrote about Americans' unity and resiliency.

"We didn't want to go right at it," Sambora said. "We were already writing before Sept. 11 and we planned to make an optimistic rock-and-roll record. We probably wrote a good eight songs [that didn't make the album] where we hit Sept. 11 right on the head, but I think we wrote them to get them out of our system."

Besides touring for "Bounce," Sambora said Bon Jovi has a couple of events planned to celebrate its 20th anniversary. The band plans to release a box set of rarities and unreleased material late this year or early in 2004, and an acoustic concert recorded in Japan last month may also be released. He said fans can expect a 20th anniversary show at Giants Stadium this summer; the band signed its first record deal in July 1983.

One of the few achievements Bon Jovi hasn't accomplished during its career is winning a Grammy Award, but that could soon change. "Everyday" is nominated this year for best pop vocal performance by a group or duo. The Grammy Awards will be presented Feb. 23 at Madison Square Garden.

Sambora said he'd love to win a Grammy, but you won't find him moping if he doesn't. After all, a hard-working guy from Jersey isn't about to worry whom the critics think is No. 1.

"Sure it'd be nice to win," Sambora said. "Can I say I'm hanging my hat on it? No. What's important to me is that people enjoy the music that we make and that there's people in the concert seats. That's what makes us happy, because we want to continue to play music."

Brian Aberback's e-mail address is aberback@northjersey.com