Lost Highway Appreciation

True. I was always undecided about especially "Whole Lot Of Leaving". At some points I enjoyed it, as I was in the certain mood, other times I just thought the songwriting was really poor on it. A week before "The Circle" came out, I listened to it again. I usually do it before the release of a new album that I go back in time and listen to the previous albums. And guess what - I liked it. (I never hated it anyway, not even disliked it like many other people, I just thought it wasn't as good as other albums). Especially "Whole Lot Of Leaving" was really good suddenly. I totally understood the lyrics, maybe for the first time. I mean, I had always understood the words, but not the meaning. I always thought it's poor as it doesn't really cover the subject of Richie's divorce, death of his father etc. But now... well, I got it. It fits. It's good. Live it was quite boring though, what didn't help it either.

Then I saw the MSG DVD, and the song rocks! It come across really well, and I highly enojoyed it. It sounded mighty and strong, so actually now I've become a fan of it. Took me only two years, lol.

I really like the first half of LOST HIGHWAY. "Make A Memory" reminded me so much why I'm a fan of this band. It was not a cheesy love ballad, it was pure and from the heart, and when I recall an interview it was the first song they wrote in that sessions. It caught me emotionally, and while the video sucked, the lyrical content blew me away. To me, it's about Jon & Richie, or any other 2 friends, that come back together after a fight. Something I can relate to.

"Lost Highway" is a classic BJ track to me, "We Got It Going On" works well as a fun song and was a live highight. "Any Other Day" is a bit overrated here, but it's a good song with a nice atmosphere.

The second half of the album contains one of the worst BJ songs ever: "Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore", and some weaker songs that just feel crafted, like "One Step Closer". I actually like "Everybody's Broken", but taken away from the album it wouldn't work. And I have to admit, I quite like "I Love This Town" at times.

"The Circle" clearly is better. But I can still enjoy LH for what it is... a nice unspectacular Bon Jovi album that has a lot less country influence than some people tend to think. Oh, the bonus tracks are good. Jon said "Lonely" didn't end up on the album, as it was to similar to "Memory". But it would have made the album so much better.

you know, while it might not be all that spectaular of an album, it's one of my favorite "driving cds". It's one of those that if you're on a long road trip, pop in the cd and the drive is suddenly a lot easier. I think it helps that it came out while I was living 450 miles from home. I've done a LOT of driving in the past few years. And LH is always by my side

Honestly, with mp3 players and hookups to sterios and stuff now, my car is the only place I really listen to cds. I love going down an interstate singing LH and WGIGO. Even ILTT is awesome in that respect. This is also probably why the slower songs never made as much of an impression on me - they aren't my first choice when driving ^_^.

Granted, it will take a LOT for any album to ever knock Duran Duran's "Wedding Album" off the top of my driving cd list...but LH is definitly up there!

I can take Lost Highway for what it is. It was a bit of an experiment made at a very difficult time in the band's history and the songs reflect all of that. It's solid start to finish but it's just solid, it's nothing spectacular. I kind of respect it more and am willing to accept it more after having seen When We Were Beautiful. You get the impression that Jon wasn't dying to make this record and it was more an exercise to help Richie, which I totally respect.

The album flows well, I think. It's true that the first half is superior to the second half but the album does have a nice consistent feel and the themes addressed throughout the album are very real and very human. They're not big themes like The Circle, they're personal and intimate.

LOST HIGHWAY is a very good song. It lacks a bit of power but it's nice. SUMMERTIME is a cool, fun summer song.
MAKE A MEMORY is a classic. That does stand as one of the best Bon Jovi songs.
WHOLE LOT OF LEAVING is superb as well.
WE GOT IT GOING ON is dreadful yet great. It's ****ing awesome live and that's ok. Like Bad Medicine in that way. I'm very relieved it didn't produce a replica on The Circle. I heard This is Our House at a Patriots game which obviously is a replica (and from what I heard sounded very cool) but doesn't belong anywhere near The Circle.
ANY OTHER DAY is another classic.
SEAT NEXT TO YOU is nice.
EVERYBODY'S BROKEN is nice.
TIL WE AINT STRANGERS, I actually love. It reminds completely of Jon's writing on Destination Anywhere and I'm delighted we have it. Wish LeAnn wasn't on it, even though she does sing it well.
THE LAST NIGHT is an excellent song.
ONE STEP CLOSER is nice.
I LOVE THIS TOWN is another one I like and I think it's much better then most people on this board would have you believe.

All in all, it's nice, and that's its problem. Its not ambitious really and The Circle just shows what the band is capable of when Richie is actually there working and Jon has something to write and sing about that really means something to him. I'd rank Lost Highway above the first two records but not above or close to any other record.

What you can't take away from Lost Highway is that it marked the return of the solo's. Virtually every song bar two I think has a proper solo and some have more then one.

Before jumping into the Circle, this is a fine topic to stress my personal opinion that Lost Highway is a very great record. Not the greatest BJ album, but with a couple of great songs on it, i rank it a lot higher than Bounce and even Have a Nice day.

Lost Highway, Make a memory, Whole lot of leaving and Any other day are really top songs, totally different that any other bon jovi songs.

Even summertime, we got it going on and till we ain't strangers and l love this town are decent songs. Lost Highway has been hundreds of times in my car and in my ears.

I feel bitter that this album is going to be forgotten by everyone, once the circle era will break lose. Even the band, though proud of the album, won't play many of the songs again because they know most people aren't fond of the record.

The circle seems to be a lot more spectacular overall but Lost Highway will remain at close distance

As a whole album I prefer it to Bounce, HAND and probaly even Crush.

I think it's probably their worst album of this century, but I love them all and they're all of fairly high quality.

the problem is that nearly every song follows the same structure, and to start with I had problems telling the songs apart. I love it now, though, and it's grown on me. I applaud them for trying something different.

Make a Memory is by far the bright spot on the album.
Did not think much of this at first but time changed that, I just think it was a shame it did not get much airplay as it could have done really well as a single - not country at all really.
WLOL & WGIGO are cool. LH is good. And ILTT has grown on me heaps.

I put it on when I want something a little laid back - for rock I put on Slippery!

Today I listened to the audio track from that Chicago concert in my car, where they played the album in its entirety. When the DVD came out I remember that it helped me to appreciate it more. I really enjoyed it today, even "Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore", and just a few comments up I called this one of the worst BJ songs ever. Ok, it ain't that bad.

The album has a good flow, I like the mood it creates. Some songs are just too simple, almost crafted. First time I heard "Summertime" I was quite aroused, thinking: How low could they get? Once you get over that, it's just a fun song - nothing more. So today I can take LH for what it is, and I really like it. It will never really compete with the other efforts of the decade though.

My appreciation for Lost Highway extends only as far as to serve as a coffe coaster on my very nice coffee table.

I've generally liked it since I got it- I was happy to hear something a bit different. MAM is one of my favourite songs ever actually.

I do wonder what is the most unpopular with fans though- LH or TLFR???