The Themes of These Days

I'm not going to break it down. I just wanted to say that I was 15 when it came out. It was my most anticipated release ever. Remember how Jon says he misses when you couldn't wait to get that new record into your hands, like it was a huge event? That was "These Days" for me.

I listened to it a thousand times over. It was the first album that ever moved me.

I remember hearing it for the first time thinking, wtf is this shit.

Hey God lacked a chorus.

SFTP had a solid start but falls flat after the second verse.

Unlike each real rock album prior, I had to wake myself by the 5th song. Songs like My Guitar with opening lyrics such as 'misery likes company I like the way that sounds' were just not cutting it for a 21 year old college kid who wanted to rock.

When awesome bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, STP, and Nirvanna ruled the radio, songs like Lie To Me just weren't cutting it.

Diamomd Ring was the biggest disappointment after all the hype. Worst song on the album.

However looking back at it and comparing it what we have today, I'll give it an 7. It's different, Jon was in his musical prime, and it is their most artistic album as a band.

But for an album of it's time, I give it a 3. After coming off albums such as Slippery, Jersey, and Blaze, TD was supposed to be the album that made up for Faith. After Always and Cross Roads were so successful, we wanted a real rock album by the band. TD was out of style and certain songs fell flat. I think IML was such a big hit in America because it marked the return of the real Bon Jovi. or so we thought.

What you guys in Europe are going through now is how we Americans felt in the 90s.

Wait...what?

Please tell me he's not comparing These Days with What About Now.

I never took the album as dark. They were just at an introspective place in their lives. I take the whole Jimmy Shoes thing as someone as taking it as far as he can go - trying something and being willing to fail but believing that they should try.

Seriously a suicide attempt from a SECOND story window? What is next death by paper cut? lol

He might have jumped backwards.

Sort of. Not musically but more so how the album ranked with fans, radio, and the general public.

America rejected Bon Jovi for making a soulful masterpiece. Why?

For the same reason why so many other soulful masterpieces get ignored. It's not the current trend.

So you're saying Europeans are more cultured then?