Why Bon Jovi doesn't rock anymore.

You know Seb...I don't always agree with what you write...but that is spot on. And for folk here who often ask why you say what you say [and that includes me], this explains very well why you feel like you do. You are not alone with these thoughts/opinions....I LOVE KTF...it is, by a country mile, my fav album by anyone, These Days running a close second. I've often thought, especially since Bounce, why do they play the same damn songs night after night...then I read a JBJ A to a Q at Elements asking about the setlists...A: I don't play things I don't like [or words to that effect]...then this time round he makes a comment about hoping RS and Dave will get some new material [jokes]...I assume it was a tongue in cheek thing, but I laughed out loud when I read it, cause man, if there's one person in the band who needs to get new material, it's Jon.
I don't know if they are just in it for $ now...I tend towards no, but that may be becuase of how big a part of my life their music has been...but I definitely feel as though there is a fair amount of 'going through the motions' happening.
My daughters, all of whom have loved the band in varying degrees over the years, say it better than me....the songs on KTF/TD - to them they were songs from the soul of the songwriters and told a story...most had a beginning, middle and end...to them Crush [with the exception of Just Older..a song they all really like] and Bounce is like kindy stuff...to predictable...to young...they all were hoping for a furthering of the maturity being shown on TD..but it didn't come.

From what I read here, from the snippet of LMS [which is WAY better than HAND...I don't get how/who/why they release the singles as they do...this should IMHO, be released first], from what I've heard elsewhere...it seems that this album is harking back to the TD era musically/lyrically...I wait for it's release with anticipation [albeit a little nervously]

Great read Seb.

Sharon

Brooke...you're hubby and mine must have similar thought patterns...precisely what he thinks will happen too.

S.

I took time to read all that and agree with many points--especially that they're on autopilot onstage. Jon says the same things, Richie plays the same solos, so the shows run like a well oiled machine and it looses the spontaneous excitement of an act that really does change things nightly. You expect some similarities because things that work tend to get repeated, but you also expect some creativity to happen each night. If they're having a great time it will reach the audience.

I've never left a Bon Jovi show without feeling happy, excited, and like I just witnessed something great--except the 2nd night at Borgata '03 when I was too sick to stand up and it really had nothing to do with the band. If you only go to a show or two, the machine works. It's when you get into bootlegs and realize how repetitive everything ist hat you start to feel like, "been there, done that."

I can't agree that Bon Jovi have ever been a hard-edge rock band like Velvet Revolver, Guns and Roses, Nickelback, or Metallica (none of whom I've been able to see in concert, so I can only compare CDs). I can not see lumping NJ and SWW in with AFD or Contraband. Bon Jovi has always been more mid/up tempo. The pace is not the same for those old albums and bands. Bon Jovi's moments of powerfully hard driving songs have been rare. They've never had huge blistering solos, with few execptions. There are a few powerchords here and there and a long solo on two songs. Most of their songs from Bon Jovi on through the box set are just rock and roll, not too hard, not too soft. They're pretty straightforward.

I do hope they've moved beyond recording ballads for the sake of thinking they'll have a hit. Their ballads since 2000 have been horrible. I can't even listen to them anymore. The more I listened the worse they got. LOL I have a good feeling that people will be pleased with this CD if they listen to it with an open mind. If they go in already decided that they don't like it, then they won't like it. I think Bon Jovi have realized that the fans know the difference between songs they mean and songs they record because they think they have to. The fans aren't stupid enough to fall for All About Loving You when the band won't even play it live. I sincerely hope there's not a song on the CD that they wouldn't love to play live. If they love the songs, it will come through to us

Becky

Once again Seb being a self important arse tryign to pass of subjective opinion as fact.

Who cares if it's rock or not anyways? You spend enough time taking the piss out of certain people on this board who try to live rock n roll. Seriously though, Alice Cooper plays golf, you'd rip Jon to shreds for that, the Scorpions were a joke in the 80's, they're just an old joke now. add to the fact you're moaning at the bands new material. What exactly have Mr Cooper and the Scorpions contributed to music in the past 15 years?

Paul Simon isn't rock, Mozart wasn't rock, James Brown isn't rock. Doesn't mean they can't be good artists.

It's all very juvenile and high school: britney sucks, no she doesn't oasis sucks, no they don't you're dance crap sucks, no they don't nirvana sucks. who the **** cares when it gets down to it? you apparently.

I don't think it has anything to do with how many shows one sees or how many bootlegs one has.

If you go and see other bands perform and if you are truly honest about performance, you'll agree that there a lot of artists out there putting on much better shows than the band that claims to 'still rock live'.

I'd say it works if you only watch one show per tour, don't or barely see other bands, and/or if you really just care about Jon's ass.

It's hard to see other bands often when your nearest city is Jackson. At the same time, of all the acts I have seen, Bon Jovi is one of the best. They put on a better show than almost all the other acts I have seen (including Kid Rock, Aerosmith, Motley Crue, Poison, Warrant, Prince).

I watch one show per tour, and it works fine for me.

Maybe my standards are just very low

but YOU do see oodles of bands, despite your remote location.

For the record, I have seen BJ live twice! Once they were incredible (NJ) and the other time they were exactly like I've seen them on video performances - down to the same phrases (Bounce). Not saying they are bad, just not the best

I can't believe you think BJ puts on a better show than Aerosmith or Motley Crue (which I assume you saw in the 80s when they still rocked).

Don't get me wrong, I thought Aerosmith was great, but they didn't have the same magic as Bon Jovi. Steven Tyler is phenomenal though. Prince was great. He's quite a singer and musician. Motley Crue was nothing special. I saw them in the early 90's. I've seen Warrant 5 times with different lineups. Jani Lane is a great rock vocalist and he's good about getting out into the crowd and involving people. I loved Kid Rock too... but again, he wasn't as good as Bon Jovi. There are few shows I leave thinking, "Well that sucked." I love all kinds of music and I LOVE concerts. There's still something that sets Bon Jovi apart and makes me want to see them over and over again. They make me feel the music in a way almost no one else does.

Seb makes alot of good points especially about them being in auto-pilot, but I wish he could find one positive thing to say about this bloody band.
He's obviously gone beyond the point of finding anything that agrees with him, so why not call it a day and leave the rest of us to carry on getting some enjoyment from the band?!