All the dates? It sucks!

You can't compare single countries with a whole continent. If you want to compare, you have to compare Europe with USA or for example New Jersey with Denmark. Europe is quite big but they only play in 6 countries. Now look in how many states of the USA they play. And this is only the first leg of the USA-tour. There are more dates to follow in the Summer (that's at least what Jon said in several interviews).

By the way, fans of classical music can always go into concerts where classical music is played.

also derek said something like the tickets are very reasonably priced and they don't make much money from industries these days... what BS... !

UK tickets were about £50 with booking fees etc - yes I know there were cheaper ones, but rather than paying more to be at the front, we were paying more to not be at the back (if you see what i'm saying) - ie in the old days the real fans tended to have little difficulty getting to the front, and the ones who were visiting out of interest came later...

£50 to see a band which is still very popular in a larger venue - economics would say that because the band are in demand they would be much cheaper especially since playing a larger venue allows for more $$$ to come walking through the door... but no! cram more people and put the price up...

it's not cheap since i have been able to see BJ 3 years ago for half that price, and ditto 96... also DP for substantially less, DIO for £15, all sorts of acts for much less than that...

trust me record sales make a lot of money too - it's a myth these days about record companies taking the majority of the profits (in BJ's case I mean anyway) - it still leaves a hell of a lot for the artists...

take a date like old trafford:

60,000 x an average of about £40 = that's 2.4 million pounds - minus ground rental and advertisiing (which sponsorpship pays for usually) and minus all sorts of other costs and the band are still making way way way over £1 million - just for ONE gig!!!

compare that to the farrenheit tour when they were still living with their parents at the end of it writing SWW demos, and at a time when they were basically paying in order to gig and were heavily in debt to record companies etc...

£1 million easily x however many similar gigs they are doing on the tour...

+ money from merchandising etc...

And I don't think it's sour grapes but more like disappointment and amazement. Disappointment because the guys are ignoring their loyal fanbases all over the globe and amazement at the drasticality (is that a word?) and suddenness of this change. Even on the Crush Tour, major markets were left out of the tour schedule... But with the OWN Tour and especially now with Bounce Tour, it's like the rest of the world beyond Japan, Germany, the UK and the U.S. suddenly don't even exist.

I have to agree with others here when they say that it is very likely that this sudden "the heck with the rest of the world, we're an AMERICAN band" attitude will eventually cost the band and make them lose some of their international fans. Sure, the die-hards (myself included) will still be there, but we're not the ones that bring in the gold/platinum awards or sell out the stadiums -- that's something the "general public" does. But only if the band will show them that they still care, that they still want other fans too than just American fans.

Exactly -- look at how big the U.S. is and how big the whole of Europe is, and compare the amount of shows. True, our venues might be bigger, but it's still not even close of being even.

And look at how many states in the U.S. are getting shows, and compare that to the number of individual countries in Europe that are getting shows. Like Sambo-Chris said, you can't compare the U.S. to some individual country here, you have to compare a single U.S. state -- or in the Tri-State area the three states -- to an individual country over here. There's no way around it -- the guys are basically slapping us in the face with the current tour schedule. If it was just Europe that is getting neglected, it might be somehow acceptable. But it's not, it's basically the entire world outside the U.S., with the exception of Japan, Germany and the UK.

And that's not sour grapes, that's just calling it the way it is. I might not use these exact same words face to face with for example Jon, but I would love to ask him why. Why does this pro-USA thing have to happen at the expense of the rest of the world?

Not necessarily. Did anyone ever stop to think that maybe the band doesn't feel the need to extensively tour anymore? They have been around for 20 years. Maybe everyone would be happy if they went back to doing 252 shows in a little over a year. Then they could go back to being at each other's throats and not speaking for years. But hey, you would get your show, right? When is it ever enough to please everybody? Never, apparently.

What is the basis for this statement? You don't know the reasons for the tour schedule, you are only speculating.

What is this fascination with Bon Jovi only wanting their American fans? They have always had an extensive tour schedule in the States, but you weren't complaining when they played in your part of the World. Why complain about it now? There are still vast parts of the US and Canada who are not getting any shows either. You've become spoiled, and now that things have changed, you are taking it personally.

That's BS. I agree with Derek. It's sour grapes, plain and simple. Since when does Bon Jovi owe you anything? You pay for the CD, you get music. You don't get a guarantee of concerts.

Again, sour grapes. Why should you be questioning the band's intentions? The tour schedule isn't much bigger (if at all) than the past few tours in the United States. They have sold out all their shows here, even though they sold less albums here than over there. If they could still tour, and be near their families, why not? Why should fan expectations be more important than their own? They're not 25 years old anymore, and their priorities have probably changed.

As far as I can tell, it is not all the dates so why all the bitching? With the last set of dates for the US it made mention of the fact that any dates announced after the one in question wouldn't be taking part in the pre-sale that was to take place a day or two after the announcement.

Why - Because they have enough money??

Touring was the reason bands like Aerosmith & BJ became so successful for so long. It is a great way of pulling in / keeping fans. By not saturating this market - they will lose many fans.

I wouldn't call it sour grapes - seeing as I live in the UK & we have 5 possible shows to go to. (4 without even crossing the water) & I also see this point of view. It is easy for PPl in the US to say, as there shows r fairly accessible for the majority of ppl. Many would be fans in scandinavia for instance won't be bothered to travel ridiculous lengths to see a show - only die hard fans will be doing this. Hence a huge amount of the potential market has just gone, just like that.

Mike

*choclady.nods.in.agreement*

*sigh*

Who's said anything about any 250 show tours? Not me. I wouldn't even want them to do that cause it would be the end of this band for sure. All I'm saying is that there is quite a big difference between 250 shows and some 56 shows or so. Even a blonde like me who totally s*cks at maths can see the difference. So there's no reason for you to get sarcastic or snappish.

All I'm hoping for is that the band would show some respect for the fans who have been there for them all this time, even when most of the U.S. fans had turned their backs on the band.

True, I don't know the reasons for their tour schedule. But I do think I have a very good basis for saying that in the long run, this whole focusing in the U.S. thing might cost them some of their international fans -- I live here, outside the U.S. I know many, many people who are very upset and hurt right now because the guys aren't coming anywhere within a reasonable travelling distance from them. And some of these people -- long-time die-hard fans -- are dealing with the situation by focusing their attention on other bands, the kind of bands that are more easily accessible to them concert-wise. They probably won't abandon Bon Jovi for good cause the music is still there and it still rocks... But when the band is taking away the chance for these people to go and experience Bon Jovi live, I really can't blame them for looking for other concert experiences to "fill the void", so to speak. And you never know, maybe those other experiences will eventually lead these people to buy less Bon Jovi records, at least as far as singles are concerned.

Also, like I said in my previous post, the longer the band will stay away from their old good markets, the more likely it is that the general public in those areas, the masses that buy the records and bring in the awards, will forget or give up on the band for good.

Are you telling me that I don't have the right to take it personally? That I shouldn't have any reason to complain because, well, "you've had your shows, now it's our turn"? Interesting.

On the one hand you're saying that they've always had extensive tour schedules in the U.S., yet on the other hand you're implying that you, too, have noticed the discrepancy between the current U.S. tour and the amount of shows outside the U.S. but that even though such a discrepancy exists, people outside the U.S. should have no reason to complain. Something in that just doesn't add up, you know.

Since when did you become such an expert in the way I feel or in the way other people might feel? You obviously can't see the difference between sour grapes and genuine disappointment...

And to add one last thing -- I don't know what other people think about this, but for me personally, none of this would feel so bad if the guys hadn't slapped us in the face with almost 40 dates in the first leg of the U.S. tour alone. If they hadn't added those 16 dates to the first leg of the U.S. tour, I would still be disappointed, yes, but I wouldn't necessarily feel as betrayed as I'm feeling now. Of course, I don't know what the upcoming months will bring along, but all marks are pointing towards one thing and one thing only -- whatever summer dates the band will be announcing, none of them will be in Europe. Or nowhere else outside the U.S. either.

i have to say, either tho they are coming the the UK, it must feel quite a slap in the face for alot of the fans in asia, south africa and so forth. sure there are tsill more dates to be added, but i cnat imagine them announcing dates in those countries out of the blue...i just feel sorry for the fans who had jovi rocking in their venues now they arent in site...im sure there are decent reasons for the band, and if they feel they cant do as many shows then fair enough, but i think Jovian is right, long term this will hurt the band unless they go to these places...i dont think its even gotta be a full leg tour, wot about an acoustic show or one off (like the moscow 89)?...a least its some sort of repay for the fan out there....bonjovi are a global band, but when u show places like india in the everyday video, and then they totally ignore the place, it kinda must feel pretty heartbreaking for those fans. i personally think they are focusing on the american scene right now, cos this is the hottest they been in their home court for how many years??.... u cant blame the boys for milking it for all its worth...have faith...

You know I feel the need to reply to this one being from Australia. Wow, I love this board. You European fans really get it don’t you

To be honest I am sick and tired of people saying the band don’t owe us anything. That is plain and simple BullS***. They owe us something - RESPECT!! I am not saying their lives, their families or anything like that, but like when everyone said the US market in the mid 90’s had let them down if it wasn’t for the international fans Bon Jovi probably wouldn’t be where they are now.

The reason that all the fans are so disappointed is because EVERY SINGLE TIME the band gets interviewed and asked about their longevity and popularity they always say “Because we go everywhere”. Well not anymore they don’t.

As for the geographical size of the US – they get 40+ shows, geez I know our population is a hell of a lot smaller but Australia is almost the same size as the US. We Oz fans would pay ANYTHING for just ONE concert in our whole country. I am sure the South Africans and South Americans would feel the same.

Bon Jovi owe us International fans a little respect back. It is us long term fans that have kept them alive, it is those new fans that will keep them alive. Bon Jovi and Touring go hand in hand that is their words not ours. They are the best live act in the world, but slowly turning into the Best Live Act in the US.

I will always listen to Bon Jovi. I will always buy their albums, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t or won’t feel let down by the band who said they would always be loyal to their fans because their fans were so loyal to them – way back when!! I think someone needs to remind them that they have fans in other places besides the US. And they make their millions from more than just the US fans. Don’t get me wrong I have made some great friends from the US who are fans and this is not personal towards the fans at all, but general towards the recent attitude of the band.

May I put on record that what the band says and what the band does are 2 very very different things these days!!!!