O2 residency ends - JTers overall opinions

Originally Posted by Bounce7800

But I dont think the music has gone stale like with The Circle as its a great record, and vocally Jon is in better shape than ever and Richie has sorted out his problems so I would see no reason to. Unless it means a Richie solo album and tour of course...

Originally Posted by sambora_gal

damn it i think most of you are so fricken critical!!! what's happened to you guys? the band obviously can't please everyone with their setlist choice nor with the direction their music takes. I'm sure if they kept their style from 80's or early 90's they wouldn't be relevant or popular anymore and you guys would be whinging once again. just take it for what it is, the band are doing so well as one of the last standing of their time. and enjoy the damn shows that you're so lucky to attend!

Originally Posted by Beaky

I don't do meet-ups and I don't post much but I truly think that what you guys have here is something amazing that transcends the band and merely utilises the love of their music as a reason to come together and share experiences without the heirarchy bullshit that seems to stench up the fanclub. I may well not go to another Jovi show, especially if the ticket prices for the UK next year are anything like Oz but I will continue to check in here and see what everyone's up to.

Keep The Faith (because the alternative is pretty miserable!)

Originally Posted by p34semm

I suppose we have all become a bit picky. If Kiss played the o2 for 10 nights you would get the same songs for 10 nights!

Originally Posted by Beaky

I completely agree, they can't please everyone. I also agree with Dawn's point that Jon was probably always like this, I just never saw it when he was young, vibrant and singing songs like 'Hey God', 'Always' and 'Never Say Goodbye' most nights rather than 'Crash' and 'I Love This Town'.

The only point you make SG, that I don't agree with is that I would be whinging if they continued to write music like SWW, KTF or NJ. I would be ecstatic. I am in a vast minority here in saying that when they tried to get back to genuine storytelling with the Bounce album it was panned by most critics and fans. This is, in my opimion, due to the fact that their fanbase had changed so much from leather clad rockers who saw them at Donnington in 86 and followed them through to Milton Keynes in 93 to a new generation who fell in love with Bed Of Roses or It's My Life. There is nothing wrong with that, they have evolved and their fanbase evolves with them. There is no badge of honour I'm searching for here, I am not saying I am special because I prefer their old material, I am just wondering if it's enough for me anymore.

The real reason I wrote on here is because this is such a diverse board that I follow on a daily basis and there are so many differing and colouful opinions and everyone is encouraged to share. I don't do meet-ups and I don't post much but I truly think that what you guys have here is something amazing that transcends the band and merely utilises the love of their music as a reason to come together and share experiences without the heirarchy bullshit that seems to stench up the fanclub. I may well not go to another Jovi show, especially if the ticket prices for the UK next year are anything like Oz but I will continue to check in here and see what everyone's up to.

Keep The Faith (because the alternative is pretty miserable!)

Originally Posted by Walkerboy

I think for me, from reading comments up to the end of Page 3, the moral of the story is simple:

Don't go to so many shows!!!

The more you go to, the more you start to compare things against each other, and ultimately you will start to pick it to pieces and find a fault in everything. This will range from ticket prices, to set lists, to errors during songs - the result being that you won't be happy.

For me personally, I rate the show I went to on the 19th as the best I've seen them since Wembley in 2000. That run covers the following:
Milton Keynes 2001 - my mind was elsewhere most of that day
Shepherds Bush 2002
Wolverhampton 2003
Milton Keynes 2006
O2 2007
Twickenham 2008

There was a huge amount of energy and fun within the band, which was probably sourced from not actually having to tour as such. Keeping in a fixed location allowed for better "R&R", and I'm sure having their families around throughout most of this residency also boosted morale.
Maybe I just got lucky with the 19th in terms of the songs that were brought back out of the woodwork. Sure, I'm gutted not to have had These Days or Dry County, but I've become accustomed to that.
Also, one of the two songs I hate the most, Bad Medicine, was a highlight of the set list that night. I absolutely LOVED it, and to get a double jukebox, including Paint it Black was amazing.
Great to get Something To Believe In, but littered with errors from John, Richie & Hugh.

Maybe it's because we had amazing seats that night..... I'm one of those who has found out that once you've been down at the front, nothing else will ever compare. Yes, we paid a ridiculous amount of money for those seats, but it was our anniversary of meeting just a few days before so it was a one off.
Also, because of the family situation, the opportunity to be down at the front for a stadium show is non-existent so you take the chance when you get it.
We sat in 110 on Friday night and it just wasn't the same, possibly because we were surrounded by people who got the £5 deal for the hell of it, or because we were more focused on the kids.

There are highlights to those two nights which have nothing to do with the show:
1) My wife's face when we got to our seats on the 19th, and then the tears as they came out on stage.
2) My 6 year old daughter's face and excitement on Friday night when the lights went out and the screen came down.

Very few things can bring that kind of happiness to a person!!!

We know someone who went to practically all the shows, and openly admits that she hated the set on Monday 14th and sat down throughout. She's a fanclub member and practically stalks the band when they are over here.
I guess some nights really were better/worse than others.

I guess what I'm saying is that everyone will have their own opinions of the residency and no-one can judge whether those opinions are right or wrong.
Everyone will take different aspects of a show to judge it on.

Every time we go to a show we say "that's it, no more, we've done our bit" yet, every time we go back.
Since 2000 I've always viewed the shows with disappointment, always thinking that maybe next time it will be better.
This is the first time I can actually say it was better that the previous show.

We will go again when they come back next year, and we will take our daughter. After all, surely outside it has to be cooler than inside (especially if they return to Milton Keynes), so she's less likely to nearly pass out!

Thank you Jon, Richie, Tico, Dave & Hugh for restoring our faith in you (Bobby can sod off though!)......

Originally Posted by Beaky

Firstly, let me apologise. I am just going to write this, I won't edit it and I haven't planned it. This is purely and carthartic
experience, so you have my apologies if it comes out slightly disjointed.

I wasn't going to post anything as it seemed a little like pissing on everyone's fireworks but when I read someone saying they
couldn't understand why another poster said his love of the band was coming to an end I wanted to put my side across.

I have a real problem. I'm not in awe of Bon Jovi anymore. Now, before you just write me off as a naysayer, as a doom-monger,
let me assure you; I have written one or two posts like this before after an album release has left me feeling dejected but it's
different this time.

I have just seen the band three times at the O2; I've even been down to the Clipper and got tickets signed and seen them upclose.
In 1993, this would have made my life, this would have given Liverpool's fifth European Cup win a damn good run for 2nd best day
ever (behind the wedding day, of course).

In 1993 I would have been in awe of Jon Bon Jovi. He was THE man. Wembley Arena that year was my first gig, followed by the
rock 'n' roll force of Milton Keynes in the summer. They were a current band, a relevant band, a band that was scorched through
the world on the Keep The Faith and Sleep When I'm Dead tours. They played their new music, they believed in it with every single
breath and drop of sweat. The sight of Jon bouncing all over the stage during 'I'd Die For You' and thrashing his Telecoustic
to within an inch of its life on 'Sleep When I'm Dead' was all about watching a band (and more importantly, their front man)
not just having a good day at work but LOVING performing, coming alive onstage and not turning a mass crowd into a huge party.

Yesterday, I didn't care that Jon walked straight to his car, sparing a quick wave for the hundred or so people who waiting for
two hours in the sun to get a photo or a t-shirt signed. I wasn't interested in him. Richie is the man now. The women who
remember Jon as that kid with everything to prove, floating across the stage, his long hair dripping with sweat and clinging to
his head, with no thought of nipping off to get it blow-dried; they still love him and I will always understand why. Jon is your
guy, he's your idol and in your heart you hope to God that there's still a tiny part inside of him that is still that kid with
the 'America' leather jacket, the kid who did it for the love of it.

But I just can't see it in him anymore and this is the first reason why I think these will be my last ever Jovi shows.

Friday night was great, I loved it. Last night we got 'Hard Letting You Go' which was epic. But, I constantly have to remind
myself who that guy onstage is, just to get myself into it because I don't believe him anymore. I don't believe the moves, I don't
believe the smiles. I believe him when he says 'When I'm onstage I am not thinking about the song, I am thinking about the next
song and where it's going to go.' Now, some of you will say he's a perfectionist and you have to accept this. SOme will say I
was 17 in 1993, I got to see a band I'd loved for 5 years for the first time and now I'm 33, so it's a different experience. This
may be part of it. But there's two reasons why I think this isn't the case.

1. I touched on it above, in my opinion Jon does not do this for the love of it anymore. I feel Jon does it because he wants
to be the best in his professional field. He has a massive amount of pride in his JOB. He delivers on that level 100% and I
cannot fault him for that. I can also see why fans who just LOVE this band unconditionally can get past this but I can't. I need
that edge, that 'chip on the shoulder' Jon favours mentioning. I am in business, I can relate to Jon The Businessman but I don't
want to, I want to relate to the Jon who gets his ass out there because he loves the songs, loves the buzz and loves playing off
of his amazing band. I don't feel that. Your arguement might be 'Are you blind? He rocked the O2!!' But there are several
differences between someone who has to get themselves up for gigs, then works themselves hard to prove something to themselves
compared to other artists (I won't name anyone, it won't help) who would rather be taken out back and shot than get to the
stage where they have to pump themselves up for a gig. Jon doesn't go out there and do this naturally anymore. He goes out there
to work and he's damn good at his job. Again, that might be okay if it weren't for my next issue.

2. The songs, the setlists, the shame of actually sitting down last night. I've never done that. I've been knee deep in mud at
Milton Keynes, watching someone 2 people away actually take a shit in the middle of the bowl and STILL I wouldn't move.
I've been in countless queues for numerous hours and never once sat down or even bent my legs because this band knew how to
structure a set list. I gigged myself for many years and Bon Jovi taught me all I know about structuring a set. Then they
open with Blood on Blood. Nah. Crackin' tune, I love it and it should be in the set but no.
For anyone who says I am harkening for the old days I would argue that right up until Lost Highway, this band always opened with
a bang. Lay Your Hands, I Believe, Prayer, Bounce and numerous others. Blood on Blood belongs as the third or fourth song in the
first section of the set. I completely agree with those who say it hobbled the first section of the set and following it with
Born To Follow just further delays the 'ass-shakin' process. I also grumbled a bit when they made so few changes from Friday to
Saturday for the first hour but that wouldn't be so bad if the songs they kept were any good.

Jon comments that he can't play Hey God every night as his audience are hedonists, they need to be the party band. I agree to a
certain extent but here's my dilemma; The bands success in the live arena and in the charts over the last few years have all come
from two avenues; the 'It's My Life' route or the 'Who Says' route. So you can guarantee that the four new songs they've written
will be another 'I Love This Town; or 'Have A Nice Day'. Full of 'Yeh-yeh yehs' and 'Come ons'and 'Salrights'. This is where my
band live now. My band who wrote 'I'll Be There For You', 'Social Disease', 'Just Older'. When they do dip their toe in the water
and try something off the beaten track, it comes out like Bullet; and because I love to see a glimpse of that side of the band,
I lap it up, even though the song doesn't really have a riff and is just 'All I Want Is Everything' mixed with 'Faith' but with
far less groove and imagination. As I was listening to it live Saturday, I was completely underwhelmed. I was gutted. If they
are putting effort into writing these songs, it doesn't show and they come across as lazy but because the have such a strong core
of die-hard fans, it doesn't matter, as long as they write another song like 'Crash' that is lyrically shocking and musically about
four levels below what this band are capable of. Simplicity may well be genius but don't beat us over the head with it EVERY SINGLE
NIGHT. (Also, if you want a party song, try 99 In The Shade or at least swap one or two each night with One Wild Night or something, to keep us guessing)

Okay, the rant is over. Most will disagree and being as this is all based on opinion, I will disagree with your disagreement and
say you're just Jovi blind. I thought I was but it turns out I just loved the band and now I don't.

Here's a thought that may go some way to proving both my points: I wave my arms and sing during the end of Captain Crash, which
kind of makes me exactly what I am accussing Jon of being. I do it because I have seen this band so many times that I've witnessed
the famous 'Jon mood' on several occassions and I am so worried that if we don't wave, he might get into a strop and just stick
to the usual, basic set. He might stick the bottom lip out and not bother putting the effort in.
Does that sound like Jon to you? Be honest now...

Well, the Jon that made me want to be a front man, the Jon that I would have punched an OAP to get an autograph from would have
put just seen that as a challenge and worked ten times harder to win me over. Those days are, sadly, out of reach.