[Crushgen24/88]

Reactions to some of your observations:

1. Agreed

2. Agreed again.

4. I wish I ****ing knew..

5. I happen to like Summertime, but it is odd to do in Chicago in Feb. Did Jon do his little "It's cold outside, but hot in here" spiel?

7. I love Whole Lot Of Leavin' live.

8. Everything I've read/seen about this stage makes it sound really cool (and impressive to a lights and sound nut like myself) The whole moving ramps, and tilting stage sound especially cool. Shame I'll never see it =[

9. Sounds awesome. One of the few good things about these setlists is that KTF seems to be back in it's rightful role as an every night song.

10. I know. I'm amazed at how well that crap goes over. I remember at Pru Night Ten, this woman turned to me and goes "I LOVE Bed Of Roses. It's so beautiful, and it's amazing Jon still sings it the way he does", I swear I almost fell over.

11. I think Stranger will still pop up from time to time.

12.I happen to enjoy ILTT live, more than I do on record. It's not my choice to close a show, but I understand the thought behind the promotion, and crowds really do eat up the sentiment behind the song.

[Neurotica80]

These sets are really bland, il go mad if I hear IBTFY 7 times again by Richie!!!

[kenobi_on_a_prayer]

Hmmm. Hope they made a great show of it for everyone who was there. But you've got a damn impressive catalogue boys, 25 f***ing years, don't shortchange your biggest fans or yourselves!

I prefer the original Bed of Roses but I don't mind the TLFR version... it was my favourite track on TLFR. (And I know Perth would have gone nuts for it; hell most of the casual fans probably wouldn't even have noticed the difference between that and the KTF version lol).

Though I would have been pretty happy with that set in Perth........ but I've only been to one BJ gig and will probably have to clock up some frequent flyer points to ever see any more.

Oh, and the big surprise will be............... November Rain! as an intro to Dry County!

[zero_zero_UFO]

tut at that setlist.....

Originally Posted by milomom

9. KTF was a highlight for me. Richie was EVERYWHERE! He goes wireless on this and makes use of the ramps on both sides playing very close to the crowd.

but awesome wireless richie! really glad to hear this little thing

[Scarzy]

Let me lead off by saying sorry if this offends some people, but opinions can be that way I suppose. I have been a Bon Jovi fan since 1985 when 7800F was released and I purchased that record as well as the first Bon Jovi record at the same time. My first shows were the Slippery Tour when I went all three nights in Pittsburgh and the shows have been compounding since then to over forty (40) plus shows across 22 years. I enjoy the songs from the old records and the new records equally well. The only ones I don't care for much are the TLFR versions. After all this, why would I find myself yawning as well as several other people close to me at the show last night in Chicago? Here are the reasons:

1. Bad Name - why is this almost always the 2nd song? It is freakishly predictable...

2. Raise Your Hands - the song is average at best from their catalog of songs and is way past worn out from the last few tours. Sure people raise their hands, but they will raise their hands to a nursery rhyme if Jon asked them to.

3. Runaway time machine and countdown - does Jon really believe after coming to Chicago umteen times in the last five years that the people in the arena have not heard this before? C'mon now - give me a break.

4. Does Complicated really deserve a spot in a Bon Jovi setlist anymore? Maybe if they played 3 1/2 hours with a break and no opening band, but not the typical 2 hour 20 minute show.

5. I cannot stand Sleep When I'm Dead anymore just because of the concerts. This song was not a hit and yet they play it at every show. Why oh why must we continue to hear this. Sure, they moved it to the front of the set list and they think we are not smart enough to remember hearing this over and over because it is out of order from past tours.

6. Shout - why must it be added to the end of Bad Medicine every freakin' show? I get it that the crowd goes crazy and I can live with that reason I suppose. However, do they think that the few fans there that have never been to a Bon Jovi concert outweigh the many that have seen them live before and have seen this same thing? It feels like Groundhog Day the movie for me.

7. I'll Be There For You by Richie - yes, Richie is the man and it sounds great. However, we have all seen this ten thousand times. I don't care if These Days did not sell well in the US during the time it was released. The genre of music in the US was different at that time and maybe if they played the song in the US, the people who did not buy it will be like "wow, great tune I am going to go get it" and they would be pleasantly surprised with the songs.

8. Bed Of Roses - most of the upper deck on Richie's side sat down after the third straight slow song. I get that maybe the band needs a break but three slow songs in a row is pretty painful and not the reason most attended the show. The song is good and has its place on a record, but makes no sense after IBTFY and Memory. I guess Jon just feels the need to give one girl in the audience a night to remember with a kiss and slap on the butt.

9. Hallelujah - maybe Jon does not realize but 18,000+ screaming fans yelled their butts off for five minutes before the encore for more and comes back with a mood killer like this. I understand Jon likes the song and so do many others but this makes no sense to start an encore. There were others in my section going "what the h$&*" throughout the entire song. I have no problem playing the song in the show but not at the top spot in the encore. Snoozer and some people started leaving.

So these are the many points that really made it a below average show for me last night. Unfortunately, I expected this after seeing the set lists from Omaha, Detroit, and Milwaukee. It's sad that there is no spontaneity anymore on stage . As much as I like the coordinated lights and screens, I would give that all up in a second to get a different set of songs that I am not expecting each and every night.


There were some really good things I noticed as well:

1. Richie looked great - he was having fun and moving around a lot.

2. I liked Summertime. The drums intro was cool and I thought it sounded good live. It was refreshing to hear a song I have not heard live before. Lord knows it was the only one all night since I saw them in Milwaukee at Summerfest last year (like many other Chicago fans).

3. Keep the Faith rocked big time. Richie wireless was cool and the song sounded great with the fireworks on the screen.

4. The band sounded good compared to some past shows I have seen.

5. The stage was really nice with the openness and the screens. Jon seemed to like playing in the rear of the stage with the hydraulic lift.

Overall, it was one of the my least favorite shows in a long time. A friend of mine that has attended her third show over the last three tours with me even asked why she felt like she has seen the same thing all three times she has gone with just a couple new songs included. When I heard that, I was like hmm, I guess maybe she is right. Will I go to the next show? Of course I will because maybe that will be the one classic show I have been dying to see. Until then, I will continue to hope the band gets out of the funk they are in and gives the fans something different.

[TheseDays2005]

Wow, Complicated, I love this town & Summertime all in 1 set. I hope there will be a boot of this show

[milomom]

Scarzy, I definitely agree with you about a few things --

1. Song choice for Richie. IBTFY is great and really suits his voice. But I loved These Days in Newark, and I was knocked out by the Stranger video on YouTube from the one night there when he did it there. I really want to see that. I sincerely hope those songs aren't history again.

2. BOR -- shudder. But NO ONE was sitting down where I was. Couples were getting very "friendly" and women were going nuts over the dance. I could live with the dance and the kiss and the walk along the boards if it were just the "real" BOR!

3. I agree that the placement of Hallelujah was odd. Kind of a mass crowd crash landing. I loved hearing the song, and that seems to be the only place that Jon is willing to put it.

[Kathleen]

Originally Posted by milomom

3. I agree that the placement of Hallelujah was odd. Kind of a mass crowd crash landing. I loved hearing the song, and that seems to be the only place that Jon is willing to put it.

He put it in the same place in the one Newark show that he sang it too. I have always loved the song (even before JBJ sang it) so I am happy to hear it wherever it gets placed.

[haveaniceday]

If I remember correctly the HAND tour started out with some pretty awful setlists but got better as the tour went on. I agree with the majority thus far that these setlists are really lacking. Why start the show with Lost Highway...there is no build up to it, the guys come out and go right into the song. The guitar intro to Last Man Standing was far better for an opener. Why not at least mix it up a little.

I guess things could be worse.....Wildflower could begin making appearances.