Was Jon's voice really THAT bad in '05-'06?
 

Let's face it: JBJ hasn't been able to hit basically any note above a B (while singing) since 2004, minus the surprisingly strong, raspy C# he belted out during KTF in Singapore '15. However, as I've been watching/listening to some bootlegs from the HAND tour, I've noticed that back in '05-'06 Jon's voice was still pretty damn good.

He was still belting out the (relatively) high notes from his chest instead of his throat/nose.

He still screamed and/or sang with rasp on songs like KTF, Saturday Night, Just Older and BTBMB.

He struggled majorly on Dry County and These Days, but apart from those two songs, he still sounded like himself and basically the same he had always done since 2000 (e.g. a lot less nasal than in '08-'13).

He still moved like a maniac throughout every single show and still didn't get out of breath like he always seems to do now.

What happened to Jon Bon f***ing Jovi, the badass rock 'n' roll star, after 2006?

He got older, he was singing like a beast for 20 years and he didn't protect his voice all these years. Also, add smoking and drugs and bad luck (on the other hand GnR's Axl and Aerosmith's Tyler can still sing). It's not suprising, just the natural flow of events...

As far as I know, Jon has never done drugs. Apparently he smoked pot a few times as a teenager, but nothing more.

However, let's get back to the topic. My theory is that the HAND tour was the last one that saw JBJ firing on all cylinders - improvising during certain songs, going for difficult notes (with his old, chesty/raspy vocal technique instead of the more polished '08-'11 one), changing the setlist on a nightly basis, screaming during KTF and Saturday Night, moving on stage the way he did in the old days... From the LH tour onwards, for me it looks like THAT Jon - the f***ing ROCK STAR - seems to have disappeared and replaced by a (much) less exciting clone. Just take a look at this version of Saturday Night (from 1:46:33 onwards):

https://youtu.be/g-2JoQoSQd4

He struggles a bit with the first two choruses, but then he gets to the breakdown... and BOOM, every single bum note is immediately forgiven and forgotten.

Suddenly, John Francis Bongiovi Jr. finds his old stage persona - and voice. When he goes completely apeshit near the last chorus and screams his lungs out as the band brings on the build-up behind him, I (ashamedly) burst out a few brief tears.

Holy shit, I miss 2005... the summer was great (at least here in Finland), I started pre-school and Jon could still sing.

Good times.

He sang well by today's standards, obviously, but that was his worst period vocally up until 2013. It's no coincidence that all big ballads got dropped ant the TLFR versions got played instead.

One could easily watch videos today from that time period and say "so what, he couldn't sing Always, big deal! He could still sing Bad Medicine, Bad Medicine, HAND, etc. which he can't today", but since he managed to up his range in 2008, it added to the negative perception to 2003-2006.

You know what's the saddest thing? If Jon keeps going for another decade or so (God I hope he doesn't) under the Bon Jovi name, there will be people on this board that will say "was he really that bad in mid 2010s? he still sounded OK-ish on electric Saturday Night and Who Says was decent".

Agreed on all points!
His vocal rebirth of 2008-2011 was what kept me being excited about the band. His stage persona was somewhat different but still very enjoyable and the songs sounded much better vocally. Some of the band's best improvations on Saturday Night stem from 2010/11.

You mean "he could still sing Bad Name, Bad Medicine, HAND, etc."?

I'm sure Jon would have sung tracks like Always (original version), Bed Of Roses (original version), I'll Be There For You (original version), Hey God and This Ain't A Love Song much better on the HAND tour than he did on the BWC tour.

Or do you really still think he would (or even could) have sounded this bad in '05-'06?

https://youtu.be/62706sxBWXY

In '13, Jon still looked like a rock star, but sounded like a cat whose balls had gotten stuck in a milkshake blender. In '05, he still both looked and sounded like a rock star... and in '17 he looks like my grandpa while sounding like a castrated goat:

https://youtu.be/-ixPjmh4PdE

Just look at the way his whole body shakes during the choruses while he grabs the mic stand like it would prevent him from exploding at any moment. The poor guy literally looks like he's about to die from straining to hit the notes. That last chorus is plain and simply sad to hear - it sounds like Jon's trying to give it everything he has left of his voice, but it's not enough. The "I'll be there 'til the stars don't shine..." part about makes me cry, as it sounds like Jon realizes his tank is empty and ends up swallowing his own tears of disappointment.

And he used to be one of the best vocalists in the business...

Heartbreaking, isn't it?

In terms of hitting the notes - yes. His tone would've been different, less whiney and nasal (and overall probably more pleasant), but his singing style of 05/06 was his old one and he couldn't hit those high notes that way anymore. So he couldn't have done those original versions either. Just look at how much he struggled during These Days at Giants Stadium in 2006.

It truly is heartbreaking. I know he pushes on no matter what but I would think since he's not at 100% and he should know it, then he would realize it's time to stop touring when he sounds that bad which I really dislike saying.

JBJ says he's not an applause junkie but why is he still performing like this???


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Unfortunately, JBJ often says things which are simply not 100% true. Like not having played an entire album live before (LH The Concert, anyone? ;-)) And I don't believe him for a second when he says that he's not in it for the applause (at all)...