"This Left Feels Right", What'a ya say?
 

I found it very interesting to see peoples opinions on "Crush" and "Bounce" so what the hell, as long as there's intrest I'll just keep going through the albums to see peoples opinions.

So this one should be fun 8) . I wasn't on this board when this one was released so I really have no idea what you all think of it, I'm sure there will be alot of haters out there but I also wouldn't be at all surprised if alot of people like this one. Thankfully I fall into the later category.

I goota say, I was so nervous before listening to it, I was thinking, "well **** if I hate this album, will it ruin what I think of the origionals", thankfully it turned out the complete opposite. Not only did I love (for the most part) the changes they made, it also made me recapture exactly why I loved the origionals so much. Bringing out new meanings of the lyrics made me see, and appreciate, the meaning behind alot of the songs in their origional form, it was also very cool going back and listening to the origional versions after becoming so familiar with the songs in this form.

Wanted Dead or Alive - Very cool version. Very funky and very modern but still keeping the classic lick. Very, very cool version. Studio wise, I actually prefer this to the origional, when the origional is played live, there's no contest, that wins every time. 5/5

Livin' On A Prayer - Hard to see how they could've come up with yet another interesting reinterpretation of this song, but they did. I like the accoustic guitar and the keyboards and I also like the duet with Aliva D'abo. She certainly has a distinctive voice, and I like it. I think it was even better when they played it live with Richie singing. 5/5

Bad Medicine - It'd be hard for me to explain just how much I hate the origional studio version of this song. Live, I love it but I don't think I've ever been able to bring myself to sit through it on cd. Needless to say then I prefer this version. I love the bluesy feel on this one, Jon's vocals are very good and all round a very good song that's even better live. 4/5

It's My Life - A perfect example of bringing out completely different meanings to these songs. This one shows all the hurt and soul-searching that these lyrics contain. Musically it's superb, I love the minor echo effect, it gives it that church-hymn like sound that really fits the song. 5/5

Lay Your Hands On Me - What a cool version, it's nothing compared to the origional but it's fun, it's got a certain carribean beach vibe to it and a great vocal from JBJ. 4.5/5

You Give Love A Bad Name - Maybe my favourite on the album and vastly, vastly better then the origional. Giving it a jazzy sound totally works for these lyrics, it suits the tounge-in-cheek nature of the song much better then the origional. I love Jon's gravely vocals and sounds so good live. 5/5

Bed Of Roses - How can you really bring out new meanings in a ballad? You can't, so why bother, all you do is slow the song down and remove all the power and passion that it once had. Despite that and despite the distinct lack of a difference in sound, I do like this one alot. On it's own it really is a beautiful song but as a reinterpretation, it ain't very successful. 3.5/5

Everyday - This is a beautiful version. I prefer the origional but I think the meaning and depth of the lyrics come across much better here. You get a better sense of the emotion and sadness of the song then you do in the origional and I love the keyboard parts in the first half of the song. 5/5

Born To Be My Baby - This is another phenomenal version. It really captures the emotion in the lyrics perfectly. The guitars sound amazing and I love the way Jon hums along at the end. I'll take the origional anyday over this but it's still fantastic. 5/5

Keep The Faith - Probably the best songs here. Musically it's absolutely gorgeous and brings out the other side of these lyrics perfectly. 5/5

I'll Be There For You- Same goes here for what I said about BOR except this one is an utter failure. Every bit of the passion and power has been sucked out and they didn't even change the instrumentation at all. It's sounds like a bad, watered down accoustic version of the origional. 1/5

Always - Ditto for what I said about the other two ballads. Atleast this one dose sound somewhat removed from the origional and brings out some new meanings but ballads just don't work in this format. 3/5


All things considered I think this was a wonderful experiment and I also think it's a hugely important step forward for the future of this band. With "Bounce" they were getting a bit too commercial, this album took them straight out of that mode and brought them back to working for the love of music and for the art, rather then the sales and that alone has to be worth it, and I do believe we'll see that pay dividens on the new album. It also sems like they recaptured alot of love for creating music when you listen to Jon and Richie talk about this one and I think as songwriters and as producers in the future they may be able to create even better songs from lessons they learnt from doing this.

On another postive note, it was nice to see them back working with an obviously talented producer. Imagine if Luke Ebbin had done this one :shock: *shudders*.

On a more negative note, I know they were under time constraints but the songs they choose to re-do were very predictible. Why no songs from These Days? Why not take a few album tracks and re-do those rather then just the classics? It all seems a bit predictable, which is something Bon jovi can frequently be very guilty of these days.

Even though I love this album, I couldn't tell you the last I actually pulled it out and listened to it. If I get an urge I generally watch the TLFR DVD, which is superb, but I don't mind that, in the end I just look at it as a very interesting, very welcome experiment that shows Bon Jovi are still extremely creative and aren't afraid to try new things. Who said they're not pioneers in music. Show me another band who have done something on this scale and I'll be very surprised.


Phil

Re: "This Left Feels Right", What'a ya say?
 

Wanted Dead or Alive - crap
Livin' On A Prayer - Oh my God what crap
Bad Medicine - crap
It's My Life - listenable 1/5
Lay Your Hands On Me - crap
You Give Love A Bad Name - best of the album, still pretty crap 2/5
Bed Of Roses - nothing new, crap.
Everyday - listenable 1/5
Born To Be My Baby - crap
Keep The Faith - crap
I'll Be There For You- crap
Always - crap

Total: crap.

Ice

I hardly ever listen to TLFR. Its....ok.

The only songs I really like on it are Its My Life & Born To Be My Baby.

I bought the Borgata DVD but I have never ever watched it. To me it's not Bon Jovi. If I went to concert and they sang all of the songs this way I would be just so disappointed.

Re: "This Left Feels Right", What'a ya say?
 

I couldn't have said it better myself :lol:
Although I like the Wanted Dead or Alive version

I thought it was a fun idea, but the finished product left a lot to be desired. For an album of "experimentation" the feel and sound of the CD wound up being pretty consistent throughout. I liked it at first, but the novelty wore off quickly and now I just find it boring. That said, hearing the songs performed live that way was a much more exciting experience and actually pretty cool.

Becky

I thought some of the songs were a bit plain and not worth doing but I really like some of them.

Wanted Dead Or Alive, You Give Love A Bad Name, Bad Medicine, Lay Your Hands On Me and Keep The Faith are the ones I like, the others, like I said, are a bit plain I think.

Re: "This Left Feels Right", What'a ya say?
 

what he said!

I've never disliked This Left Feels Right but it's never blown me away. Some of the songs like, others are just a little boring and eventually the album generally sounds slow and boring all the way through. When I bought it and listened to it on the day of its release, the surprises and twists were nice at first but the novelty eventually wore off and now I rarely listen to it.

Wanted Dead Or Alive - Probably the most upbeat track on there. I like the heavy riffs that play now and again and the general feel is quite soothing. Not a patch on the original though. I got really put off when Jon described it as "Led Zepplin and Eminem doing Wanted". :shock:

Livin' On A Prayer - Hate Olivia d'Abo's voice and thought it was un-needed. Just sounded like a bland, watered-down version of Prayer '94.

Bad Medicine - Nice twist and quite toungue in cheak. You have to be in the mood for it INO.

It's My Life - One Of The Best reinventions on the album simply because it completely turns it round from a huge stadium rocking anthem, into a ballad.

Lay Your Hands On Me - Quite a fun alternative to the original but the backing vocals on the chorus can get very irritating.

You Give Love A Bad Name - I often skip this one. Not fussed on it at all.

Bed Of Roses - Again, a watered-down version of the original. This one was IMO not worth remaking for this album if this was all it was gona sound like. Basically the original, minus the guitars and the powerful, soulful vocals.

Everyday - The only track on the album that I could possibly prefer over the original (and the acoustic version). It's dark, emotional and a great driving beat. The original, although still listenable, just sounds tacky to me.

Born To Be My Baby - Listenable, and a nice "waltzy" feel to it, which was its intention, but you probably have to be in the mood for it.

Keep The Faith - Nice at first, but just sounds boring after a number of listens. Still worth a reinvention for the album I suppose.

I'll Be There There For You - Quite a nice alternative, even though it just sounds like Bitter Wine. I hate the "I wasn't there when you were happy...." part. Jesus..... :x

Always - Kinda had to be included cause it was their biggest ever hit. It's a nice version that still feels heartfelt.

I haven't listened to this album for quite a long time so my opinions may be a little foggy. I think to really apreciate it you have to watch the TLFR Live DVD, which gives the songs a slightly more stripped-down feel.

:o I could have written that myself!! :D

Bad Medicine sounds like something you might hear in the background of a soft porn movie. Bad Name I think has got some good few licks on here but still boring, prefer the live version on the dvd.Bed of Roses and I'll be there for you are basically the same songs just toned down and slowed down (alot). Lay your hands on me sounds as if Peter Gabriel did a Lion King song. The version of Living on a Prayer sucks. Keep the Faith sounds interesting at first but after a few listens it just gets boring.Wanted, It's my life and Always redeem the album a bit. The one song I really did like was Born to be my Baby, that has always been one of my favorite songs and this version I really found it beautifull.