Forget... the High Tech Stage!!!!!
 

About the 'high tech stage' thing:

Why not have a bare stage, regular lighting and let - GASP! - the music be the showcase.

When Bruce comes out, they all just walk out, pick up the instruments and play whatever they feel like playing. THAT's why Jon should be dong.THEN the prices can be cheap. Why is he saying 'value for dollar' in that article with outrageous prices offensive to everyone? And who are these people PAYING??! Get rid of the bells and whistles and get the music out and I gurantee youd have a better grossing tour - and more entertaining.

And where the the #!@ is my Boston date? I really don't want to go to NY. What happened to Fenway?!

Someone started this same thread on the backstage board. Of course, we hardcore fans would be there for the band and a bare stage but let's be honest, Bon Jovi as a live act as built their reputation on the "show" aspect of a show. Think about SWW, with Jon flying from a wire, or NJ with the super long catwalk, or TD with the big blow up characters, or OWN with the replica of the Empire State building. They have never been a bare stage act.

Greensboro tickets were $79.50 this tour, I don't find that outrageous and the other shows (bar Pru and now MSG) have had ticket prices that are very much in line. Also, everyone acts like the top ticket price are for all the seats in the arena, it is not, it represents about 10-15% of the total tickets that will be sold.

And gross doesn't go in anyone's pocket it's net or profit. And if I had to guess, Bruce will make more money on his tour with less dates and lower ticket prices because of the lower costs incurred to put on a show. But, again, a Bruce fan doesn't expect a big elaborate production because he's never done shows that way.

Unless something has changed yet again, I have heard there will be at least 2 Boston dates but don't hold me to that, lol!

deb

Bruce aren't Bon Jovi. Bon Jovi aren't Bruce. The band had a bare(ish) bones set for the Newark and Toronto shows in December and people bitched they were boring. And it's not like tickets were any lower for those shows. There are plenty of reasons the tickets are so high, and I personally don't think an expensive stage show are one of them. Just my opinion.

Totally right !

Bruce is more like a "local hero" for you people but BJ always were more "worldwide mainstream" oriented (thanks to their 90's records). So for a BJ concert, I'd expect something more like Kiss, U2, Aerosmith than something like Springsteen....

I agree with everyone that Bon Jovi has always been about the show as a whole including the production. For everyone who wants minimalism, there's another load who want to see the big production ... hell, that article was written by a guy more excited about the production than the band.

And surely most, if not all bands have a light show of some form. Does Bruce not?

I personally prefer shows that connect on more levels than just the musical, although an energetic and/or passionate band performance can satisfy this just as well as lasers and visual effects. Screens are always nice though, if you're miles away in a stadium you want to be able to see.

All of that said though ... I've been thinking recently about the Lost Highway tour. I find it odd how it has morphed from something that was just gonna be a handful of promo shows, to a smaller tour with a relatively minimalistic stage , to a typical full blown huge production tour. I've been wondering if maybe it would have been better for them to have kept the LH tour to smaller venues with the more minimalistic stage, and probably cheaper tickets, and then kept the bigger production for a subsequent tour, possibly a Greatest Hits tour? Anyone else think that might have been cool?

yeah walrus i was kinda hoping for something similar , i wasn't to bothered about missing the band at the o2 arena (this was when i thought they were just doing a few promotional shows for lost highway) because i expected the greatest hits tour in a few years , but now we have this lost highway one i'm wondering if'll they'll still tour the greatest hits, what do you think?

I have the Bruce Springsteen DVD from Barcelona in 2002. No fancy gimmicks just him and the E street band, the music and the man himself are enough to entertain.

But it's been said, Bon Jovi are a completely different vehicle and without a high tech setup you'd be looking at a less entertaining show.

I agree with you Paul. And no Bruce really doesn't have a light show and no video of any kind.

I'm really not sure why they did decided to ditch the initial LH set up for this bigger more expensive production. I guess I'm not convinced anymore that any sort of GHII tour will even happen.

deb

If I went to a BJ show and it was all paired down, pulled back - I'd be pissed off frankly. The huge light show and thse amazing new screens (an epic achievement) increase the experience. The music they play won't vary a lot form what it is now, so get that out of your head. They won't play random 90's album cuts or the higher than high stuff. STOP DREAMING, and enjoy what is still a ****ing good rock show, with great songs.

to be honest, U2s ZOO TV tour wasnt called the best tour of all timebecause it was just Bono, the Edge and 2 gutairs, it was the whole experience of it!

i cant wait to see it roll into Kildare (ireland) in a few months time! will be interesting to see how it shows up in whats basicvally a muddy field! lol