Nobody says it's easy but nobody says it's impossible, either.

imho jon and dave and tico HAVE to realise they should finish the whole thing in a high...try to write great record, team up with the original guitarist who gave so much to the band give their all...
rock n roll isnt safe...i know the organisation depends on jon but if he truly values the legacy of the band imo he should take a risk with Richie. the alternative hurts the bands legacy imo.
bj is an addiction for me, but the magic isnt there anymore with all these hired guns...when they shared the mic in the rnrhof when richie made those harminies and harmonics in its my life it felt right...

I think the fact that Ori hasn't posted for Richie's birthday is a telling sign, I'm sure that she always has in the past, and usually something soppy! So I admit it RD, looks like you were probably right...eventually... :rolleyes:

Anyways, if that is the case - what happens with Richie? I personally don't see him running back to Bon Jovi at all, but I'll be more that happy to admit I was wrong again if that happens! What i'd really like to see is a killer solo album first though! I just hope with possibly Ori gone he doesn't just dissapear or, even worse, drink himself into oblivion....

I understand that; and I wasn't trying to start another round of speculating about reasons. It's clear that most people here couldn't care less about why; it has only ever been about 'that he did'.

True enough that there's no question that Richie left last minute or, at least, that he didn't show up in Calgary as scheduled. That much we know for a fact. But, frankly, that's all we know for a fact. Everything else is based on what people have been willing to share in the press, which may or may not be the whole truth.

The point of my question was to find out if you knew, for a fact, why Richie left and why he chose that time to do it. Because I can see how that move could severely impact him being let back in... UNLESS there was a good enough reason for his decision.

Despite the fact that I can connect dots and I could jump to any number of conclusions, that's still the one thing I don't know; and from your response, I gather that you don't know it either. As far as I can tell, nobody here can state, categorically, what Richie's reason was for leaving mid-tour, much less whether or not it justified his decision.

The "why" may not be important to others, but for me, that's where the whole scenario could turn on a dime - in either direction. And, imo, that's where there has always been "a little touch of grey." To coin a phrase. ;)

^exactly! the real reasons behind this "di*k move" may or may not help Rich get back into the band and I personally believe it's about the former scenario...

No way Jon let's Richie back into the band given the reason he left them high and dry in Calgary. Not happening. No matter how unconvincing this current incarnation of the band appears Jon's pride means they'll never be a proper reunion.

That's how I see it as well. I don't think it was right what Richie did in turns of bailing out mid-tour, but there's two sides to every story and Jon's selfish attitude to force the band on the album/tour cycle right again in order to make enough money to bid for his football team was as much of a contributing factor to me.
There are certain people who create something special when they join the stage. Lennon and McCartney, Simon and Garfunkel and, to me, Jon and Richie. That bit at the Hall of Fame, as rusty as the performance was, showed some of the magic that made me become an obsessive fan in the first place.
I've never felt that in any later performance after Richie's departure. And that's not taking anything away from Phil or Shanks, but they're hired guns at the end of the day. And you see that on stage. Jon, as hurt as he was by Richie's move, still absolutely misses his side-kick and the one who carried the shows on with him. And trying to carry it all on his own is killing him as a singer.
So, at the end of the day, I'd rather have them back together on stage a few magic moments here and there (and probably some horrific as well) than seeing a well-playing band that sounds like a tribute act.

Just my two cents on the topic.

Thanks for the input! Sometimes two cents are like your weight in gold.

** Whatever happened, the hope to see the original band hasn't died among many BJ fans. It doesn't mean we haven't moved on because we're happy BJ still tours and tries to stay relevant... it's just what really attracted us to them was their brotherhood. And no matter how tight they seem on stage now, it's just putting on a show that lacks soul. To quote Richie here:

"(...)now the spotlights coming down
light on my face but not my heart(...)"

Actually, those types of things tend to happen more frequently than one might think; and when they do occur there are usually good reasons why. :)

You basically said that we don't know what Richie's reasons were, but that they wouldn't matter anyway. To you. If the information we have satisfies you, and that's all you need to make a judgment call, good for you. I'm not saying you should feel otherwise. As I said to Captain Jovi, it seems that most people here, who comment on the subject, feel the same way you do.

I don't; and for the reasons I stated, none of which have anything at all to do with a pissing contest or throwing a pity party,, so please stop putting words in my mouth and then assuming that you know what my reasons are.

When you think about it, I'm actually looking at a bigger picture than you are, because I recognize that there may be factors at play that we don't know about, beyond the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle we have been given. And I would argue that I am thinking like an adult. Typically, it's only children, or the child-like, who accept any information that they are spoon-fed as full gospel. Adults are usually smart enough to realize that there are things they don't know, and discerning enough to know that not everything they read or hear in the press is totally true or tells the full story.

I'd like to see another good "Richie" solo album, too. Or somebody on another twitter proposed the idea of him just touring his first 3 albums. That would work, too. I'd also be happy as a clam if he would record an album of standards like those he did at Delmar and the ASCAP fundraiser. The man can croon!

The concept that intrigues me most, though, is the one somebody mentioned a while back, that LH was originally supposed to be a Jon and Richie acoustic album. (Simon and Garfunkel comes to mind). I had never heard that, but I personally think THAT would be awesome!