the orchestral arrangement of the intro sounds like 'who want to live forever' by queen, but only some sounds.

Read that Life is Beautiful sounds like Solitary Shell by Dream Theater. Thoughts?

I'll take that over a Nickelback-ripoff. But yeah, good call.

I adore Burning Bridges. I want to play it on repeat really loud while I'm driving.

Life is Beautiful sounds Lost Highway-ish to me too.

Who Would You Die For takes me to another planet.

I get an Eagles/House of the Rising Sun vibe from "Fingerprints."

I haven't heard them all yet..

Really digging the album so far. Feels like a great next step after The Circle and What About Now. "We Don't Run" should be a huge single and I'm bummed it's not. Hopefully they will at least perform some of these tracks and not completely ignore them.

I have to admit, I'm surprised how decent most of this album is.

Who Would You Die For is excellent.

I suppose by Fan Album, he meant they weren't trying to appeal to the mass market as much, more of a die hard record?

I've been out all day and just catching up now!

So as I enjoy this album, I'll add my overall 2 cents. Not a formal review, just a way to respond to all posts.

Interesting album to say the least. I know I'm in the minority here but I really think this is their best post 2K album. After getting the same album for the past 15 years in a row, this is a breath of fresh air. It's not as overproduced as past releases. Well a few are but some are just perfect.

I think this is Jon and John's ways of redeeming themselves.

I have a whole new respect for Shanks as a song writer and guitar player. We wouldn't have this type of album if Richie was still in the picture. And now I'm even more excited to hear the next one which is supposed to be even better. I've always stated that Richie leaving was a necessary event to shake things up a bit and I've wanted another solo album from Jon for a while now. However, I do think that after this next 2016 album, I'll be ready for Richie return.

I really don't have too many negatives yet. Not until I digest the rest of the album at least. The only thing is, I'm actually a little disappointed in the title track. I was hoping for an opening verse over an opening chorus with a little more record company bashing. However it's still a fun & catchy song that makes you want to drive fast with the windows down like Becky stated.

I agree with everyone's comments on Die For and Fingerprints.

The Whooaaa's are interesting too. I'm not sure if it's something that they wanted to add to A song but just failed to get it right so they stuck them on this album or if it's a way to tie the album together.

All three songs are so different. Upbeat rocker, county, and darker ballad type song. Maybe by adding the Whooaaa's to all three, it enables them to fit the album theme like CaptJovi stated.

To me, this is the best album since Lost Highway and the most solid album since the 90's. It completely trumps The Circle and What About Now. The weakest track I've heard (and I haven't heard them all yet) is SN/SM because it sounds so much like the Nickelback song--very much a "paint by numbers" song.

These songs are just on another level than what we've been getting for years... they're more creative, more daring, not so much playing to what would sound right on the radio. This sounds like music they wanted to make for music's sake, not for the sake of selling copies. In that way, it reminds me of Destination Anywhere. If this is any indication of what's to come in 2016, then the new era of Bon Jovi is something to look forward to indeed!

I'll have more to say later, but this rivals The Circle and Crush for me. There's nothing on here as strong as Superman Tonight or Love's The Only Rule but a very solid collection of songs nonetheless.

Fingerprints has a couple of Gary Moore-ish licks in the second solo. Around the 5 minute mark it's pretty much a cross between The Loner and Still Got The Blues. (Although the bend around 5:20 reminds me of Bed Of Roses' intro as well)

I agree. I have always loved this style of Jon and Bon Jovi. It does remind me of DA which I thought was brilliant. Elements of LH as well. It is my kind of Jovi music. I don't care if it is the songs Jon threw out put together for record company commitments. I always love the stuff he doesn't or thinks no one does.

Just went to JB Hi Fi and they had We Dont Run on. Was great and the woman in front of me wanted the album and thought they had broken up lol

What one? Bourke St? Chadstone?

Southland Shopping Center

I never thought I'd say this after the disaster that was What About Now and hoy bad Jon was on the respective tour, but …

This album is brillant.

Burning bridges
 

...listening to the album right now...don't have words to describe "fingerprints"...awesome track...different than any other bon jovi song...yet it is almost haunting...perfect...anyone hears familiar melody with nightmare from MSG in the intro???maybe i am wrong...

no Take Back The Night? :(

I think it BB the song wouldve been better as a hidden track.

Take Back The Night sounds really good from what ive heard so far.

Looking forward to receiving it in a few days.

Does anyone understand the significance of Saint Tropez in BB?

Hey, perhaps his passion was re-ignited in quickly putting together something, not for the best of reasons, but a project with a better purpose than just rolling out another album.

I think it's where all "decision" people from Universal are going on vacasion. Maybe there is place where they make decision. They drinking and writing e-mail like this: ... Jon - title song is too raw, you must make it's more cheesy if we want to relase it as a single. Nothing? it's too boring.. change that song with other. These Open Arms? Another ballad? No. Change it. Unbrekable? Jon how old you are to put that hard rock on CD? Change it and send me final product. And remember. Don't waste my time giveing me that piece of sh**t like this.

Universal CEO
Best wishes from St.Tropez

True story ;)

This album is pretty consistently terrible. The things that have stuck with me after one listen:

+ A Teardrop to the Sea isn't as interesting as you might be first led to believe. It goes absolutely nowhere and the chorus is Bon Jovi by the numbers.
+ We Don't Run through to Blind Love is absolute dreck. We Don't Run is the best of the stretch, but that's not saying much. We All Fall Down could have been Miley Cyrus' next single.
+ Who Would You Die For is pretty cool and my second favourite of the collection (so far). The electronic ambience at the start is very interesting and very un-Jovi. I like it. Would have been cool if they could sustain that level of experimentation throughout the whole song, because it's pretty standard after the first minute-ish when the band kicks in, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I like it!
+ Fingerprints is okay. Nothing special, but it's okay. I feel like the end guitar solo is mixed too low.
+ Life Is Beautiful. This song isn't. Is this a Lost Highway outtake? It's pretty forgettable.
+ I'm Your Man is my absolute favourite song since Right Side of Wrong. What. A. Song. I guess it's technically nothing fancy, but it's just a great old-fashioned rock song and that's enough for me. No "get off your knees and live!" No blatant attempt at writing a hit. Just a great upbeat song. I love the keys. Subtle, but great.
+ Burning Bridges. I don't know how I feel about this song. It's not even really a song, it's just a thinly veiled **** you to the record company. It's interesting, but...yeah. I don't know how I feel about it.

The only songs I can see myself returning to are We Don't Run, Who Would You Die For and I'm Your Man. Maybe Fingerprints too. The rest is just varying degrees of bad.

Glad to read so many other people are enjoying it though!

Hello everyone! Listening to the new record now and wondering how Universal actually allowed the title track to make it to the album set. Any thoughts on this? I mean, if you were a chief executive at Universal, would you accept that song on an album?

P.S. The title track is hilarious and kudos to our guys for expressing themselves this way!

because they probably haven't bothered to listen to it!

While you may be right, I find it hard to believe. How do you shell out a shitload of money to produce and sell a product you have not got acquainted with beforehand?

Maybe they thought it was about richie...one must admits the shooting stars line is mind bugging, and if anyone remember anything from jovi in the news lately , its the richiegate, so the 1st reaction from non jovi addict is that this farewell song must be about it, that is if you dont know that matt said otherwise and the story behind it.

My 1st thoughts are simply...... WOW!

Nipped down to asda about 4am to get this, glad i did.

I have been quite critical in the last few years, but this has restored my faith.

Only one track i don't like and that's " we all fall down "

Nice n dark n moody, deffo best thing since These Days

"Play it for your friends in … St. Tropez."

The CEO's friends are ...... Bono and company (U2). They spend the summer there. :lol:

I had high expectations for this album and it delivered, there are some absolute gems on here, whilst the rest make for a much stronger offering than we've had in years.

The big highlights for me are We Don't Run, Teardrop, Who Would You Die For, the latter goes straight into my top 5 post 00's release, potential to rank highly in the overall catalogue too.

If those tracks are a flavour of the next album, i'll be as excited as i've been for an album in a long time. Great sound, and gives me faith that Jon can still produce something worthy when he's not churning out mediocrity to bag a lucrative tour.

The guitar solo in Fingerprints.. where has that been on the last few albums?!

It about sums us the state of the band over the last few years that that an album with material as strong as this, has been delivered as a paper bag job, and thus getting no acknowledgment from the bands official channels. Its a bit sad really.

To sum up - roll on 2016, a great album, a big promotional push and tour.

Just give it a listen from front to back. Not sure how I feel about BB to be honest. Theres some truly brilliant songs like Teardrop, WWYDF and Fingerprints, theres decent songs like We Don't Run, Saturday Night and Blind Love, then theres We All Fall Down.

Awful, awful song. If Saturday Night shows the best of post 2000 BJ, We All Fall Down shows the very worst. It kills the flow of the album for me. Yeah, its a mix of old and new but the rest seems to flow nicely. I'm Your Man is a great song too btw.

As for the last song, well it stinks. Don't like it all and don't really see the funny side of it.

Fingerprints
 

Fingerprints is a pleasant surprise. Has a classical orchestral vibe to it. The guitar solo blew my mind, do we know who is playing it for sure? I don't think it's Richie though.

Someone should ask shanks, doesnt sound like richie style to me...

I took the day off work today like i always do with a bon jovi release day and had it on repeat all day . Listened to it sober and now pretty drunk and still loving it. this is the best emotionaly since crush for me ;) love all heaps except saturday nite and im your man . The outro to fingerprints epic . Who would you die for fave . BB fun love for sale type traditional BJ . Teardrops amazing . Blind love beautiful . Im blabbing on now but its been a friggin great Bon Jovi day for me !!;) long live BJ

I sure do hope it's not shanks, then I will have to apologize to him :P

Phil confirmed that it wasn't him, doesn't look like it's Bobby, and Shanks said he played the guitars on this record. Pretty sure that it was Shanks.

Did shanks actually say that hes responsible for all the guitar work on this?.

Yes.

I want to add in that, I think so many people are enjoying this album based on low expectations. If you look at the past facts....

- What About Now was not the album of choice for most fans so I think a lot of us feared that it would just get worse. Like a downward slope.

- Jon's voice just continues to decline with each tour. His age is also starting to question weather he's still got it.

- Obviously the departure of Richie created a big question mark.

- Beautiful Day and Reunion didn't paint a positive picture as far a direction. Even though we knew what they were all about, we had nothing else recent to compare anything else to.

- Musically, it's been the same for the past 15 years so I think we all just expected "another one of the same" Again, that downward slope.

- Same with the song writing. I mean Jon's statement about getting inspiration from the newspaper didn't help.

Now that we have this album, it kinda puts all the above to rest. However, my new fear is that the bar has been raised for this upcoming 2016 album. Maybe the fan album is supposed to be more diverse whereas this upcoming album will contain more safe, political, live your life, radio friendly music.

I never thought I'd say this but I'm hoping that Shanks is now the unofficial studio member who has more say with the bands direction. Maybe Shanks was more of a puppet to Jon and Richie as a producer but now that Richie is gone and he is actively taking on that role, he might have more say. Right now, neither Jon nor Richie have a freaking clue musically, as far as direction.

One positive thing I could note is, that Chinese Love Song. And the reason is, Jon actually sounds decent and so does the production. Whatever is going on in that studio seems to be working.

Im more than happy with Shanks .

Maybe the question should have been did you play all the guitars, cause yes im sure he recorded all the drums, bass, keyboard too, its technically correct, ��