Just checked the Box Set packaging and it says JBJ/RS/DC

Here is my understanding. After KTF Jon started writing for the new album Open All Night - the first batch of songs. The record company wanted a greatest hits so Crossroads came about... They didn't tour the album and just did small promos. After that small gap of time, they continued with Open All Night. Some say they changed direction because Always was a monster hit... Most of those early songs from Open All Night got scrapped but they continued with the title. It wasn't until later on, they changed it to These Days. I'm sure the dropped song had something to do with it.

That's why I said you need Always, Saturday Night, and a few other scrapped movie tracks during that period to make your own 10 track version of Open All Night (or These Days the early session)... But those early writing session tracks don't sound anything like the final songs from These Days.

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I agree with this. Of course, Open All Night can't be regarded as a full album the band did and then didn't release, but it's a bit more than just a changed working title for me. The demos / outtakes we got from that era give off a different vibe and that's because there were like two phases for the album.

For more in-depth trivia about the album's songs, go here:
https://bjtours.jimdofree.com/the-al...95-these-days/
:)

I'm almost certain Last Chance Train was written for Aerosmith. The weird pitch edit in the vocals, Joe Perry on lead guitar and the Mark Hudson co-writing all point that way.

Great Point. I never thought of it that way but I can totally see Steve Tyler singing it.

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Some years ago I saved an old article from a German music magazine in an word document. I don't know which magazine published this article and I don't know the exact date of release (my folder just says 1995) but it has to be somewhere in the beginning of 1995 I guess. At that point of time the album still had the working title Open All Night, but Hey God, All I Want Is Everything, Hearts Breaking Even and Diamond Ring were allready known as being on the album.
I was lazy and just translated it with Google but it seems mostly correct:

Translation:
"After the phenomenal success of their "Crossroads" compiler, Bon Jovi will perform a number of festival appearances in the summer, some of which are already sold out. They are not only at the top of the posters at the festivals, they have also announced that the American superstars Van Halen will be there as a "special guest" and other prominent bands. Bet this will be the biggest shows of the year ?!
Before the start of the tour, the band plans to release their sixth studio album, the successor to the "Keep The Faith" success of 1992. After a few live performances in Japan, they returned to the USA in the summer of '94 and quickly had a few demos with some made new songs. Since Bob Rock was not available to them, Bon Jovi recruited Peter Collins (who has produced Queensryche, Rush, Gary Moore and Suicidal Tendencies among others) as the producer for their new album, with whome they already created the two new tracks for their "Best Of ". After recording the bases at Bearsville Studios in New York, the band went to Nashville, Tennessee to pounce on the rest. At the moment the album still has the working title "Open All Night".
Bon Jovi initially had around 40 songs (most of them Jon and Richie), 15 of which will probably make up the new album. The album definitely contains "Hey God", "All I Want Is Everything", "Hearts Breakin 'Even" and "Diamond Ring", which should actually appear on their 1986 opus "Slippery When Wet"."

German original:
Nach dem phänomenalen Erfolg ihres "Crossroads" Compilers werden Bon Jovi im Sommer eine Reihe von Festival Auftritten absolvieren, von denen einige schon ausverkauft sind. Sie stehen bei den Festivals nicht nur ganz oben auf den Plakaten, sondern haben auch angekündigt, dass die amerikanischen Superstars Van Halen als "Special Guest" und andere prominente Bands dabei sein werden. Wetten, dass das die größten Shows des Jahres werden ?!
Vor Beginn der Tour will die Band ihr sechstes Studioalbum herausbringen, den Nachfolger des "Keep The Faith" Erfolgs von 1992. Nach einigen Live-Auftritten in Japan waren sie im Sommer '94 wieder in die USA zurückgekehrt und haben schnell ein paar Demos mit einigen neuen Songs gemacht. Da ihnen Bob Rock nicht zur Verfügung stand, rekrutierten Bon Jovi Peter Collins (der u. a. schon Queensryche, Rush, Gary Moore und Suicidal Tendencies produziert hat) als Produzenten für ihr neues Album, mit dem sie schon die beiden neuen Stücke für ihr "Best Of" Album gemacht hatten. Nachdem sie die Basisstücke in den Bearsville Studios in New York aufgenommen hatten, ging die Band nach Nashville, Tennessee, um sich auf den Rest zu stürzen. Das Album trägt im Augenblick noch den Arbeitstitel "Open All Night".
Bon Jovi hatten anfangs rund 40 Songs (die zum Großteil von Jon und Richie stammen) im Kasten, 15 davon werden wohl das neue Album ausmachen. Auf dem Album stehen bestimmt "Hey God", "All I Want Is Everything", "Hearts Breakin' Even" und "Diamond Ring", das eigentlich schon auf ihrem 1986er Opus "Slippery When Wet" erscheinen sollt.

Very interesting read! I assume that the transition (with regards to my quote above about the tunings, overall sounds etc.) was somewhere in very late '94 / early 1995. It'd actually be interesting to know if the very first ones Jon didn't like survived at all or if they truly trashed them and started from scratch again.

I think songs like The End, When She Comes and Prostitute were from that batch. And like someone already said, I also believe that Ordinary People was written for Open All Night.

I also think that Wedding Day was one of the earlier sessions. And All I Want Is Everything was recorded in the dead of winter, I'd say around late December 94/early January 1995.

I think these b-sides are the earlier batch:

Wedding Day
Lonely At The Top
When She Comes
Electric Bitter Wine
Prostitute
The End
Letter To a Friend
Only In My Dreams
Flesh and Bone
Open All Night

Them not being on the board when they were recording the proper album says a lot and there's video footage of them recording some of them in the earlier period.

Now, Ordinary People I think could have been written in 1995 but the versions we have had to be 2000 for 2 major reasons:

1) According to Jon it didn't make the album because it sounded too much like what was on the radio. Even Jon compared it to this song and that didn't come out until 1998
2) The way Jon speak/sings the verses is very similar to both Shawn's and how he does Two Story Town. During press for Crush Richie talked about how he guided TST on the album and the way Jon delivers the verses is something fresh and not something he'd be capable of on past albums.