Bon Jovi Report

OK, so Sunday 11th June was the day I achieved, quite literally, my aim in life. I'd been holding on to my tickets for Bon Jovi since September, and originally Clare (my oldest friend) and I had planned to spend the weekend in London, going to Wembley for the concert. Yeah, that changed slightly when the concert was moved to the National Bowl at Milton Keynes. We decided to just drive up on Sunday morning, and got there at midday, after a two hour drive. A nice leisurely lunch at a very nice pub, and then we made our way to the Bowl to start queuing. There were several thousand people there already, and we eventually found the right queue (General Admission, for us) and waited about an hour before the gates were opened. A quick bag check and we were in, then on to the merchandise stand, where I bought a T-shirt and keyring, having already bought my tour programme outside. Next stop, the toilets (portakabins, and they rocked ... no, they really *rocked* as people moved in and out of them!) and the ice cream van, for the most expensive '99' we'd ever had, at £2.50 each! Worth it though, as it was 82 degrees! We made our way into the Bowl, and selected a good spot on the slopes near the back, where we could see the stage and big screens clearly, despite being a fair way away. It was only 3pm, and so we laid on the grass listening to the music playing over the sound system, people watching, and soaking up the sun. At 5:45pm the first opening act came on - a Leeds band called 'Spin' who weren't bad, but at 6 i took the oportunity to go out to the toilets and get us both some food, knowing that Nickelback were due on at 6:30. I got back in five minutes before they came on stage. I only knew two of their songs before Sunday ('Someday' and 'How You Remind Me') but was really impressed by the rest of their setlist, as well as Chad Kroeger's sense of humour, and obvious appreciation for the fans. It was also nice that he was very complimentary about all the band members and backstage crew of Bon Jovi, and expressed his appreciation for them all after Nickelback supported Bon Jovi for the last month of their tour, in Europe. I thought it was great that a band as well known in their own right would not only tour as a supporting act, but actually seem to have enjoyed it, when they could probably have sold out a lot of the same venues as a headline act. Nickelback warmed the crowd up nicely, and the atmosphere was electric by 8pm, when Bon Jovi walked out onto the stage. I was finding it hard to believe I could be standing just a couple of hundred yards from the group I consider my musical heroes, but as they went straight into 'Keep On Rocking In The Free World', it became incredibly real. I'd been expecting them to open with 'Last Man Standing', as they have done on most of their European concerts this tour, and it was a nice surprise that they switched things around from the beginning, as I had a feeling I was going to be in for a few surprises at this point.

Straight into 'You Give Love A Bad Name' - an oldie but a goodie, and the crowd were really into it now. I was singing along at the top of my (terrible!) voice, comfortable in the knowledge that the other 65,000 people would drown me out, and although I didn't know the lyrics to the next two songs ('Wild In The Streets' and 'Captain Crash And The Beauty Queen From Mars') off by heart, I sang along where I could, and enjoyed soaking up the atmosphere the rest of the time.

It was all very surreal being surrounded by roughly three and a half times the population of my entire town, and knowing that probably 90% of them were as crazy about Bon Jovi as I am. I was all too aware that I was experiencing something special, and during a few of the songs I actually felt quite emotional. Music does that to me a lot, and I saw on the big screen at times that there were actually people crying ... to quote Mary Poppins, that's going a bit too far, don't you think?

One of my favourites next, 'Born To Be My Baby' from the 'New Jersey' album, and then into 'Story Of My Life' from 'Have A Nice Day', the 2005 album that this tour is promoting. Then a lovely interlude with Jon thanking the fans for not returning their Wembley tickets for refunds, and being willing to make the trek to Milton Keynes. In his words 'We'll be back there, don't you worry. We'll be back there if I have to build it myself. I want to thank you guys especially, because you came, you made the trek out here, you didn't return your tickets. You said "to hell with it, we don't need no arch, we've come to see a band play." From the bottom of my heart, thank you. This is for you ... it's called 'Bounce'. "

And straight into 'Bounce' with it's upbeat lyrics, and fast beat. The fact that it was accompanied on the big screen with shots of a crowd member waving a banner saying "F*ck Wembley" made it all the more apt, given Jon's speech. One of my all-time favourites came next, 'I'll Sleep When I'm Dead', interspersed with a cover of 'Dancing In The Streets', which went down tremendously with the crowd. Another old one next, 'Runaway' from 1982 - their first big hit. It's not a favourite of mine, but it sure did sound good at that volume, and in that setting!

I just have to take a moment here to say that while I've always had a bit of a thing for Jon, I thought there was no way he could possible look that good in the flesh ... how wrong could a girl be? He has the energy, the looks, and the body of a man of 24, not 44 ... and yes, I *so* would ....LOL.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, lusting after Jon ... I mean, writing a review. Jon did a little speech about how Runaway is an old song, then said that it's "not old, just older ..." leading predictably into "Just Older', another favourite of mine. By this time, though she only knew a few Bon Jovi songs, Clare was definitely becoming a convert ... !

A special treat next, with 'In These Arms', the rocking but romantic ballad. Firstly because the first half of the song was sung by David Bryan, the keyboardist, who also wrote a lot of the lyrics, and that was great in itself - one thing I love about Bon Jovi is that all four main members can sing, and frequently get the opportunity to do so, thus mixing it up a little. While David sang, Jon used the catwalk out from the stage into the crowd to get close to the Golden Circle and fan club standing areas at the front of the stage, and make a few lucky girls' nights, when he smiled at them, spoke to them, or for the really lucky ones, actually touched their hands. Around half way through the song he took over the lead vocals from David and returned to the stage for the rest of the song.

Two more tracks from the 'Have A Nice Day' album next. The title track, upbeat and bouncy, but actually written about George Bush and his apparent "I'm gonna do what I want and screw you, have a nice day ...!" attitude. Then the latest single to be released from 'HAND'. the catchy 'Who Says You Can't Go Home', probably my favourite track on the album, and one that has recently been reworked and released as a country song in the States, featuring Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles as co-lead vocalist with Jon. Interestingly it's topped the Billboard country chart for a couple of weeks, making Bon Jovi the first ever rock band to top the country chart in the USA!

Next up was another bouncy one, 'It's My Life', the Frank Sinatra inspired track from five or six years ago. Another one from 'HAND' next, and one that I'm personally not keen on, 'Bells Of Freedom'.

A nice slow ballad next, and a fantastic surprise for me, and I think many of the crowd too. Probably their best known ballad, 'Always' hasn't been heard much at concerts in recent years, as Jon can't always hit the high notes, but this night we were lucky. We got it, for possibly the first time on the tour, although it was the slower and more acoustic reworking found on the 'This Left Feels Right' album from a few years ago. Not as good (in my opinion) as the original version, but a treat to hear it at all, and a nice change of pace for a few minutes.

Having said that 'Always' was an unexpected treat, next up was something that I had been expecting, but which still absolutely wonderful when it actually happened. This tour, guitarist Richie Sambora has been singing 'I'll Be There For You' most nights, and although I knew about it, as did many other fans, the crowd still went mental when Jon introduced Richie. It's a beautiful song, and Richie has a rich and powerful voice that works in perfect harmony with Jon's, or as in this case, as the sole vocalist on this song. I could have cried, with the emotion that Richie put into the lyrics, though perhaps his recent divorce from Heather Locklear contributed to the fact that the lyrics seemed particularly poignant that night.

'Everyday' was next, which was a nice return to the up-tempo songs which were setting the tone for most of the concert. Then came another of my personal favourites, 'Bad Medicine', which seemed to last forever, as it had an interlude where Jon introduced all the band members to the crowd. Drummer Tico Torres, David Bryan on keyboards, Richie Sambora on the guitar, and Hugh McDonald on bass, are the normal band, while for this tour guitarist Bobby Bandiera, and keyboardist Jeff Kazee, both 'on permanent loan from Southside Johnny and the Asbury Dukes' according to Jon, join the Bon Jovi guys. I have to say, despite it being my first time seeing them live, they sounded amazing as a 7 piece band instead of the usual 5. 'Bad Medicine' was also turned into a medley, with a cover of Lulu's 'Shout' which really brought the crowd back to full interaction mode after a couple of recent slow songs, and the pause when the band memberd were introduced. One funny moment was when Jon nearly repeated a mistake he made at Manchester's concert a week before, where he forgot to introduce David Bryan. He remembered this time, but had obviously almost forgotten, as he said,laughing, "I almost did it again"...

Following on from 'Bad Medicine' was 'Raise Your Hands' which had the entire crowd pumping their hands in the air, and then the song I had been waiting for. My all time favourite song, and I would venture to guess that many people in the crowd felt the same, from the ecstatic reaction that erupted when the disctinctive opening chords of 'Livin' On A Prayer' sounded. This song, with it's tale of dock worker Tommy, recently laid off when the union went on strike, and Gina, who 'works the diner all day' has over the years given me hope, made me cry, and when played at full pub volume in the presence of friends, just flat out made my day, and it was now that I had to multi task. Singing along, while phoning Daniel to listen to it, and trying to record it with my digital camera was not easy, but I'm proud to say I managed it. It's been my favourite song for about 12 years now, and is even more so now, for each time I hear it I'm reminded of Sunday evening, a perfect summer afternoon with one of my best friends, and being at my first Bon Jovi concert.

Predictably enough, it was after LOAP that Jon thanked the fans, and said goodnight, though we knew there would be at least one encore, and maybe even two. After all, this was the concert that unti the surprise introduction of a Hull date two days after the Milton Keynes one, was the last concert on the European leg of the HAND tour, and which despite being moved from Wembley, was seenby the band and the fans as "The big one". We weren't disappointed, as the stage lit up again, and the guys came back out, to go straight into "Blood On Blood', the tale of three childhood friends who "cut each others hands, and held tight to a promise only brothers understand". This song more than any other that night reminded me of how lucky I am to have been there with Clare, who I've known for 25 years now, and who despite the fact that I don't see nearly enough of her, I would be there for in a heartbeat if she needed me. The crowd were really rocking again now, and when the introduction to 'Wanted Dead Or Alive' started, I think there was a bigger roar of delight that at any point until then. After 'Wanted' came yet another special song, when they played 'These Days', from the album of the same name that was immensely well received in the UK and panned in the States, It's been rare this tour to have anything from that album played, in fact I believe it hadn't happened until Sunday, so it was a wee bit special. Time for the stage to darken once more, though this time we knew there was another encore coming, as Jon hadn't repeated his goodbyes!

When it did come, a few minutes later, we were treated to one more track from 'HAND', which was 'Last Man Standing', the song that has been first on the setlist for almost every European concert this tour. Last, but definitely not least, a rousing rendition of 'Keep The Faith', turned into a medly with 'Sympathy For The Devil' When it finished, Jon said goodnight and thanked us all, then they walked off stage and the lights went out. For me, I felt incredibly sad that the past two hours and forty minutes had actually ended, yet almost disbelieving of the fact that it had happened at all. I'd just had the single best day of my life, and fulfilled my ambition in life, with my best friend beside me ... it doesn't get better than that.

We left the car park at 11pm, and drove 20 miles in 55 minutes, thanks to the traffic leaving Milton Keynes. Arriving home at 1:30am, I was on too much of a high to even think about sleep until 5:30am, and am only now coming back to earth. I saw Bon Jovi live ... what more could I ask?