If you are reading this you already know that I LOVE LOVE LOVE Bon Jovi and have had a crush on Jon since approximately 1985. On April 7th I went to my 10th Bon Jovi concert in St Paul with my dear friend Lisa and we had a great time.
One of my favorite moments from the show is when Jon, Ritchie, Tico and David were out on a catwalk in front of the stage doing semi-acoustic versions of several songs. One of the songs they did during that portion of the show was “I’ll Be There for You”. If you look back at my past blog entries you will see that on January 30th I posted about how I’ve had a aversion to that particular song for 20 odd years but had finally come to terms with the bad memories associated with it and said that I hoped Bon Jovi would play it for me in April- and they did!
Hearing them perform that song made my toes curl (in the good way) and made me smile a smile that no one else could understand because that was my moment, my memories and my happiness. For a few minutes it was just me in my head listening to a song in a way that no one else wasy. It speaks volumes to the power of music!
It also made me think about the staying power of some of today’s pop music performers. I am proud to say that I was listening to Bon Jovi over 20 years ago and while a big percentage of the crowd at Wednesday night’s show may have been as well there were plenty of attendees who were still in diapers or not even alive in 1984 when “Runaway” became Bon Jovi’s first hit! Somehow I doubt the Pussycat Dolls, Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga are going to stand the test of time anywhere near as well.
I am fully aware of the many critics Bon Jovi has. They are too commerical. They are bland. They are not original. The list goes on. However, in 2008 they were the biggest grossing North America tour and if Wednesday night is any indication they may very well be on their way to holding the same record in 2010. So I am certainly not alone in my continued adoration and I plan to continue to rock out with them as long as they continue to put out records and Jon continues to look good in tight jeans and leather jackets 🙂
I only knew their old stuff… didn't know much of the new other than "It's My Life." Then again, I'm not the fan you and Becca are!