With the success of their Country venture "Lost Highway", Bon Jovi decided not to tour and instead play 10 nights at a brand new arena in their home state of New Jersey. Being the first residency the band plays in almost over 2 decades, me and my friends decided to attend to the latter 5 shows...
Ee took the plane on November, 2nd from Lisbon, Portugal towards Newark International airport, New Jersey, USA on what was my very first visit to the America.
It was November, 3rd, 2007 and eventhough we initially had thought of spending the first day visiting New Jersey, eventually decided to make our first contact with the Big Apple. An old train led us through the linking tunnel, and after a 15 minute ride we were at the heart of the industriliazed world. By Madison Square Garden, we took our first pictures and it didn't take long before we started to feel vertigo, as wherever we looked, there were always the giant buildings Manhathan is so well known for. Times Square. Rockfellar Center, 5th Avenue, the city was alive and overwhelming us!
The streets filled with yellow cabs while the sidewalks were crowded. Everywhere we looked there were shining lights and XXL sized billboards. It was like the whole world was concentrated in a couple of square miles and you were seeing everything at the same time.
The whole day was spent running around, like children lost in a giant amusement park. In the evening, when returning to the hotel our hearts started to run even faster, as we were aout to experience the first of 5 Bon Jovi shows.
The Prudential Center is a distict building in the very industrialized Newark. It shines like a star in the middle of a cloudless sky. And there we were side stage, looking to our idols playing in their backyard.
The show was introduced by Kurt Johnston, with his steel guitar, performing, first solo and then with Bobby Bandiera, on the guitar, and Lorenza Ponce, on the violin, a country cover song titled "Lost Highway". As the tune was played each member of the actual band took the stage, one by one, being saluted as the rock stars they are.
From the place we were standing, we were able to see Jon walking towards the stage (almost falling off his feet, before reaching the door that he would open to face the crowd) making his Rock star pose while getting on stage.
"Lost Highway" may not be the best song to kick off the show, but it was definitely able to set the tone to the band's last record mood. And as this song was over, the band started to deliver the roller coaster ride of arena rock anthems they got us used to through the years. "Bad Name"'s chorus still has the power of the 80's, while "Raise your hands" is able to make everybody in the house to participate. And if the cold weather was felt in the outside, the song "Summertime" was sure able to heat up the atmosphere inside the arena. Being one of my personal favorites from the band's last record, this song is very strong live, having an intro remindsent of "Queen"'s "We will Rock you" it is able to please any to crowd.
"Blood on Blood", being a live favourite for the fans, was very emotive, while "We gotta going on" proved to be "Lost Highway" 's best live song as it rocks the house. Mr Sambora delivered a very bluesy rendition of "These Days", which was nice, since it gave a new life to one of my favorite songs. "Last man standing" was a nice keeper from their last tour, while "Lay your hands on me" was the best come back song, one which had been missing in the last tours and that is without a doubt one of their best fits on the live atmosphere. Amen! "Keep the Faith, with "Sympathy for the devil", was the killer song for the few who still had not surrounded to the band's neverending energy.
All in all a very professional show, with the guys showing they were in a good shape.
The day had nothing left for us since we were dead tired, but the good night sleep was our sweat reawrd for a day filled with so many surprises.
Another day, another adventure in New York City. We were able to see many of the participants in the city marathon running on the streets and the huge crowd that was gathered at Central Park. We had now absorved the city's energy and felt the heart beat of the big apple. On our way back to Newark by the evening we faced the rush hour in a train ride that lasted 1 hour to trail a path that usualy took no less than 20 minutes.
A few moments to rest and we were ready to attend to our second Bon Jovi show of the trip, the band's 7th at the Prudential Center. This time we were located at the top of the venue on Richie's side, althouth not as bad as at the O2, just 5 months before, we couldn't find it less than awkward to attend to a show so far from where the action takes place.
In this show they replaced "Summertime", "Older" and "Blood on Blood" by "Story of my Life", "Radio" and "I Love this Town", songs that refreshed the set list, not making it lose any power or emotion. But the real surprises were still to come, and it was when Richie took the lead and performed "Stranger in this Town", from his first solo record, that we figured we were in for a night of treats. The passion the man delivered while performing the song was breathless. It carries such an emotion and passion no words can describe. You just feel the magic in the air. And as we were still recovering from such a brilliant moment, Jon announces something of the "Bounce" record that should had been included in "The Sopranos", since it charecterizes so well the spirit of New Jersey. "Right side of Wrong" was a gemn that brought a feeling of intimicy to the show. Superb!
"Complicated" and "Shout" (in the middle od "Medicine") were other additions for this show, keeping it interesting for all in the audience who were attending to multiple shows. Still, I was able to feel the complete different attitude the American audience has, compared to the European, which I was used to. Except for songs like "Prayer", "It's my Life" or "Bad Medicine" the crowd was relaxed and distant, like if watching a footbal game and supporting none of the teams. It wasn't hard to see a lot of people sat down, or even going out for drinks or food during the set. Not very Rock n Roll to say the least.
"We gotta goin' on" was again a highlight proving it was not a one night wonder, while "Memory" created the intimicy of a small club in which if you close your eyes you'll listen to the singer whispering in your ears. "Lay your hands on me" and "Last man standing" were kept in the set list, getting the deserved rotation. "Bells of Freedom" was the last surprise and another highlight of the show, assuming a much better shape than in the record with extended solos and a violin that added even more melancholy to the song.
"Sleep" closed the show with Jon, Richie and David jamming together. More than the songs performed, the attitude of the band was at their best level, making the show flow with highlights happening very naturally.
As the show was over, we drove south and on every sign a familiar name: "Atlantic city Expressway", "Woodbridge", "Perth Amboy" or "Sayreville" are all places Bon Jovi fans have read about in biographies, and now there we were, driving through a lost highway that showed us precisely where the places were located. This is was how we got to "Red bank", where we would stay for the night, just by our heroes whereabouts.
The first part of our hjourney had just ended, but 2 more were to come, as we were now in the heart of the Garden State....
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