2011 Bon Jovi@Europe

After one week in Canada in the winter, it was time to attend to some Spring/Summer Stadium gigs in Europe. First stop Dresden, Germany the second show of the tour and what a great concert it was right from the start when the band played "Bounce" a song rarely played since 2003. Among the few new ones "Superman Tonight" and "No Appologies" were the surprises, whereas from the vault the band took "Bells of Freedom", "Undivided" and "Something to Believe in" in a 28 song long set list filled with passion and energy. Only 2 days afterwards it was time for the band to return to their beloved Olympic Stadium in Munich and deliver another historic evening of songs whose highlights included "Blaze of Glory", a snippet from the Scorpion's "Rock you like a Hurricane", the magnificent "Dry County", the queen of all ballads "Always" and the fan favourites "These Days" and "Blood on Blood" closing the night.

It was then time for Scandinavia with Oslo, Norway having surprises such as "Damned", "Diamond Ring" and "I'd Die for you" whereas Helsinki, Finland saw "Thorn in my Side" being debuted in this leg of the tour. "Love's the Only Rule" and "Wild is the Wind" were played in both of the shows for the delight of the hard-core fans.

London, England, UK followed in no other than its own Hyde Park with the band delivering a greatest hits collection centered on the 90s including gemns such as "Hey God" and "Dry County" with "Always", "These Days" and "Blood on Blood" appearing at the end of the show. Dublin 2 back-to-back shows were the next in line and the hard question is to decide which out of the 2 was better. If the former had "Just Older", "Love's the Only Rule", "Dry County", "These Days" and "Always", the latter had "Bounce", "Happy Now", "Damned", "Never Say Goodbye", "Love for Sale", "Blood on Blood", "Always" and as show grand finalle "Love's the only Rule".

In Vienna, Autria the band only debuted "Radio Saved My Life Tonigth" but repeated "Blood on Blood", "Wild is the Wind", "Always" and "These Days" in a 30 song long set-list; in Bruge, Belgium they played a short set but nevertheess surprised with "Happy Now", "Garageland", "Never Say Goodbye" or "Wild is the Wind", but nothing could prepare us for the tour finale in Lisbon, Portugal: "Get Ready", "Any Other Day", "(It's Hard) Letting you go", "I Believe" and "This ain't a Love Song" in a 30 song long setlist that also included "These Days" and "Always".

These were the 10 shows I went from this leg of the tour but I'd not regreat any other show, because this was simply the best leg I ever seen the band play: great selection of songs, band attitude and chemistry, fan's interaction, you name it. The hard part is to pick something that was not near perfection.

2017-19 This House In Not For Sale Tour

"This House is Not For Sale", Bon Jovi's 13th studio record, was released in the Fall of 2016 and it was promoted until 2019. Although the band did 9 shows in Asia by 2015 this was the first time an Era of the band began without Richie Sambora which raised many questions about the future. Would it be successful? would the dates sell-out? would the new material stand side-by-side with the legacy? would the band's chemistry live rise to past levels or would it pick up where it last had been in 2013 when the band finished the tour wihout its charismatic guitarrist?

The album showed some of the wounds the band had which were addressed in some of its tracks, but, above all, it was a statement of pride to continue with the legacy. There were a couple of promo shows but the proper tour had 6 legs: Nother & South America 2017, North America & Japan/Australia 2018 and Europe & South America 2019.

I was initialy not very into touring again since uncertainity was high but nevertheless opted to go to places I'd love to visit and enjoy the concerts. First stop 2017 at the world's most famoust arena in New York City: Madison Square Guarden. Problem: once I landed in America news had it the shows were postponed 1 week! Although with a lot of thought I decided to rent a car and drive to Toront to see the next shows and postpone my return flight and attend to the shows in NYC. The trip led me again to New Jersey's spots related with the band and to visist NYC highlights, but the best part was the road trip with a stop in Niagara Falls.

Arriving in Toronto by the end f the day, we found the show was already on going, but led by sheer adrenaline we were able to get inside and after 4 years without seeing the band, it felt great to see the band in action all over again. The next day we were able to come in early and fully apretiate the full show. Yes the dynamics between band members were not the best, just like in 2013, but being those songs and that band, it was impossible not to enjoy and to party like if it were our first show ever. A couple of days later at Madison Square Garden the addrenaline levels were a lot lower, but to hear "Runaway" where the band played it in 1983 during their very first gig opening for ZZ Top was no less than magical.



Next year , 2018, I knew what to expect but nonetheless I flew to South of the USA to see the band play. First stop Austin, TX just to sightsee and enjoy the vibe of the city. However early did I realize it wasn't such a big town so I decided to go to Little Rock, AK and see the band play there. The set list was very static with not many surprises, except the droping of "Scars in this Guitar" and the adition of the new song "When We Were Us", written for the Hall of Fame. This stop allowed me to see the capitol building where president Clinton served as governour, just the day after I had seen the one where George W. Bush did.

I then went to San Antonio, TX with its beautiful riverside cruise, tower, Mexican market and the one and only "Alamo" battle spot. In this city the crowd was much louder and the band added "(You Wanna Make) A Memory" and "I'd die for You" in the encore. I then took the train to Houston, TX where I was able to visit NASA's Johnson Space Center. The show had no surprises but I remember how good it was to hear "Bed of Roses" and "Lay your Hands on Me". Next stop: New Orleans, LA and its famous French quarter with all its bars with live music. The crowd there was loud and the band awarded with them with "Blood on Blood". Finaly Dallas, TX was my last stop to see a very urban city with not so much to sightsee and a show with no surprises.



Later in that year I took a plane litelaly to other side of the worl and visited the country of the rising sun: Japan. During this one week trip I was able to sightsee Tokyo, Kyoto and Mount Fuji. As for the Bon Jovi shows, two dates back-to-back: one in Tokyo and the other in Osaka. I was not ready to see a baseball arena covered, but to witness concerts in both this Domes was nothing less than amazing. I remember walking towards Tokyo dome and, as I saw it with its light signs, tears came to my eyes as I recallled all those mythical recordings from the 80s and 90s that played in my stereo and video over and over again during my teenage years.

The audience was super polite only singing when the lead singer asked them to and to hear the line "From New Jersey to Tokyo" from their song "Raise your Hands" felt realy great. "Blood on Blood" and "I'll be There for you" were the surprises during the first show whereas "In These Arms" and "Someday I'll Be Saturday Night" were played in the second night. The Domes are huge and just as I had seen on video the audience left the buildings row by row taking an eternity to take everybody out once the show was done.



In 2019 I attended to the weekend dates of the European Spring/Summer tour (see the details here) and in the Fall I went to Brazil for another week on the road to attend to 2 shows of the band: one in Recife and the other in the "Rock in Rio" Festival at Rio de Janeiro. The former with "Blood on Blood" being sung as surprise in a stadium that was half standing. As to the later, the ballad "Always" stood out in one of the shortest shows I've them play on tour but notheless very energetic in an Olympic Park with its more than 100 000 attendees.



All in all 22 shows during 3 years in 4 different continents and 11 countries to see my favourite Rock Band not it their finest hour but rather controling their efforts to perform as good as they could. Jon's voice kept declining during the tour but as the band got more and more rotation the songs became more solid. For the memories and places that I visited this was without a doubt a remarkable tour that I will never forget!

2013 What About Now Tour

By 2013 I had already crossed Atlantic and followed Bon Jovi both in Europe and North America, so it was no surprise that during that year I went to Montreal to see the band playing two nights. It was an interesting time since Richie had released a solo record and the band as well, so what I saw during those 2 nights was a Richie Sambora on fire and Jon not so much. Little did I know that a month after the guitarist would depart from the band, simply not showing up for a show. Nobody knew then if it would be something for a short or long period of time so hope was kept that Richie would tour with the band during the Spring shows in Europe.

That didn't hapened so I saw Bon Jovi play in the historic Olympic stadium in Munich, Manchester city's Ethiad Stadium, Birmingham, Lisbon and at Milan's San Siro Stadium that year. The band rocked in Munich, Manchester and Milan but not so much in Lisbon. Their new tunes fit the set list and "That's What the Water Made me" was well received by the audience as the show opener. The single "Beacause you can" or the album tracks "What about now" and "What's Left of me" were ok, but the acoustic balldad "Amen" felt a little unconfortable since it took the spot from a great rendition the band had done the tour before of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah".

Phil X gave a lot of energy to the crowd and the huge stage consisting of a replica of the front of a classic buick car took the event to the stratosphere production wise. The classics were of course not forgotten and every night the crouwd would sing "Bad Name", "Wanted", "Bad Medicine", "Keep the Faith", "It's My Life" and "Livin'on a Prayer" from the top of their lungs. During the Milan's show the Italian fans prepared a surprise for the band consisting of a stadium sized banner that took the lead singer to tears.



In October I went to Las Vegas to see the band play the MGM arena and although they rocked there was some sort of strangeness with the lack of Richie on the guitar. Phill X and Boby Bandiera covered all the guitar parts while David Bryan assumed most of the backing vocals, but the chemistry of the band was afected which led me to tears by the end of the show. By this time I already picked the shows I wanted to see Bon Jovi in places I was interested in visiting so although the Bon Jovi show was sort of a confirmation that the great times had passed, the trip had a lot of good moments.

2022: Bon Jovi@Nashville,TN

In April 2022 Bon Jovi embarked on a 15 date tour during 30 days. It was the aftermath of the Covid pandemic and the band wanted to get back on the road to promote their 2020 record. I saw them in their final show in Nashville, TN, but, even before taking the plane, I was already anticipating what I would witness. As always, I had seen every set list and watched the videos fans posted of their live performances and something was not sounding right: Jon had lost his high notes! The band was still sounding musically strong; Jon, just one month after completing his 60th anniversary, still got his Rock Star moves and was able to fire up the whole crowd whether when opening the show in the middle of the crowd to deliver their biggest hit in America: “Livin’On a Prayer” or closing the night with a passioned rendition of their 80s ballad “I’ll be There for you”; Phil X was playing killer guitar solos ("We weren't born to follow" outro solo was a great addin); and the whole band sounded better than in any other tour ever since Richie’s departed in 2013. But the lead singer’s high notes were not there anymore and all the heavy lifting on vocal parts were done by David Bryan (the band's co-founder and keyboard player who has been with Jon since his High School days), Everett Bradley (the percursion guy who joined the band in 2016) and Phill X (the lead guitar who had to replace Richie Sambora in 2013 and has been in the band ever since). Maybe it was a too tight schedule for the band these days, but I believe the singer should either stop and try to recover his high notes back (because there are examples of other Rock Singers who also lost their voices in the past for periods of time and were still able to recover it), or embrace a new type of live show, concentrating on their low key and/or acoustic versions of their songs (something they have always done during their career whether in acoustic performances or even on record, when in 2003 the band released “This Left Feels Right”). I remember Jon also had voice problems back during the band’s 1986/87 “Slippery When Wet” Tour when Jon had to take shots to have his voice during live shows, and despite that, he was able to recover it to perform brilliant shows between 1988 and 1990, supporting their “New Jersey” huge success and subsequently during the 90s and 00s.


During the Nashville show I was at row 9 on the floor, to my left there was a lovely couple in their late 70s of retired Florida residents who had attended to the Eagles show the night before and confessed they were there for the entertainment and had not much patience to hear political speeches; to my right there were four teenagers who were most likely been born after Bon Jovi released their latest global hit "It's my Life" in the year 2000. None of these people knew any lyrics, the couple sat for most of the time and the young ones, although sometimes on their phones, jumped for most part of the songs. At the end all of them were with a smile on their faces and pleased with the band's performance. What does this mean? Well I felt I was filling the gap between those two generations of Americans (and I'm not totally independent since this has always been my favourite band), but as I said above, my ears hear a very poor voice from the lead singer, and despite that fact, there's something about this band that in spite of all the dificulties and nayers (that have always been there) can actually please and entertain a crowd fom teenagers to elder people, making everybody feel their passion and ultimitely having a great time.



That being said, my opinion remains however that until Jon has his high notes back, the band should not play arena or stadium shows, and either try to heal Jon’s voice first or pursue a more intimate sort of show, since this is not the voice we have all heard for almost 40 years, so there is no need to hurt a legacy, built with so much effort and that allowed so many of us to dream and survive trying times to fight for a better and happier life! I stay true to what I’ve done and believe. I have absolutely no regrets on all the Bon Jovi shows I’ve attended in the past because I got back so much more than I gave. Unfortunately I also need to tell what my ears hear and not praise them over past glories. Like one of those 80s Nr 1 single’s says: “I can’t promise you tomorrow, but I can buy back yesterday” or in their 90s anthemic album title track mentions: “these days are fast, nothing lasts, in this graceless age, there ain’t nobody left but us These Days”, it’s time to face a tough reality, not giving up and definitely putting up a fight for a better tomorrow, because their legacy can be carried on, even if in other ways.


The magic of people coming together to sing the same songs, feeling the same emotions and fighting for their dreams is the nation Bon Jovi contributed to, one with people from all walks of life, races, nationalities, cultures and/or social status. These emotions are possible through songs and other Art forms and I’ve witnessed them first hand both with 80 000 people in a stadium or in an intimate club with a few hundreds: “These are my streets, the only life I’ve ever known”! I want to believe that April 2022 is just a lowdown month in their career that, like any other, has its ups and downs. So for a better tomorrow, let’s “Keep the Faith” and see what the band comes up for 2023 and their 40 year anniversary! Until then we are once again all “Livin’On a Prayer”!!!

1995: Bon Jovi at Lisbon: what could had been my first Bon Jovi show

On June, 15th 1995 I was a 12 year old kid listening to the radio and feeling what could have been my very first Bon Jovi concert. I had to wait 8 more years, but still these are my memories from an evening that the band played their third show in Lisbon, Portugal. Enjoy.....

2019: Bon Jovi European Tour

In 2019 Bon Jovi toured Europe to promote This House is not for Sale(2016).

From historic venues (Wembley in London, the RDS in Dublin, the Olympic Std in Munich; Wanda Std in Madrid or the Piața Constituției in Bucharest, Romania) to cities they hadn't visited for over 30 years (Moscow, Russia and Liverpool, England) or even ones they never had been before(Tallin, Estonia). From remote places like Stavenger, Norway; Sonderborg, Denmark; Coventry, England or Klagenfurt, Austria; to parks in Tel Aviv, Israel and Nijmegen, the Netherlands and even a Festival in Werchester, Belgium playing with John Forgery (from the Credence Clearwater Revival); or with the Manic Street Preechers in the UK and Ireland; or even Def Leppard in Germany and Austria.



My journey began in Moscow where the band came back after 30 years to Lenin Std; one week later I was in Stavenger, Norway to see the band and the Fjords in a Northern Summer; the 2 dates at the RDS in Dublin followed and the leg's finalle took place in Wembley and Coventry, England, UK.As to the second leg of the European Tour I went to Munich, Madrid and historic Bucharest. Thank you to all my friends who joined through this journey. It was a very fun one:)

With Phil X and Hugh McDonald now officially on board and with John Shanks and Everet Bradley as back musicians Bon Jovi have once again seen a million faces and Rocked them all.

Great memories on the road and great official videos from the band to let us remember not to forget this great chapter of the history of the iconic band from New Jersey. So here's my playlist from the official videos that were released:

2011: Hope Concert in New Jersey by Xmas

During Christmas 2011 I had the chance to visit New York City for one week and just like in the movies I was overwhelmed by the spirit of the city. All its shinny lights, Christmas trees and ice skating rings provide the perfect atmosphere for the season. Wherever you go, there’s always a Christmas classic playing and even if the streets are filled with people rushing to buy all the presents, it is impossible to ignore the countless Christmas street decorations and smiling faces, who warm the low temperatures.

Whether in Central Park with its ice skating ring, cozy zoo or epic urban nature landscape; Times Square where it is impossible not to stumble upon hundreds, if not thousands, of locals and tourists under the most concentrated area of neons in the world or Rockerfellar Center with the Worlds most famous Christmas tree, ice skating ring and zillion tourists trying to capture the place’s magic; it is impossible to avoid the grandiosity of the city and the season. It is like the whole world is concentrated in a couple of squares and dozen of streets that connect mid town New York!

From the busy city where everything is rushed and there’s no time to waste, we took a train and headed South, passed through the industrial Newark, its international airport, and as we were going on and on, more and more familiar names started to show up in the signs. First Perth Amboy, then Woodbrigde and just a few minutes from our final destination there was Middletown. The trip only took hour and a half, but the difference between big city New York and the small town Red Bank is one of the United States most signature wonders!

Red Bank is a very small town, but one filled with charm and sophistication. Impeccably adorned for the Christmas season, Broad street overwhelms its visitors with cosy shop fronts. Either in Starbuks, Jack Music shop, in one of its of fancy restaurants or cool dinners, the little town is a fairy tale wonder land of brick and stone.

After a sunny day, the centenary theater named after the famous Jazz legend Count Basie, lightened for a sold out night. Local legends and young generations shared the same stage to raise money for a good cause. The musical production was under the direction of Bobby Bandiera, a long time Jersey shore veteran who is more familiar to the theater than anybody else. Tim McLoone and the Shirleys kicked off with a 3 song set, warming up the crowd, before the theater’s CEO and city’s mayor introduced the show with humorous and yet eloquent speeches. It was time for the main act to go up, so Bobby B. himself took the microphone and immediately melted the ice. His 8 piece band included Hugh McDonnald, who we were very familiar with since he’s been touring and recording with Bon Jovi and Jon for the last 15 years. He then introduced Layonne Holmes and shortly there after Nicole Atkins. Each main act was given between 2 to 5 songs leading the professional band conducted by Bandiera to harmonious renditions of either old time classics or their catalog’s hits. Bryan Fallon folllowed Nicole Atkins, counting with the helpful hand of Southside Johnny, the Jersey Coast local legend. Gary Bonds took her own bass player, switching sides with Hugh, delivering a soulful performance. Once again SSJ jumped in towards the girl’s final song, staying for the performance of one of his most memorable songs: “This Time is for real” and an excellent duet with the night’s host Bobby during “Broke down piece of man”.

It was then time for the show’s most iconic artist to appear and it was easy to realise why the 49 year old Jon Bon Jovi still rocks millions of faces to this day. The crowd couldn’t stay on their feet and the fuzz of countless cameras shooting at the stage was impossible to ignore. The Pearl Harbour native conducted the band, taking over the stage’s spotlights. He came up quietly with “the letter”, but couldn’t help himelf not to rock, before “Having a Party” and his band’s classic “Wanted Dead or Alive”. He also had time to joke on the fact that a gossip had spread all over the internet just a few hours before that he had been found dead. He made it a funny moment before kicking with another hit: “Who says you cant’ go home”. It’s funny to see how cheered the song is in the man’s home State, while in so many stadiums around the world it gets such an average response. The feeling of belonging the sing along chorus carries is unmistakably from the Garden State that embraces it and echoes heart felt “It’s Alrights” over and over again. The main set was closed by Bon Jovi’s latest hit single “We weren’t born to follow”, getting also a warm response from the small theater’s attendees. The 3 song encore included the Season’s favourite tunes with JBJ making the harmonies for “Blue Christmas” along Southside and commanding the troops for “Run Run Rudolph” with all the artists sharing the stage. A handful of Sesame’s street characters made an appearance and even Santa showed up on stage. For the show’s grand finale, “All you need is love”, JBJ left, avoiding rush hour, leaving a joyful town singing along in a Christmas evening.

The warmth faded silently into the Jersey night, but the spirit can never be forgotten by those who were present in such a cosy evening.

For the following day we had time to make a stop in JBJ’s brand new Soul Kitchen, a “pay what you want” stylish restaurant, that is the latest of his philantropic initiatives, before waving Broad street, Navesink river and our very familiy oriented hotel fair well.

Heading to the big city lights we experienced an entertaining evening watching Broadway’s Musical “Rock of Ages”, which is a pleasant narrative unified by the 80’s Hair Metal classics including songs of artists such as White Snake, Poison, Twisted Sister, Journey and even Bon Jovi. Hilarious, but still cohesive, the story has all the glamour and professionalism of a Broadway production.It should have been named Rock of the 80s though.

With nothing more than 24 hours left, there was only time to go back to Mid Town’s hot spots and try to capture a little more of the city’s season spirit. New York city is definitely worth visiting during this time of the year since despite the low temperatures and yet lack of snow, it has a pulse impossible to describe in words, sounds, pictures or videos. The atmosphere is simply overwhelming and one cannot help but to feel such an almost tangible magic. Although decided last minute, and with basically no preparation, this trip will always be remembered as the one that showed me Christmas can merge both materialistic and spiritual worlds in a single season.

2011: Canada

In February 2011 Bon Jovi were only a week into their Greatest Hits Tour in North America and we thought it would be the perfect occasion to see them up in the north, where concerts were long famous or being special and energetic. Toronto was our first stop.

The Air Canada centre is a state of the art arena, with excellent acoustics. The band got onstage with the regular “Blood”, “Bad Name”, “Born Baby”, “Follow” and even these songs sounded great. Jon made his first speech saying it would be a special show since it was Valentines. He announced his brother Tony would be looking for cute couples to show in the big screen and eventually have them kissing for the camera. A very American football thing, but rather amusing though.

They kicked segment 2 of the show with “In these arms”, getting a good reaction, while new tune “No apologies” proved to fit perfectly the live environment, unlike “The more things change”, which is over the top with so much bla bla bla from Jon about them coming full circle and how the world needs more people who actually can play and not only being pretty faces who know how to perform. “Pretty Woman” was played full and on its own, while Robert Palmer's “Bad case of loving you” filled the medley spot mid “Medicine”.

“Lay your hands” had Richie a good crowd participation, but it was Jon who let everyone speechless with a very Sinatra, raw and sentimental “My funny Valentine”, appropriate for the occasion. Next up was another surprise: an acoustic version of “Superman Tonight”. It was amazing to watch such an emotional song stripped down to its bare bones. A perfect version of “Bed of Roses” followed and romanticism got to its peak with the duo of Jon and Richie singing “I'll be There for you”. The band then got back to the regular set to deliver the never ending alright “Home”, the rhythmic “Sleep” and an astonishing “Keep the Faith” that confirmed how good the show was being.

The biggest surprise of the night turned out to be “Thank you for loving me”, a ballad that had not been played since 2001. The perfect fit for a romantic evening. “Wanted” followed with class but Jon didn’t want to go home and so he fired “Sat. Night” and “Older”, showing how into the show he was, while “Prayer” wrapped up the night. “Sat night” had a very interesting twist with the band singing ohhhhh hoooos at the end with the audience echoing it for a while. Unbelievable how a song can still be upgraded after so many twinks.

The Bon Jovi show #2 in Toronto was promising as Jon showed up at the back of the arena playing “Last man standing”, taking the audience to hysteria as he touched everybody's hands on his way back to the stage by the end of the song. Both crowd and band were on fire for the rockers that filled the first segment, just untill Jon made his pretty speech and kicked off “Whole lot of leavin”, which replaced “Arms” from the night before, while “Beautiful” replaced “The more things change”. “Die for you” got played in stead of “Runaway”. Great song, with a down side: Bobby Bandiera played the solo, completely changing it. This time “Medicine” had some Rod Steward's “Hot legs” and Jon took the time to properly introduce the King of Swing, who had another good reaction while singing the religious “Lay your hands”. Jon made his comeback singing “Make a memory” at the circle. Next thing, Richie joined Jon for a rare performance of “Diamond ring” electric. Brilliant guitar solo! The song provided the perfect atmosphere for “There for you” played immediately afterward. During the final batch of rockers of the main set the only difference to the night before was actually “Nice Day” that replaced “No Apologies”.

The encore opened with a very professional version of “Dry County”, a masterpiece that only lacked a little emotion to become memorable. Just as the night before, Johnny didn’t want to leave and threw in some bar party with “Love this town” and gave “The more things change” another chance. Just like the night before Jon gave a speech about how long the band had endured to see the industry come full circle. Obviously Jon loves the song although the audience doesn’t care that much. Once again everyone got on their feet screaming while the band said farewell to Toronto with “Prayer”.

A couple of days off and we flew to Montreal, Quebec. For the first show in the French speaking city, the expectations were really high, but the band opted for a long vanilla set list, with only 1 surprise: “Squeeze box” from the Who, which is funny but not impressive. Out of the 27 songs played “Dry County” was the only fans cared about. It is more than obvious Jon is very proud of “Change”, hence his neverending speech, while before “Love this town” it was funny to see how Richie was not ready when Jon started, and they kept talking and laughing, ending up kicking off the track 2 more times. At the end of the day, we got a 27 song, 2h40m show, full of fillers, or as we ended up calling it the never-ending vanilla show.

In the following day, there we were again at the Bell Center, and this time I had the best seat of the the whole 4 Canadian shows: 2nd row Richie's side behind the catwalk. The band opened with “Happy Now”, a stunning opening theme that just kicked off perfectly a night filled with surprises. Jon sounded really great and it took him just anther 3 songs to fire the first outstanding moment of the night: “Radio”, during which Jon made an emotional speech about how he got a DJ to play his first song on the radio and how he speed up in his car while listening, cause he had finally made it. For a few moments he was the boy who fulfilled his dream and 27 years later is still on top to tell the story. Brilliant!!!

They then turned on the auto pilot until Richie took everybody to church while singing “Lay hands”. He was not particularly OK during these shows, making a lot of mistakes, which is really unusual for him. Jon then appeared by the catwalk center to deliver the 3rd surprise of the night: “Livin in sin”, a stunning performance of a superior song. Richie then joined Jon for another great rendition of “There for you” with the whole crowd participating. It was probably the loudest crowd I ever heard, unbelievable. Even Jon commented "I wish the Jersey crowd was this loud". Tico and Dave were then invited to join the dynamic duo for an unexpected acoustic version of “Blood on Blood”. After 60 shows I keep hearing new variations of the songs, and this one had not been played for 8 years. It sounded great, just like the versions of the bootlegs of busks during the 90s.

Auto pilot was switched on again up until “Love is the only rule” that wrapped up the main set with the usual emotional speech. This was in fact a great surprise for the die hards who were able to see Jon walk through the pit touching the fans and demanding a lot of choirs during the songs finale.

The encore kicked off with a big loud party: “Sleep”, a song I was getting tired of, but which had a boost of energy during this tour. And if during the 3 other shows the song was energetic, what to say about a medley that included 3 covers!!! “Star me up” was Bobby's cover, while Jon kicked “Jumpin Jack Flash”. When everybody thought they would get back to “sleep”, Jon launched “Dancin in the Streets”. A true menage a troi in the very french Montreal. The band then went straight to Wanted and Prayer with astonishing sing alongs. The band said goodbye but everyone cheered them. Everybody left except Jon who, overwhelmed by the crowd, called the guys for the perfect finalle: “Keep the Faith”! Not a surprise as the moment was most probably planned, but nevertheless grand.

The show was intense and filled with great gems, although lacking some spontaneity, since everything was so planned to the second. Also the show was somewhat rushed as the band was traveling immediately after the show. However, this was the best out of the 4 shows in Canada, since it had 6 big surprises and was filled with fun moments all along it.

All in all, 4 amazing shows, including a very unique Valentine's special. Two regular shows that included unbelievable versions of "Dry County" and "Diamond Ring" and a non stop Party show, with the loudest indoor crowd ever!!!

2010: MTV Award Weekend in Madrid

Friday, November, 5th 2010, I took an 1 hour flight to Madrid, where MTV had settled all its glamour to celebrate the year's Europe Music Awards. The city was filled with the year's biggest celebs and Bon Jovi were the veterans to be honored on the very first Global Icon award the network gave away.

Friday night and the whole Saturday was spent queueing for the sold out in 3 minutes show the band had scheduled for the tiny 2000 seat Teatro del Circo, a show meant to promote the Greatest Hits in Europe. After long hours waiting, me and all the Portuguese comitee ocupied the first couple of rows to make sure Portugal was noticed by the band.

The evening started out quietly while a strong drum beat unvealed the first surprise of the night: "Not Fade Away", a Buddy Holly cover Jon Bon Jovi had used as an opener during his 1997 "Destination Anywhere" promo shows. One of those concerts was broadcasted by MTV at the time, and became the last public reference from the network to the band. Just like in 1997, the lights started pointing only towards Jon's eyes while he gently delivered the song's first lines. When Tico hit the drums with an extra energy, the house lights turned on to unveal 6 musicians eager to rock the place out.

There was no time for rarities or special requests, as only the big hits fit in the set list. Jon was the host for all his fellow show bizz celebs that attended to the event and he drove the crowd like only he knows to achieve a massive response and prove why the words Global Icons fit like a glove to the band's legacy.

"Bad Name", "We weren't Born to Follow", "Lost Highway" and "It's my Life" kept the energy sky high proving the hits are spread throughout all their career. The place was really small, and Jon could easily touch balcany fans at the edge of the stage. He took the time between songs to thank MTV for the support before kicking off their latest single "What do you got?", a melodic song whose universal message and loud choirs towards the end make it pleasent to be heard. The cinematic "When we were Beautiful" provided the most intimite moment of the night, proving it is when the band steps forward and breaks new ground that they achieve the best results. The crowd kept singing the Sha La Las and Jon demanded an encore for the choir. Brilliant!

The cowboy anthem "Wanted Dead or Alive" was the perfect kick off to the show's second energetic marathon, rocking 2000 more faces and paving the way to their Country "It's Alright" sing along "Who says you can't go home". The band kept an intense Faith, delivering a medley of the Rolling Stone's "Simpathy for the Devil" by request of a deafening crowd singing the "huh huhs" of the song. The band was on fire and both Richie's perfect add libs solo and Jon's tradicional moves made sure the crowd was at their feet. The band's biggest hit "Livin' on a Prayer" followed so absolutely no doubt could be found of the band's capacity to overwhelm a crowd. The whole weekend was a celebration of Music and what better way could the band choose to embrace contemporary trends than to invite young Pop diva Rihanna to show up and help with the song's highest notes? The legendary band shared their stage with the Teen's Idol in their carrer's defining song, proving they are willing to cross more and more genarions to keep their Iconic status.

An encore break followed, allowing the audience to catch their breath, but it didn't take long before the band came back with their "Have a Nice Day" attitude, another smash hit included on their new greatest hits package. There was still some addrenaline left so jon had to ask D. Bryan to kick into some "Bad Medicine", in a rollercoster ride of energy. Not satisfied, the lead singer asked if everybody was having fun, telling Bobby Bandiera to give him some Juke Box music. Jon said he needed some means of communication better than the audience's english or his poor spannish. He added his Portugese was no better, to which the Portuguese comitee reacted fiercily. Bandiera shared the mic during a long "Pretty Woman" jam, before Jon anounced he was too old for that shit and wanted everybody to "Shout". The Isley Brothers' song had everyone's participation and only left the energy for one last dose of "Bad Medicine". The crowd wanted more, but the band had already made their impression, providing enough evidence of why to be called Global Icons.

During the whole show there were some issues with the sound quality, since the room was really small and the band's gear is proper for their more familiar oversized venues.

Overall, a very typical promo show that despite clocking bellow the 80 minutes, couldn't let anyone's shirt dry out of sweat. The show can be best described as a highly concentrated pill of some of Bon Jovi's medicine, making us all remember that regardless of what the band plays (even if it's just the hits like it was the case) whenever the band is happy, there is no crowd that is able to resist them, as they work their asses off to prove their status.

Next day we attended to the Europe Music Awards and got a really nice spot in the front row, Dave side. The recording of a TV show, even if it's live, is always boring and there were a lot of dead moments. Of course there were some entertaining artists, but it was only when Bon Jovi were announced as the first artists to receive the Global Icon Award that things got interesting. Jon made an uninspired speech and let Tico say hello in Spannish. We then had to wait for another 2 hours, since the band would close the show.

Their performance was business as usual and, being the great live band they are, they didn't need to put much effort to be able to set the crowd on fire. They played "What do you got?" in order to promote their new single, followed by the crowd favourites "Bad Name" and "It's My Life". We had a last minute banner that said "Portugal congrats Bon Jovi" and Bobby, David and Jon made sure we knew they saw it. The band was cheered as the Global Icons they official are now....

The extended weekend had come to an end and thinking back it was really a nice surprise to be able to see the band just 5 months after their last European marathon. As tickets for the "Open Air Tour" next year become available there are definitely lots of plans to make, so time will surely fly until we can stand before them again ....

2007: NYC and the Historic nights at the Pru

The final chapter of our November 2007 trip to the land of dreams was about to begin as he left the Prudential Center for the third and 3 whole days exploring the wonders of the Garden state
November, 8th was a thursday morning and once again we were in the train crossing the linculn tunnel from Newark Pen station to New York. The same train a young Jon Francis Bongiovi took everyday when in the early 80's he was working in his uncle's Power Studios. There we could breath the same air and absorb the people's routines. A train in which we were even able to make contact with someone who really resembled the character Joey Keys from the Bon Jovi song. We were living what we had read times and times before, but now it was our turn to step in those shoes. To be able to replicate routines and walk in the same buildings and streets, one is really able to capture the contribution each of those places had to the artist's pieces. Songs like Runaway, Hey God or Joey mean much more now we have walked on that ground and breathed that air.
Just as we walked out of the train and got up the stairs we were at the center of the ocidental world: the center of Manhatan. With the Empire State building just in front of you and crowded street that flowed to the place everything happens, the heart of capitalism: Times Square. It's unbelievable the atmosphere one can feel there. No picture or film are able to capture the grandiosity, glamour or exacerbation of the place. It's like all the cultures from all over the world can fit in a couple of square miles. Something one really need to visit to understand.

The remaining days were spent visiting some of the Big Apple's most tourist spots, either at the top of the Empire State Building, at the Statue of Liberty or at some of its most famous streets, being it Broadway the 5th, or 7th Avenue. Most of all, it is walking through these streets that you can really feel the heart beat of the city.We litteraly were living the exiting life at the center of the biggest urban center of the planet: Manhatan, while in the evening we traveled back to Newark and attended to another Rock shows.

On November, 9th, for the first time we had floor tickets, and even though we were still far from the stage, we had a way better view than in any of the previous two shows. The "All American Rejects" knew exactly how to warm up the crowd and proved their teen catchy punk/pop is very enjoyable live.

"Lost Highway", as usual, kicked off the show with good vibes. One of my favourites from their Country influenced record, Summertime was next, replacing the eternal 2nd song to be heard on their shows, "Bad Name". Right after the song was over the surprise of the night was revealed: they would play their new record from start to finnish. It was the very first time the band did such thing and the energy and good humour provided the perfect atmosphere to a unique night. The never before played tracks were the most anticipated and were delivered with the passion of the songwriters who want to share their hidden treasures. During "One Step Closer" it made me shivers as Jon was hugging himself with his eyes closed and singing like if he were at a small bar whispering in our ears. "Seat next to you" was dedicated to a fan who was at the first row, and it was memorable the way the lead singer demonstrated how gentle and tender he can be towards his fans. "Everybody's broken" was a statement about Jon and Richie's relationship and the pain recent events caused to them. "Strangers", despite performed by Jon solo had a cheerful reaction from the crowd. It may not have the strength either "Always" and "Bed of Roses" had, but it is easily their best post 2000 ballad. Most of the songs were introduced with the story behind it and interesting and enlightning inspirations were shared.

And what could they deliver after the whole new record? Their biggest hits, of course, and that was what we heard for the next hour. Hit after hit, we heard some of the most relevant songs from the previous 25 years. Prayer, Bad Name, Born to be my Baby, It's my Life, Have a Nice Day, Runaway, and Bad medicine were the most cheered. It's unbelivable how a single band has so many well known songs from such a long period in time, either contemporay to a specific moment in time, or timeless, mont turned into milestones in many people's lives.
But the moment of the night was still to come, and it was when returning from the encore break the band started to play "I'll be There for you", with Jon on the lead vocals. After 2 World tours with Richie taking over the song, Jon borrowed it for 1 night and presented it in its original form, with such passion no one could hold their breaths. The song is one of their carrer's most successful ones and the way it was performed took it to a whole new level. Richie played an astonishing solo, putting all his soul into his guitar, while Jon gave to the words an incredible emotion that made this the best rendition of the song I had ever heard. Simply amazing.
Everybody cheered at their feet while Wanted, the band's official anthem, was played. Sat. Night closed a perfect night with Jon singing at the top of his lungs the "I'm Alive" part after the guitar solo. ANother brilliant performance.

What can you say when a show is so surpriseful, professional and emotional? I can only describe it with 1 single word: "Perfect".
When the show was over we noticed there was something going on as we saw many people with backstage passes that we figured would meet the band. I even got the chance to congratulate Richie's ant, whit her smilling me back, saying how proud she was of her nephew. We eventually were forced to go back to the hotel, but we were all aware of how special this night had been. A unique concert we will remember for the rest of our lives.

New York City by day, and Bon Jovi at the Prudential Center in Newark in the evening. This time we were in for the last of the 10 nights the band had set themselves to play in their home state of New Jersey, the most sold out of all shows, and of course the most anticipated.

Surprises showed up right from the first moment, when a sketch from Saturday Night Live featuring Jon with his 80's long hair trying to convince a young teenager life wasn't so tough as she saw it. Simply hilarious, especiallly when we know we are about to witness a Bon Jovi show. All the band was onstage when the sketch came to an end, performing a long burst of chaos, turned into "You Give Love a bad Name", the eternal 2nd song to be played in their live shows wat the show opener establishing a party that would last for the whole show. More than the songs that were played, it was the enthusiasm and celebration atmosphere that were felt since the marathon of 10 shows in the same venue was coming to an end and it all had gone for the better as all the shows were practically sold out, turning this to a milestone in the band's career.
For me the special moment was when Jon appeared in the middle of the arena and sang "(You wanna) Make a Memory" from there, just like he had done in 2005/2006 with "Blaze of Glory" in their indoor tour around North America. He was a few metters away from where we were, undoubtly the closest I could get to the band's leader in these batch of shows. "Bed of Roses" TLFR style followed with jon returning to the stage during the song, while saluding all the fans he was passing by.

But the party went on and on and it didn't stop before we could hear another come back song: "Twist n Shout", the cover song from the Beatles they used to finnish all their 2001 "One Wild Night" shows was brought back, and with a lot of energy. And when the song was over the band pulled another cover song to please the crowd: "Treat Her Right" didn't let anybody on their seats, as everybody was jumping and cheering. The New Jersey classic song brilliantly closed the show, with jon walking through the audience towards the back of the arena, where he was last seen for that night. It was the perfect finale for a marathon that brought Bon Jovi fans from all over the world to their home state, and what better than a taste of New jersey music to close the final curtain.
We then had the chance to take some pictures with Obie, the band's sound engener and close friend, as well as group pictures at the door of the brand new venue that was debuted with these shows.
November, 11th was a eneded in an instance as we just had time to once again walk in some of New york city's most glamorous streets before we had to take our plane back home.

The trip was a whole dream that became a reality and once again a statement of Bon Jovi's ability to make us keep fighting for our dreams. But just as some dreams came true, more started to appear, and with a world tour announced during the shows we had attended, we knew a whole new adventure was to come very soon, and a very special one, since this time, after 13 years of absense, Portugal was in their plans. Still we managed to breath in and realize we had just witnessed another golden page in our Bon Jovi book of memories.

2007: At the Garden State

After the first couple days spent in NYC, and another couple of shows at the Prudential Center from our favourite band, we drove south to the heart of the Garden State and the place where the band's mentor lived for almost 20 years: Red Bank....

It was November, 5th, and We woke up to a surprisingly sunny day which we started off smothly by taking breakfast in a very cosy cafetaria at the city center. We then visited some hot spots in Red Bank, before getting to the car and started to drive through the state by daylight. As we were driving by what we saw was a very quiet and peaceful place with houses resembling the movie "Home alone" or cartons like "The Simpsons" with a gardens ahead of them . Crossing the river we got to "Middletown" and a much more reserved area where we could only see gates at every couple of miles. Among these mansions is located Jon Bon Jovi's french chateu, with the river at its backyard and a very green landscape of trees making sure no one can disturb their peace. Not very far, "Ramson" is another mansion area where we were able to take a look at both Jon's and Richie's homes of the late 80's, early 90's. It was like we were inside our imaginations, visiting places we had seen in so many pictures, but had never figured we would be able to actually visit.

Moving south by the shore, we got to Bruce Springsteen's home town of "Long Branch", a place also very mentioned in Bon Jovi stories. The road with the ocean on one side and the tradicional american houses along local shops in the other, created the perfect scenario for a typical jersey postcard. We visited "the Element's", Jon's younger brother, Mat, lounge and the church in which Tico Torres and Eva Herzigova got married in 1994. We couldn't help but to spend a few minutes at the beach, where we were able to witness furious waves clashing against the rocks. It was impossible not to think that "only" that immense ocean was between all these magical places and our homes. A few moments to take a deep breath a absorb the vibrations and we were ready to continue our journey.

As our stomachs started giving signs of hunger, we went to what Jon publicized as his favourite Pizza parlor: "Humberto". Here we got in touch with real people, who are simple and down to earth, realizing the kind of values the band memebers were raised with.

We still had time to stop by "Road Side Dinner", a small dinner by the road, where the band shooted both the promotional pictures for their 1994 "Crossroad, Best of" compilation of hits and the "Someday i'll be saturday night" 1995 music video, a song released in the same album. Unfortunately it was already night when we got there and worst of all lucks it was the precise day of the week the restaurant closed earlier. Nevertheless we got some pictures and tried to see as much as we could.

We finally took our final route of the day and headed to "Atlantic City", where we would stay for 2 nights. And what a city, specially by night, when all the shiny lights give colour to this mini "las Vegas". As we got to the hotel, we were stunned as it was located at the center of the city and had its own casino. Our room was at the 44th floor, and the sight at our window was astonishing, as all the citie's glory was at our feet. We could say that we were installed in a very fashioned way, having luxuries we thought we could never experience.

We had dinner at a franshised restaurant called "Johnny Rocket" and a very amuzing waiter hosted us. The guy resembled the idea we Europeans have of the typical redneck and so we spent really funny moments there. And if the waiter was already a reason to enjoy the time we spent there, what to say about the coreograohy all the waiters performed when the "Bee Gee"'s song "Staying alive" was playing on the jukebox. Even an old lady joined in for some dance moves with the waiters. Definitely a priceless mmoment. Simply hilarious!

On the following day, November, 6th, we finally could say we had a day off and so we relaxed for most part of it, either gambling at the casinos or shopping in fancy cloth brands outlet shops. The boardwalk by the beach is a must, while each thematic casino has its own magic. The lust atmosphere completely overwhelms you, making you think of the fortunes that are earned and lost here, precisely what the song named after the city by the state's own "Bruce Springsteen" captures: the city of hopes, where dreams come true and souls get lost forever. One really needs to visit the place to understand both the exuberance and despair such city is able to embody.
The following day we were already driving north, out of Atlantic City across the New Jersey state is a good way to enjoy some of its beauties: the typical American houses, bridges over calm rivers, boardwalks by the ocean and forests prove why it is called the Garden state.

"See Sight Hights" is a little town with beach and boardwalk where Bon Jovi shooted the 1985 "In and Out of Love" video. The place is filled with shops, outdoors and everything summer turists need to enjoy some day of rest at the beach. It was a shame we were in the late Autum, and so not only every place was closed down, as we could not see a single living soul. The strong wind helped to create the sensation we were in a real ghost town. Definetely a spot to come back in the Summertime, when I'm sure people fill the place with life.

We kept heading North until our next stop: "Asbury Park", a town not as clean as others we had visited before, making us believe the local economy was not well those days. Some unfinished tall buildings stood out in the landscape, while the boardwalk along the ocean beach is probably its the nicest spot. And just across the avenue along the boardwalk, there it was, another mythical place: the "Stone Pony", a bar where local bands perform. A place where bands like "Southside Johnny", "Bruce Springsteen & the E Street band" or, our favorite, "Bon Jovi" played countless times when ,still teenagers, they chased records deals and crafted their performence abilities. It was closed when we were there, but even from the outside, it's not hard to imagine all the stories those walls hide. Just a few bloks away another local bar: the "Fast Lane", this one only identified by an old sign with its name on it, since the place looks to have been abandoned for a long time. It's a shame, such an afer mentioned bar now lives only in the imaginations of the the ones who visited it in the past.

We still thought of visiting Sayreville and Woodbridge, but somehow messed up with the directions and eventually got to Newark, where we had a few hours to rest in our hotel before our 3rd Bon Jovi show.

The seats for this show were as bad as last time, at the top tier, only this time on the right hand side of the arena, on Hugh's side of the stage.

The band brought back "Summertime", "Older" and Richie's rendition of "These Days" to the set list - just like they had played them in the 1st show. "Last Night" was a nice adition eventhough the audience didn't react much. It is a song filled with deep meaning, but most casual fans can't apreciate it. "Whole lot of leaving" is one of Jon's favorite songs from "Lost Highway" and the one he uses to complement the crowd for the first time in every show.

People all around us were on their seats like if they were watching a movie, even complaining if we would stay up on our feet for a long time. This time we couldn't help but to feel completely out of place. Definitely these are not seats for fans like us. "Last man standing" and "Lay you hands on me" were not forgotten, while "(You wanna) Make a Memory" was as intimate as if we were in a small bar. But it was only with "Bad Medicine" that the crowd stood up and cheered. The band noticed it and delivered "Shout" setting the place on fire. "Have a Nice Day" and "Who says you can go home" provided good sing along moments, while "Livin' on a Prayer" was, as expected, the crowd's favorite.

After a short encore the band returned with "Any other day", the second surprise of the night. The song keeps growing as its lyrics get stronger up to the chorus. But the highlight is the solo when Richie delivers notes from heaven and Jon calls one at the time Kurt, Boddy, Dave, Lorenza and Richie, giving them a chance shine with a solo of their own. Brilliant moment, proving this is probably the new album's finest tune.
"Wanted Dead or Alive" followed, with audience singing alone the first verse. Always a classic at every show.

"Someday I'll be Saturday Night", being a fan favorite, was the last song to be played and what better song to wrap up the second part of our journey. After 3 days visiting places that one way or another all related to the band's early days, this is the song that best relates to the days when either alone or as a group, the members of the band struggled to find their place in the spotlights. Days in which everything seemed to go wrong and that there was no future, but just as the song puts it, people long for a saturday night and keep fighting for their dreams.

It was definetely not the band's best show, but for me it was a very special night that brought to an end a 3 day marathon where I finally had the chance to visit some of the places that saw the band, both individualy and colectively, blossom to the world.

And this is how chapter 3 of our trip came to an end, although we still had 2 Bon Jovi shows to attend and a "Big Apple" to further explore

2007: NYC and the first shows at the Pru

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....

2006: Have a Nice Day European Tour - 3rd Leg 4 shows in 5 days

On June, 8th 2006 I departed for the 3rd and final leg of my Bon Jovi European Tour experience, and no doubt that despite I had not recovered from the previous 3 weeks, I still had the toughest journey ahead.

I took a plane to London, after which I had to take a train to Southampton, where I camped outside the stadium by myself to queue for the Bon Jovi show. The hot sun woke me up early the following day. Fortunately there were stadium staff toilets right next to our camping, so we could use them to get ourselves washed for the day. Sunny and hot, those two words sum up the whole day.

The band kicked off with their traditional rocker from their last release. They followed with "Rockin'all over the world", just as they had done in Manchester and Coventry. But this time I was present and I have to say the it really fit in the set. Great sing along "I like it ...I like it ...", just very contagious. The usual "Bad Name", "Captain Crash", "Die for you", "Born to be my Baby", "Story of my Life" followed. The time machine introduced "Runaway" and back to 2006 we heard "Radio". As they moved to "Sleep", the first surprise of the night was revealed: "Jumpin' Jack Flash", 10 years after their last performed it, and it sounded fresh and funny as always. "Dancin' in the Streets" was also played in the "Sleep" medley which reminded me of the Hyde Park 2003 superb show. After so many shows "Sleep" got full circle and was loose and funny enough that reached its perfect format. "In these Arms" was another great moment since Dave sang the second verse, and the song carried a tremendous amount of energy as usual. "Have a Nice Day", "Who says you can't go home" and "It's my Life" kept the energy high and a brilliant interpretation of "There for you" by Mr Sambora took everyone's breath away. The more he sings it, the better it sounds. "Complicated" proved to be one of the last album's strongest live songs. "Medicine" had an excelent rendition with Jon giving a speech about having volunteers to rock the house with him. Richie, Hugh and Bobby joined him as he walked slowly from front of drums towards the edge of the stage, posing like the real Rock starts they are - Great interlude. "Raise your Hands" kept the mood, while "Prayer" was sung by the whole stadium to close the main set. After a short break they got back with "Bells of Freedom", "Wanted" (with the audience singing the 1st verse ans Richie the 2nd), "Everyday", in one of its rare performences in 2006, and stunning version of "Faith".

At the final bow Jeff saw me and waved me hello. He even said something to Tico pointing at me. I was a real funny moment. Jon was at his top game, and I saw as he noticed the Portuguese scarf I carried. Finally I have add this was the best spot I got for the tour. It was front row center, between Jon and Richie

It was then rush hour as I walked as fast as I could towards the train station, to arrive, after a zillion adventures, in Milton Keynes at 2:00 a.m., where many of my Portuguese friends were expecting me.

On June, 10th 2006, after a long night traveling and with only 2 hour sleep I managed to survive through the day and end up on the 5th row, between Jon and Hugh with my friend Sara by my side. In Jon's mythical words during the Wembley 95 3rd show "It was a long day in a hot sun" and indeed that was what we witnessed from 3 pm 'till 8 pm only relived with the enthusiasm of a local band and Nickelback, who were in a very good mood.
When the band everybody was waiting for hit the stage, it was easy to realize why we were about to witness the biggest party of the tour. I had never seen so many people screaming and singing at the top of their lungs. The guys were in a great mood and the set list started to become special when in the middle of "Sleep When I'm Dead" the band threw in a meddley of "Papa was a Rolling Stone" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", something they had not playd in the previous 10 years, which immediately reminded the 1995 World TOur. "The Boys are Back in Town" was probably the biggest surprise and the band was in such a good mood, that even Richie went to Jon's mic to talk with the crowd. Jon reacted making fun of the guitarist and his old haits, only to be acknowledged with some funny moves.

"Bells of Freedom" was played in the middle of the main set, just before Richie stood up for another stunning performence of "I'll be There for You". "Complicated", "Raise your hands" and "Livin'on a Prayer" ended the main set with band and audience on fire.
Everybody was nuts and there were tons of screams, although it must be said that it was during "Livin'on a Prayer" that all the madness reached its peak. It was impossible not to hear the crowd singing every word of the 80's favorite, with Jon extending the final chorus again and again so the vibe could last for some extra minutes. Superb.

For the encore, they saved the fan's very favorite tunes, and so after a moving rendition of "Blood on BLood", "Someday I'll be Saturday Night" was performed passionately wih Jon giving a speech in its interlude. The words came directly from his heart as it was impossible not to feel his emotions taking over. Afterwards another highlight: "Livin in Sin", a song the band had not played in Europe since the 80's, raising emotions to sky heights. "Wanted Dead or Alive" and "Keep the Faith" grabed the magic and turned it into pure addrenaline, being the perfect ending for round #1.
After the show was over everyone ran to get the best place in the queue for the next day's show. And so we queued for the next 16 hours before, returning inside the Milton Keynes Bowl and watching Nickleback performing for the last time in front of the Bon Jovi audience this tour. The support were visibly moved by the good times they spent on the road with such a cool guys.

As to the main event, if the band had one and only one concern to this gig was to make it different from the night before. Not decreasing the quality, they repopulated the set list in order to give the audience a complementary performence from what they gave on show #1. That being said, they started with "Keep on Rockin' in the free World", another gemn they barely play live, which sounded fresh and amazing. Richie was wearing a Quee's guard hat and the guitar trio posed for a while, letting al their charisma take over. "Wild in the Streets" and "Just Older" replaced "Rokin' all over the world" and "Radio" respectively, anf if the former is always able to set a party mood, the latter gave the hard core fans a treat shared by the pleasure the band shows when playing it. Jon spoke about the Wembley Stadium not being finnished in time, and the subsequent replacement of the venue to the Milton Keynes bowl thanking the people for not returning their tickets and sticking with the band. They played "Always" to the fan's delight, even if in the "This Left feels Right" version. "Everyday" replaced "Complicated" from night 1, while "Bounce" was added and a long version of "Dancing in the Streets" showed up in the "Sleep when I'm Dead" medley. Jon let Dave sing the 2nd verse of "In THese Arms" and it was very cool seeing Jon making fun of his camarade for the fact he messed up with the lyrics. "Shout" was appended to the end of "Bad Medicine" and the main set was closed with "Livin' on a Prayer", as the crowd got completely hysterical.

As to my personal experience, Jon smilled at our banner saying "Portugal: fine wine, Hot women, Great weather! What else do you want?", and he also acknowledged the one saying "Portugal brings sunshine to this tour". He even made a cool sign with his finger when I showed the one saying "I Believe", making us thing they could actually play the song - which eventually did not happen. Bobby and Hugh also reacted to the banners laughing to some of them.

After the encore break, the band returned with "Blood on Blood", "Wanted Dead or Alive" and "These Days", before bowing to a giant valley of people surrended to them. After pretending to have finnished, when TIco asked the crowd to cheer up so Jon would want to come back for more, they got back to their instruments and performed "Last man Standing", probably the most epic song of the album being promoted, followed by an extended version of "Keep the Faith". During this song there was a little incident in which Hugh didn't saw Jon's sign to start playing the bass line for "Sympathy for the Devil", the front man started singing and only then the musicians started playing the song. After the song the band thanked with Jon promising they would be back again. Overall there were less surprises then on night # 1, but undoubtely it was no less than another brilliant show.
the next day we took the train and headed to Hull, where we would be seeing the last show of the European 2006 Tour. Again we queued for the night and managed to get by before getting into the last venue of our 2006 tour. It rained a lot for the following 3 hours and the 2 opening acts were really terrible. Niklebeck were missed as we had to listen to some kids who couldn't play in a syncrhonous way, and the next ones were no better since they couldn't play anything other than slow tunes. Too bad to be truth.

When the 4 guys from New jersey finally hit the stage, the rain magically stopped and we stood there seeing the "Last men standing" up on stage of their final 2006 European gig. The first couple of songs were very good with Jon smilling a lot and the band sounding very strong. The first sign that something was wrong for me, was when when they abruptally skipped the extra chorus by the end of "Born to be my Baby", or shortly there after when Jon didn't stand next to Richie during the 2nd verse of "Story of my Life". But is was the last show, and I was too emotionally atteched to the momento to feel anything bad could happen. "Blood on Blood" was a nice surprise, since it was played in the main set, and Jon had the chance to thank everybody for following them for the tour (and smile when saw my signature Portugal scarf).

"One last fucking time" was the sentence with which he signed Dave to sing "In These Arms"'s 2nd verse, and once again Dave messed up and said the wrong words, switching the last 2 lines of the song. Jon's sentence and mood were now becoming too obvious that something was not alright. After an energetic version of "Have a Nice Day" they played "Who says you can't go home" with Jon asking the people to move the song from nr 2 to nr 1 sending text messages. And it was this song that under the farewell scenario did realy touch me, gaining a whole new meaning for me. It represented the end of the tour after a whole month following these guys, the lyrics could not get more meaningful. I sang for the last time that song from the top of my lungs and the bottom of my heart as tears were dropping down my face. "Been there, Done that, I ain't looking back, it's been a long long road, feels like I never left, and so the story goes.... it doesn't matter where you are, don't matter where you go, if it's a million miles away or just a mile at the road, take it in, take it with you when you go...." and that was it, my face covered with tears and my voice barely being able to come out as my emotions had reached the surface. I was saying goodbye for now to one of my life's most precious experiences. Life on the road with my heroes, From north to south, by plane, car or train, laying on a different bed every night, spending too much time on the telephone and rocking with every single one of those million of faces that shared with me these 14 shows.

"It's my Life" was kind of recovering for me, but the tears came back as Richie put all his heart into "I'll be There for you"... I was definetly there for them, and I was aware the band knew it. "Complicated" rocked the house, but unfortunatly it was the last one, since all the remaining songs were fast fowarded in auto-pilot. Jon was angry at something, not even looking at Richie by the end of "Wanted Dead or Alive". After a 3 song encore the band bowed with Tico, Dave, Hugh, Bobby and Jeff smiling, while Richie kind of struggling to be nice, and Jon not being able to hide his bad mood.

I only had time to grab the set list and go with my friends to the hotel... with everything coming back to my mind. It was over, in the worse way, with the worse of the 14 shows.
June, 14th, 2006, after taking the train to London, we waved goodbye to our tour buddies and left London, taking a plane back home, only to realize we were completely exhausted. This journey was over.. but the passion was stronger than ever.