"...so this was supposed to be the first date, but is the second....was supposed to be at Wembley, but is at Milton Keynes...thank you so much for being here...just goes to show you don't need an arch to have a good time...", said Jon Bon Jovi. When the 'F**k Wembley' sign held up by a fan appeared on the big screen it got a massive cheer - venue was unimportant, they were here to have fun. What had I let myself in for??
Answer - a really good day. A day spent with friends in glorious weather with a good concert. Support was 'the best unsigned band in England' (who were OK) and Nickelback - who were good and I even recognised one of their songs. Then came Bon Jovi...
It's never been trendy to like Bon Jovi - easy to sneer at them and their big hair. But is it fair? Yes their songs are fairly simple, but are they really that different from Springstein, John Mellencamp or Tom Petty??? What you get is a great show - they played for over 2 & half hours belting out all their classics and the crowd sang along. You are surprised how many of their songs you actually know - yes I even joined in on Living on a Prayer - it's difficult not to!
Does this mean now I'm a fan? Not especially - I still think his finest work was probably in Ally McBeal - and I'm not going to buy their CDs. But you have to admire that they've been around over 20 years, sell out their gigs (to a surprisingly young crowd) and still deliver. They come across as a group of nice guys who enjoy playing music turned all the way up to 11 and can work a crowd. Their fans love them and are going to have a blast and a mass singalong.
They may never be cutting edge or trendy - but they are hard to dislike.
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All names have been changed to protect the guilty....
When you want to give up and your heart's about to break, remember that you're perfect - God makes no mistakes.
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