Review: Bon Jovi ~ Sunrise BankAtlantic Center
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Fans brave the rain to rock with Bon Jovi in Sunrise
By Kate Dingle Live Shows, Rock April 20, 2010
Sunday night, fans lined up outside of the BankAtlantic Center in the (at times) pouring-down rain for the opportunity to catch the original Jersey boys, Bon Jovi, bring the house down.
Lets face it, Bon Jovi are rock gods. Folks of all ages flock to whatever venue they happen to be playing and Sunday’s show was no different. It seemed as though fans were bused in from wherever it is they came from and there was not a single available parking spot on site. No one seemed to mind that they were soaking wet and the camaraderie between lifelong fans created a sense of family and oneness.
When the house lights went down, the arena immediately began to vibrate with screams and cheers. Sunrise was ready to be shaken to its very core courtesy of Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Tico Torres, and David Bryan. Without so much as word, the quartet opened their set with “Blood On Blood” from their 1988 release New Jersey. As soon as Sambora ripped into his first solo, it was very clear that Bon Jovi is still a force to be reckoned with in today’s ever changing music scene. Without so much as a hesitation, the guys moved right into their 2009 smash hit “We Weren’t Born To Follow” accompanied by a slew of politically driven graphics.
After proclaiming that “the only American idol you need to see is standing right here!”, Bon Jovi led his band into one of their greatest hits of all time, “You Give Love A Bad Name”. The more the front man danced awkwardly around the stage, the more his adoring (female) fans hooted and hollered. And I’m sure the skin-tight black pants he was wearing didn’t hurt.
After following up with “Born To Be My Baby” and “Lost Highway” things got a little serious as Jon Bon Jovi described the following song as one that he and Richie Sambora were proud of as songwriters and that “This decade is an important one. It needs to be a WE decade and not a ME decade”. The song was “When We Were Beautiful”.
Quickly kicking things back into overdrive, the hunky musicians rocked through “Superman Tonight”, “We Got It Goin’ On”, and “Bad Medicine” (which included a portion of the Robert Palmer hit “Bad Case Of Loving You”). They also went on to cover the Leonard Cohen classic “Hallelujah” before treating fans to an acoustic performance of “Something For The Pain” with all members of the band joining Jon on the outer arc of their circle shaped stage. Other set highlights included “Keep The Faith”, “Work For The Working Man”, “I’ll Be There For You”, and “Who Says You Can’t Go Home”. The set ended with “Love’s The Only Rule” off their latest release The Circle.
When the house came back up, an electric guitar clad Jon Bon Jovi screamed “Encore! It’s 1984!” before jetting off into “Runaway”. As soon as Richie Sambora donned his signature doubleneck acoustic-electric, we all knew what was coming next. As the infamous intro to “Wanted Dead Or Alive” began, concert goers quickly took over the role of lead vocalist. It wasn’t until the second verse that Bon Jovi resumed his role as the leader of the pack. The show was closed out with a blistering rendition of their smash hit “Livin’ On A Prayer”.
Although their big hair and outrageous clothes have come and gone, Bon Jovi seems to be stronger than ever with no signs of ever stopping. With a career that spans nearly three decades and several musical genres, the four friends from the Garden State have found the secret to success in a cutthroat business. They play to sold out crowds nearly every night and do the one thing that many performers don’t: They actually enjoy themselves.
I heard several complaints throughout the night that the show was “disappointing” and “sounded like church music” and “I’m from Jersey and I don’t even know what they sing”. Well I have only one question for you: Why on earth would you stand in the rain for however long and wade through the thousands of people who actually wanted to be there if you didn’t? Was it Jon Bon Jovi’s cute little butt in those skin-tight pants?
By Kate Dingle Live Shows, Rock April 20, 2010
Sunday night, fans lined up outside of the BankAtlantic Center in the (at times) pouring-down rain for the opportunity to catch the original Jersey boys, Bon Jovi, bring the house down.
Lets face it, Bon Jovi are rock gods. Folks of all ages flock to whatever venue they happen to be playing and Sunday’s show was no different. It seemed as though fans were bused in from wherever it is they came from and there was not a single available parking spot on site. No one seemed to mind that they were soaking wet and the camaraderie between lifelong fans created a sense of family and oneness.
When the house lights went down, the arena immediately began to vibrate with screams and cheers. Sunrise was ready to be shaken to its very core courtesy of Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Tico Torres, and David Bryan. Without so much as word, the quartet opened their set with “Blood On Blood” from their 1988 release New Jersey. As soon as Sambora ripped into his first solo, it was very clear that Bon Jovi is still a force to be reckoned with in today’s ever changing music scene. Without so much as a hesitation, the guys moved right into their 2009 smash hit “We Weren’t Born To Follow” accompanied by a slew of politically driven graphics.
After proclaiming that “the only American idol you need to see is standing right here!”, Bon Jovi led his band into one of their greatest hits of all time, “You Give Love A Bad Name”. The more the front man danced awkwardly around the stage, the more his adoring (female) fans hooted and hollered. And I’m sure the skin-tight black pants he was wearing didn’t hurt.
After following up with “Born To Be My Baby” and “Lost Highway” things got a little serious as Jon Bon Jovi described the following song as one that he and Richie Sambora were proud of as songwriters and that “This decade is an important one. It needs to be a WE decade and not a ME decade”. The song was “When We Were Beautiful”.
Quickly kicking things back into overdrive, the hunky musicians rocked through “Superman Tonight”, “We Got It Goin’ On”, and “Bad Medicine” (which included a portion of the Robert Palmer hit “Bad Case Of Loving You”). They also went on to cover the Leonard Cohen classic “Hallelujah” before treating fans to an acoustic performance of “Something For The Pain” with all members of the band joining Jon on the outer arc of their circle shaped stage. Other set highlights included “Keep The Faith”, “Work For The Working Man”, “I’ll Be There For You”, and “Who Says You Can’t Go Home”. The set ended with “Love’s The Only Rule” off their latest release The Circle.
When the house came back up, an electric guitar clad Jon Bon Jovi screamed “Encore! It’s 1984!” before jetting off into “Runaway”. As soon as Richie Sambora donned his signature doubleneck acoustic-electric, we all knew what was coming next. As the infamous intro to “Wanted Dead Or Alive” began, concert goers quickly took over the role of lead vocalist. It wasn’t until the second verse that Bon Jovi resumed his role as the leader of the pack. The show was closed out with a blistering rendition of their smash hit “Livin’ On A Prayer”.
Although their big hair and outrageous clothes have come and gone, Bon Jovi seems to be stronger than ever with no signs of ever stopping. With a career that spans nearly three decades and several musical genres, the four friends from the Garden State have found the secret to success in a cutthroat business. They play to sold out crowds nearly every night and do the one thing that many performers don’t: They actually enjoy themselves.
I heard several complaints throughout the night that the show was “disappointing” and “sounded like church music” and “I’m from Jersey and I don’t even know what they sing”. Well I have only one question for you: Why on earth would you stand in the rain for however long and wade through the thousands of people who actually wanted to be there if you didn’t? Was it Jon Bon Jovi’s cute little butt in those skin-tight pants?
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