Together and with The Power of We, we can start a revolution. One Soul at a time... ~Jon Bon Jovi *** There's a Story on every street corner, my friend. All you have to do is open your eyes... ~Richie Sambora

Review: Bon Jovi in Abu Dhabi October 1, 2015

Friday, October 2, 2015

Review: Bon Jovi fails to hit the high notes at Abu Dhabi concert



Review: Bon Jovi fails to hit the high notes at Abu Dhabi concert

ABU DHABI // It’s probably safe to say this won’t go down as a vintage Bon Jovi tour.
The band’s first outing to begin without longterm guitarist Richie Sambora – a low-pressure 12-city jaunt around Asia – was already struck by calamity, with three shows cancelled due to government intervention (in China) and a typhoon (in Taiwan). Arriving in Abu Dhabi for the penultimate night on Thursday, one felt a certain sense of hang-on-and-hope in the air.
The little-known That’s What the Water Made Me marked an underwhelming entrance. Quickly followed by 1980s hair-metal anthemsYou Give Love a Bad NameRaise Your Hands and Born to Be My Baby, the cracks were soon evident for all to see and hear – Jon was noticeably struggling to hit the high parts of these heyday classics. Was it a bad night, or are his 53 years starting to show? The way the frontman artfully rephrased, re-pitched, or left the rest of the band to fill the blanks suggests this isn’t the first time.
Ironically duller, newer material like Who Says You Can’t Go Home andLost Highway worked far better, pitched in keys that suit Jon’s latter-day vocal style.
There’s no escaping the missing void where Sambora once stood. Replacement session player Phil X does a fine job of copping the second vocal part in Wanted Dead or Alive, but there’s key, iconic solo work he can’t/won’t play.
A band known for their ballads (Bed of RosesAlways et al), there was a sad lack displayed Thursday night – because, one imagines, Jon’s vocal frailties may be exposed.
One plodding new song is titled Because We Can – but sadly it’s not clear if this is the case, anymore.
Perhaps the most affecting moment is a fresh acoustic band rendition of Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night.
Other highlights include retro rocker I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead and a rousing Keep The Faith.
During Have A Nice Day I overheard one punter attempting to sing the chorus to It’s My Life, a song already performed that evening – let’s face it, they’re much of a muchness.
Following the inevitable Livin’ on a Prayer, the lights went up after little more than two hours. Writing about the band, I’ve used a fast food analogy before – much like a burger binge, a Bon Jovi gig satisfyingly hits the spot, but leaves you feeling slightly guilty and nauseous afterwards.
What next?
In contrast to November’s upcoming Mötley Crüe show, there was a distinct lack of any pyrotechnics or effects. Back to basics works – but when the support band, the UAE’s promising Carl & the Reda Mafia, have more multimedia than the headliner, you have to wonder if this is Budget Bon Jovi (although it was nice to see Jon drinking Al Ain water onstage – no diva here).
When, earlier on, Jon announced new single We Don’t Run, not a soul applauded. It was the only cut to appear from 2015’s Burning Bridges, a “contractual obligation” release which severs ties with Mercury, the band’s record label of more than three-decades.
Which really raises the question – what happens next?
Without Sambora, the pretence of Bon Jovi the Band has been crushed – the other three were reportedly “paid employees” of their namesake all along.
But as most fans still think it’s a “he” not a “they” anyway, why not cut loose with another solo album, add the name “Jon” to the ticket stub, and loose a few of those embarrassing falsettos along the way?

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Queenie would love to know who's following along. Comments are both encouraged and appreciated!

Queenie's Loyal Subjects

About Me

My photo
I am and always have been a Bon Jovi fan. This blog is just my obsession taken a step further, my imagination in high gear if you will. I love to read and decided to see what would happen when I took that love of the written word and ramped it up a bit.

You Can Go Home

Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation

The Traveling Guitar

What Q Has to Say

30th Anniversary Access Hollywood Advil Aftermath of the Lowdown Albums AMAs American Idol Articles Auctions Avon Awards Bamboozle Festival Because We Can Because We Can - the Tour Benefit Concert Biker Bash Billboard bits and bobs Bon Jovi Books Born to Be My Baby Bruce Springsteen Burning Bridges Calvin and Hobbes Campaign Can Do Awards Cari Quinn Characters Unite Christmas CNN Comics Concerts Contests Danny Gokey Daughtry David Bergman David Bryan Digital Download Disaster Aid Discography Diving Into Hampton Water Do What You Can DVDs DVR Alerts Extra Facebook Fan Club favorites Fictionistas Football Forbes Fun Stuff Fundraisers Golden Globes Golf Greatest Hits gulf shores Hamptons Happy Now Hard Rock Calling Holidays Hugh McDonald Hurricane Sandy In Memoriam Inside The Actor's Studio Interviews Jazz Fest Jennifer Nettles Jon Bon Jovi Jon Bon Jovi and Friends Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation Keep The Faith Kings of Suburbia Letterman London Love's The Only Rule Madison Square Garden Master Class MDA Telethon Memphis Merchandise Merry Christmas Midnight Mission Miscellaneous Mohegan Sun Montreal Movies MTV Awards Music New Jersey New Meadowlands Stadium New Years Eve News No Apologies NY Giants O2 Orianthi Out and About People Magazine Philadelphia Soul Philanthropy Pictures President Obama Promo Q Quebec quickie Rants Real Estate Rehab Reviews Richie Sambora Rock and Roll HOF Rock Band 3 Rock in Rio Rock of Ages rock star baby Rockin' Rio Royal Beach RSO Slippery When Wet SoHo Penthouse Soraia Soul Kitchen St. Bart's Story Updates Streaming Stumping Superman Tonight Superstorm Sandy TaraLeigh Taryn Elliott TDB Television The Band The Circle The Circle Tour The Grammys The Grove The Today Show The Tony's This Ain't A Love Song This House is Not For Sale This is Our House Throwback Thursday Tickets Tico Torres Tour Dates Toxic Avenger Tribeca Film Festival Twilight Twilight Saga Valentine's Day VH1 Videos Washington DC wayback wednesday We Weren't Born to Follow Webcast What About Now What Do You Got When We Were Beautiful White House Council White Trash Beautiful Wine WTC Anniversary WTF You Can Go Home

  © Blogger template Brownium by Ourblogtemplates.com 2009

Back to TOP