BON JOVI – Keep the Faith
Bon Jovi – Keep the Faith (1992, Mercury Records)
1. “I Believe” … 5:58
2. “Keep the Faith” … 5:46
3. “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead” … 4:43
4. “In These Arms” … 5:19
5. “Bed of Roses” … 6:34
6. “If I Was Your Mother” … 4:27
7. “Dry County” … 9:52
8. “Woman in Love” … 3:48
9. “Fear” … 3:06
10. “I Want You” … 5:46
11. “Blame it on the Love of Rock and Roll” … 4:24
12. “Little Bit of Soul” … 5:44
Band:
Jon Bon Jovi – Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Richie Sambora – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Alec John Such – Bass, Backing Vocals
Tico Torres – Drums, Percussion
David Bryan – Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Producer: Bob “Let’s Not” Rock
Four years after the band peaked with New Jersey, here comes the slide into mediocrity (which would be fully explored in the 2000s). This album is a mixed bag (the first half is good, most of the rest is filler), but it signaled a somber, more mature sound that would be taken even further with These Days from 1995. In general, Keep the Faith shows the band’s decision to rock a little less and age into an adult contemporary rock act.
Filler starts popping up with “If I Was Your Mother”, but the excellent & epic “Dry County” (Bon Jovi going the Springsteen/Mellencamp route) and “I Want You” (a power ballad that would sound right at home on Slippery When Wet or New Jersey) and worth skipping too. Outside of those two songs, the second half of this album features some of my least favorite Bon Jovi songs.
The odd thing is, the album overall shows the band getting softer and slower, but “If I Was Your Mother” and “Fear” are two of the heaviest songs the band has ever done. Perhaps they were trying to compensate for the rest of the album?
Highlights: “I Believe”, “Keep the Faith”, “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead”, “In These Arms”, “Bed of Roses”, “Dry County”, “I Want You”
December 21, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Dry County is by far the best song on this album and among the best they ever performed.