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Bon Jovi – Slippery When Wet
Bon Jovi – Slippery When Wet (1986, Mercury Records)
1. “Let It Rock” … 5:25
2. “You Give Love a Bad Name” … 3:44
3. “Livin’ on a Prayer” … 4:09
4. “Social Disease” … 4:18
5. “Wanted Dead or Alive” … 5:08
6. “Raise Your Hands” … 4:16
7. “Without Love” … 3:30
8. “I’d Die for You” … 4:30
9. “Never Say Goodbye” … 4:48
10. “Wild in the Streets” … 3:54
Band:
Jon Bon Jovi – Lead Vocals, Guitar
Richie Sambora – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Alec John Such – Bass, Backing Vocals
Tico Torres – Drums
David Bryan – Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Producer: Bruce Fairbairn
Hard to believe I haven’t spoken about this ’80s classic yet! In fact, this is one of the best rock albums of all time, in my opinion. Alongside other multi-platinum ’80s hard rock monsters like Back In Black, Pyromania and Appetite for Destruction, Slippery When Wet was a game changer and has continued to influence bands up until today.
When I first got into the CD game, this was one of the first CDs I owned because Bon Jovi was one of the first bands I got into when I actually started taking an interest in music (Guns ‘N Roses & Poison were my other early faves as a teenager). Still, I have remembrances of this album when I was a kid. This was an album that you would’ve had to have been deaf to avoid in ’86/’87. MTV, radio, skating rinks, school dances, my sister’s stereo… It was all over the place!
Some of the songs have aged worse than others because of the keyboards (“Without Love”, “I’d Die For You”) but I still say every track is a classic and they’ll all have you singing along in no time. Virtually any song here could’ve been a hit if it went to radio. Slippery When Wet is to Bon Jovi what Hysteria is to Def Leppard and the 12x platinum sales in the U.S. alone prove it.
The funny thing is, it’s been said that had this album not been successful, the story goes Bon Jovi was more than likely going to be dropped by the record label because the last two albums weren’t big hits (only the self-titled debut made a ripple) and this was basically their last chance. The label told the label to work with Desmond Child as a co-writer and gave them solid but then-unknown producer Bruce Fairbairn (with engineering by a young Bob Rock) and the rest is history…
Timeless and yet still a sign of the times (this album always makes me think of the typical ’80s mall) Slippery When Wet is a pop-metal masterpiece (yes, Jon, you were once a pop-metal band) that I’ll always keep coming back to. Essential listening for ’80s rock fans.
Highlights: Um… All of them.
Bon Jovi – Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection
Bon Jovi – Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection (2010, Island Records)
Disc 1
1. “Livin’ on a Prayer” … 4:13
2. “You Give Love a Bad Name” … 3:46
3. “It’s My Life” … 3:46
4. “Have a Nice Day” … 3:48
5. “Wanted Dead or Alive” … 5:11
6. “Bad Medicine” … 5:16
7. “We Weren’t Born to Follow” … 4:03
8. “I’ll Be There for You” … 5:46
9. “Born to Be My Baby” … 4:40
10. “Blaze of Glory” … 5:40
11. “Who Says You Can’t Go Home (Duet With Jennifer Nettles)” … 3:50
12. “Lay Your Hands on Me” … 3:49
13. “Always” … 5:56
14. “Runaway” … 3:53
15. “What Do You Got?” … 3:47
16. “No Apologies” … 3:44
Disc 2
1. “In These Arms” … 5:19
2. “Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night” … 4:39
3. “Lost Highway” … 4:04
4. “Keep the Faith” … 5:46
5. “When We Were Beautiful” … 4:10
6. “Bed of Roses” … 6:38
7. “This Ain’t a Love Song” … 5:06
8. “These Days” … 6:27
9. “(You Want To) Make a Memory” … 4:36
10. “Blood on Blood” … 6:16
11. “This Is Love, This Is Life” … 3:25
12. “The More Things Change” … 3:53
I’m a huge Bon Jovi fan. They’re one of my favorite bands, which is funny because I really can’t stand their last few albums and their shift towards country and adult contemporary rock/pop. Also, I’ve become somewhat jaded because it’s more obvious than ever that the band is really a brand and it’s completely Jon’s show to run. I think as he’s getting older, Jon has started to come off as a bitter guy for whatever reason, he denounces the ’80s hair metal scene they were fully-fledged members of at one time and he just seems to be on a power trip with only Richie having the smallest say in what the band does. To me, their last decent effort was 2002′s Bounce and with a few song exceptions, anything they’ve done since has been extremely bland and lacks the hooks and catchy choruses they built their name on in the ’80s and ’90s.
So anyway, this is the band’s fourth compilation album. Though to most fans, it’s really more like their second legit straight-forward compilation. 2003′s This Left Feels Right was an acoustic reworking of many of their best known songs and 2001 saw a Japan-only greatest hits released called Tokyo Road. The very first compilation was Cross Road. It was released in 1994 so given that the band has had a number of hit songs and albums since then, it was definitely time for another recap.
The tracklist is pretty solid. Sure there are personal favorites I could say I would have liked to seen included but keeping with the “greatest hits” theme, the album does it’s job. Especially in the Ultimate Collection form. It reads like a set list of what you would probably hear the band play in concert these days. I was caught off guard by “Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night” (which was a new song included on Cross Road) and These Days getting two songs included but it’s cool because I like all three of those songs. The only studio album not represented on any of the U.S. releases is 7800° Fahrenheit (“In and Out of Love” and “Tokyo Road” appear on international versions).
There are a few different versions of this album. First there is the simply titled Greatest Hits, which is just disc one (featuring two new songs). Then there is Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection which features a second disc (and two more new songs). Then there’s also a Target edition of Greatest Hits which has all of disc one plus live versions of “Diamond Ring” and “We Weren’t Born to Follow”. Then the iTunes version features all the material from disc one and two plus a 5th new song called “This Is Our House”.
I definitely wanted The Ultimate Collection because all four new songs were slowly being released on the band’s website for streaming and I liked them all a lot. Someone pointed out to me that they all sounded like modern Bon Jovi (which we’ve already covered I don’t like) and I guess they are right. Maybe I’m just ready to like Bon Jovi again? Who knows! “What Do You Got?” is my favorite of the new songs but I think they’re all good. Maybe not songs that can compare to their classics but very good for modern day Bon Jovi, I think. So I’m happy with my purchase. I’m enjoying the new stuff and while I don’t usually bother listening to compilations these days, you really can’t go wrong with a collection of Bon Jovi’s greatest hits.
http://www.bonjovi.com
http://www.facebook.com/BonJovi
http://www.myspace.com/bonjovi
BON JOVI – The Circle
Bon Jovi – The Circle [Deluxe CD/DVD Limited Edition] (2009, Island Records)
CD:
1. “We Weren’t Born to Follow” … 4:03
2. “When We Were Beautiful” … 5:18
3. “Work for the Working Man” … 4:03
4. “Superman Tonight” … 5:12
5. “Bullet” … 3:50
6. “Thorn In My Side” … 4:05
7. “Live Before You Die” … 4:18
8. “Brokenpromiseland” … 4:57
9. “Love’s the Only Rule” … 4:38
10. “Fast Cars” … 3:16
11. “Happy Now” … 4:21
12. “Learn to Love” … 4:39
DVD:
When We Were Beautiful – Documentary
Band:
Jon Bon Jovi – Lead Vocals
Richie Sambora – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Tico Torres – Drums, Percussion
David Bryan – Keyboards, Piano
Additional Musicians:
Hugh McDonald – Bass
Charlie Judge – Keyboards
Producer: John Shanks with Jon Bon Jovi & Richie Sambora
It’s hard to believe after only releasing two albums in the 1990s that Bon Jovi is now on their fifth studio release in the 2000s alone (The Circle is actually their sixth studio release if you want to count their acoustic reworkings of their own songs on This Left Feels Right). And I haven’t even mentioned the live album and box set they released this decade! So yes, the band has been extremely active this decade with a steady stream of albums and world tours that sell out wherever they go.
The downside to all of this? Their music overall hasn’t been up to snuff with their ’80s or even ’90s output. Their “comeback” album Crush was great, different but great. Bounce rocked harder and was really good. After that, the band has turned into a bland rock band that doesn’t really rock at all and they’ve dabbled way too much in country rock in an attempt to stay relevant (but it worked for a bit, so what do I know?).
In hype for this album, Jon and Richie promised they were done with Nashville and that the album’s title was a reference to the band coming full circle and getting back to rock ‘n’ roll and that they were giving us a “big rock record”. Well, I can tell you this much — thankfully, most signs of Lost Highway are gone (perhaps lost?). I wouldn’t say this album is “big rock” at all, but it is a better effort than Have a Nice Day even if it still sounds similar to that release. I had been hoping this would be closer to Bounce (“Bullet” comes close), but no dice.
I realize that the band is laughing all the way to the bank with the steady stream of bland, safe rock ‘n’ roll made for their soccer mom fans, but I really wish these guys would pay attention to the minority of fans that want a harder edge and huge sing-along choruses. I don’t expect a sequel to Slippery When Wet or New Jersey (though the band does offer up the bass line from “Livin’ On A Prayer” for “Work for the Working Man”), I don’t want a nostalgia release, but throw me a few bones! Give me a couple of songs that have that feel good over the top vibe that band had up until Keep the Faith.
Noticeably absent is the classic Bon Jovi sounding ballad that doesn’t care what decade it is. Even on the awful Lost Highway the band managed to squeeze out the under appreciated “(You Want to) Make a Memory”. Desmond Child co-wrote that song and he helps out a bit on this album, but even his involvement can’t save this album.
Ultimately, The Circle is another collection of mediocre, thoughtful and mature rock songs (Just like U2!) that don’t please this old school Bon Jovi fan and I can’t imagine reaching for this album in the future.
The CD/DVD limited edition comes with the 75 minute B&W documentary When We Were Beautiful, which follows the band on their Lost Highway tour from 2007. It’s a pretty interesting look into the workings of the band.
Highlights: “We Weren’t Born to Follow”, “Work for the Working Man”, “Bullet”, “Brokenpromiseland”, “Happy Now”
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”
BON JOVI – Have a Nice Day
Bon Jovi – Have a Nice Day (2005, Island Records)
1. “Have a Nice Day” … 3:49
2. “I Want to Be Loved” … 3:49
3. “Welcome to Wherever You Are” … 3:47
4. “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” … 4:40
5. “Last Man Standing” … 4:37
6. “Bells of Freedom” … 4:55
7. “Wildflower” … 4:13
8. “Last Cigarette” … 3:38
9. “I Am” … 3:53
10. “Complicated” … 3:37
11. “Novocaine” … 4:49
12. “Story of My Life” … 4:08
13. “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” [Duet Version] … 3:50
Band:
Jon Bon Jovi – Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals
Richie Sambora – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Tico Torres – Drums, Percussion
David Bryan – Piano, Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Additional Musicians:
Hugh McDonald – Bass, Backing Vocals
Jennifer Nettles – Lead Vocals (“Who Says You Can’t Go Home” [Duet Version])
Dan Huff – Bouzouki, Mandolin
Johathan Yudkin – Fiddle, Mandolin
Dan Dugmore – Steel Guitar
Produced by: Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, John Shanks, Dan Huff, Rick Parashar
I absolutely did NOT like this album when it was released and it quickly was thrown in with the rest of my collection and forgotten. There’s a few songs on here I like, but this album is Bon Jovi’s full-blown descent into mediocrity, soccer mom rock and the land of no hooks. The signs were starting to show on Bounce that the band was becoming content to just be bland, but it’s even more apparent here.
Unfortunately, the album spawned the big crossover hit “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” featuring country music group Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles. Whether you’re listening to the duet version or not, they’re both pretty country sounding and neither one is good. Sure, if this song was a blip on the Bon Jovi radar, that’s one thing, but I said it was an unfortunate hit because it “inspired” (meaning Jon & Richie saw dollar signs) the band to follow up this album with the Nashville-flavored Lost Highway.
“Last Man Standing” is probably the closest song resembling the band’s harder rocking heyday and a version of it was included on the band’s 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong box set. The song was originally meant to be included as one of two new songs on the band’s This Left Feels Right acoustic album where they covered some of their own greatest hits.
Even long time collaborator Desmond Child could help this album much. He co-wrote “Bells of Freedom” with Jon & Richie (and was executive producer of the album) but the magic just wasn’t there this time.
Highlights: “Have a Nice Day”, “I Want to Be Loved”, “Last Man Standing”, “Complicated”
BON JOVI – One Wild Night: Live 1985-2001
Bon Jovi – One Wild Night: Live 1985-2001 (2001, Island Records)
1. “It’s My Life” … 3:51
2. “Livin’ on a Prayer” … 5:13
3. “You Give Love a Bad Name” … 3:53
4. “Keep the Faith” … 6:19
5. “Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night” … 6:30
6. “Rockin’ in the Free World” … 5:40
7. “Something to Believe In” … 6:00
8. “Wanted Dead or Alive” … 6:00
9. “Runaway” … 4:47
10. “In and Out of Love” … 6:12
11. “I Don’t Like Mondays” … 5:58
12. “Just Older” … 5:13
13. “Something for the Pain” … 4:22
14. “Bad Medicine” … 4:19
15. “One Wild Night 2001″ … 3:46
Band:
Jon Bon Jovi – Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Richie Sambora – Guitar, Backing Vocals
David Bryan – Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Tico Torres – Drums, Percussion
Additional Musicians:
Alec John Such – Bass, Backing Vocals (“Runaway” and “In and Out of Love”)
Hugh McDonald – Bass, Backing Vocals
Bob Geldof – Vocals (“I Don’t Like Mondays”)
Produced by: Obie O’Brien, Bon Jovi, Luke Ebbin, Desmond Child
Although I’ve yet to see Bon Jovi in person, I’ve seen tons of live Bon Jovi performances over the years on television and video. They’ve always delivered and this, their first live album, is no different with “Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night” being an especially inspired performance. I usually don’t give live albums extended play, but this is one of the few live release I have in my collection that I did just that. You can never go wrong with Bon Jovi (when they’re singing the classics).
Seven of the fifteen tracks were recorded in 2000, four are from 1995, “Something to Believe In” is from ’96 and only “In and Out of Love” and “Runaway” are from 1985. I think it’s very strange they didn’t include any performances from their commercial peak (’87-’92) and I would have preferred most of the songs to be from that era. They probably included so many then-recent performances to show people it was still worth coming out to their shows in 2001. Only two of these songs were recorded in the US, which I find weird as well.
“One Wild Night 2001″ is a needless remix of, you guessed it, “One Wild Night” from Crush the previous year. Fine for what it is (one of the hardest rocking songs from Crush), but it’s neither better or worse than the original.
Highlights: “It’s My Life”, “You Give Love a Bad Name”, “Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night”, “Runaway”, “I Don’t LIke Mondays”, “Something for the Pain”, “Bad Medicine”
JON BON JOVI – Blaze of Glory
Jon Bon Jovi – Blaze of Glory (1990, Mercury Records)
1. “Billy Get Your Guns” … 4:49
2. “Miracle” … 5:09
3. “Blaze of Glory” … 5:40
4. “Blood Money” … 2:34
5. “Santa Fe” … 5:41
6. “Justice in the Barrel” … 6:49
7. “Never Say Die” … 4:54
8. “You Really Got Me Now” … 2:24
9. “Bang a Drum” … 4:36
10. “Dyin’ Ain’t Much of a Livin”‘ … 4:46
11. “Guano City” … 1:00
Musicians:
Jon Bon Jovi – Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Harmonica
Elton John – Piano, Backing Vocals
Jeff Beck – Guitar
Little Richard- Piano, Vocals
Robbin Crosby – Guitar
Aldo Nova – Guitars, Keyboards, Piano, Tambourine
Danny Kortchmar – Guitar
Waddy Wachtel – Guitar, Slide Guitar
Bob Glaub – Bass
Randy Jackson – Bass
Kenny Aronoff – Drums, Percussion
Produced by: Jon Bon Jovi
Jon’s first solo outing was a very successful one, featuring the hit #1 song “Blaze of Glory” (which won a Golden Globe and received Academy Award & Grammy nominations) and the album achieved double platinum status. “Miracle” was a minor hit, getting to #12 on the singles chart.
The story goes that initially, Young Guns II star Emilio Estevez was seeking Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead Or Alive” but Jon declined allowing the use of it because he didn’t think the song fit the movie, but he was inspired to write original pieces for the film and its soundtrack and thus, the Young Guns II soundtrack doubled as Jon’s 1st solo release.
It’s no surprise Jon was hyped about writing a bunch of cowboy rock ballads because Bon Jovi had already been doing it for years with songs like “Wanted Dead Or Alive”, “Stick To Your Guns” and “Ride Cowboy Ride” (and later, “Good Guys Don’t Always Wear White” for The Cowboy Way soundtrack). The album, written solely by Jon, is basically more of the same and that’s to say it’s an enjoyable album. It doesn’t stand next to the band’s best, but it’s still a solid release and way better than his second solo release, 1997′s Destination Anywhere.
Back in the day, when “Blaze of Glory” was a hit on the radio, I used to think it was a Bon Jovi song and not a Jon Bon Jovi song. It’s become synonymous with the band though because there’s really no difference in sound and it was included on the band’s 1994 greatest hits compilation Cross Road and has been performed in concert over the years.
For this effort, Jon assembled an impressive lineup of guest musicians including Elton John, Jeff Beck, Little Richard, Ratt’s Robbin Crosby and then Bon Jovi pet project Aldo Nova!
Highlights: “Miracle”, “Blaze of Glory”, “Blood Money”, “Santa Fe”, “Dyin’ Ain’t Much of a Livin’”
