Scratching The Classic Rock Itch
The hair may be cropped a bit shorter than it used to be, the shoulder pads may have been retired and the haze of hairspray might not waft around them like it used to, but New Jersey’s Bon Jovi can still pack a stadium punch like few others.
Ever the charismatic showman, Jon Bon Jovi doesn’t seem to make his way to the stage, he’s just suddenly there and as the band launch into ‘Lost Highway’ its immediately clear that things aren’t going as smoothly as the New Jersey band’s concerts usually do. Instantly hit with sound problems, Jon Bon Jovi’s voice is either drowned out by the Tico Torres’ drumming or simply disappears over the crowds’ heads, and unfortunately it’s a blip that never gets sorted out.
But such technical problems aren’t going to stop the showmanship of the quartet as they delve headfirst into their enormous back catalogue, wielding a rally cry-esque rendition of ‘Runaway’ that gets swept aside for the anthemic ‘You Give Love A Bad Name’ complete with 40,000 backing singers more than making up for the sound glitch. Still exuding the energy of a man half his age, Jon Bon Jovi’s age may have caught up with him slightly in the last few years but he still manages to throw out polished showmanship from the Elvis like swinging of the hips to the arm waves, right down to the maraca shakes on ‘Bad Medicine’ that gets some extra bite when served live. And from here in it’s a history lesson in Bon Jovi with some glimpses of the future courtesy of a few Lost Highway tracks. ‘Its My Life’ soars around the crowd with an energetic buzz that refuses to be quashed before a rousing riotous blast of ‘Keep The Faith’ thumps around the stadium whilst ‘Blaze Of Glory’ manages to find some cowboys alive and kicking even in the heart of Coventry.
Bon Jovi is no one man show though as Richie Sambora proves. Constantly providing old school lead guitar fret work, Sambora’s continual facial gurns at times verge on the ridiculous but still it just adds to the whole Bon Jovi experience. As he takes over vocal duties on ‘I’ll Be There For You’ Sambora leaves no one in any doubt that this is a band that needs all its members. No spring chickens any more, Bon Jovi do of course need to slow things down from time to time with Jon Bon Jovi’s subtle acoustic intro of ‘Livin’ On A Prayer’ calming things slightly before it soon melts away to unleash an uncontrollable sing along that threatens to shake the stadium. With an encore that sees the slush of ‘Always’ embracing a lighter in the air moment, knocked out of the way by the stomp of ‘These Days’, Bon Jovi’s jaunt to Coventry comes to a close with ‘Dead Or Alive’ before the ever professionals make a very hasty retreat as the song still vibrates from 40,000 mouths.
Like an itch that needs to be scratched, sometimes you just need a good old dose of classic rock and Bon Jovi certainly hits the spot. Whilst the sound may not have been overwhelming and old age seems to have made a sudden running jump at the band, Bon Jovi are still the masters at delivering sing along stadium anthems like no one else. And there is no one who pulls such a diverse crowd. From the old ladies who looked like they’d made a wrong turn on the way to the bingo hall to the five year old kids singing along, diversity was certainly in abundance and for a band that have been on the road for over 25 years Bon Jovi still know how to make a crowd enjoy themselves, even if these days it’s a funny old crowd that packs their stadiums.