It's My Life

Came across this video of the IML "video shoot" without the story -- just the guys in the tunnel.  I kinda like it :)




~ Hath

Wanna Open For Bon Jovi?

(from my email this morning)

The band that has played more than 3,000 concerts to over 32 million fans in 50-plus countries is looking to share the stage with the best emerging talents on OurStage. Find out how YOU can open for Bon Jovi and win tickets to see the band live on The Circle Tour this summer:

Artists – Rock, pop and country artists are invited to enter their best original songs in one of the "Bon Jovi Wanted: A Superband Tonight!" channels. Artists who reach the Top 30 will be eligible for opening slot consideration. Winners will be picked to perform at each of the selected tour stops by Bon Jovi. Band entries are accepted on Bon Jovi’s website and Facebook pages and OurStage’s website.

Fans - Judge the "Bon Jovi Wanted: A Superband Tonight!" channels starting April 6 to help the best talent rise to the top of the charts. The fans named Best Predictor for each Regional Music Channel will win tickets to see Bon Jovi on The Circle Tour.

In partnership with OurStage, the online community-powered, new music discovery site, “Bon Jovi Wanted: A SuperBAND Tonight!” is sponsored by VH1. “Wanted: A SuperBAND Tonight!” will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for new acts to make their dreams come true -- opening for Bon Jovi in front of tens of thousands of cheering fans. Emerging artists will be invited to open for Bon Jovi on each one of the selected tour dates below.

May 19	Hershey, PA	Hersheypark Stadium
May 26, 27 & 29	East Rutherford, NJ	New Meadowlands Stadium
July 24	Foxboro, MA	Gillette Stadium
July 30	Chicago, IL	Soldier Field

 

Fans can begin voting on your favorite local bands starting April 6, 7am ET.

Meet Some of the Cast of Memphis, Dave and Joe

The cast of Broadway's Memphis will make appearances at the Lincoln Triangle Barnes and Noble throughout the month of April.

On April 6, Memphis stars Chad Kimball and Montego Glover will be joined by fellow cast members from the Broadway rock musical to celebrate the original cast recording at 4:30 PM. Creators David Bryan, Joe DiPietro and Sergio Trujillo will also participate in the event that will include a live performance and signing of the recording.

SO, who's going?

~ Hath

PS: I haven't forgotten about my Memphis review, it's coming!!

MusicRadar and RingTones

I have a couple of downloads for you.

First, the MP3 and video for the MusicRadar interview with Richie Sambora from earlier this week. The video is FLV, which you can convert using DVDVideoSoft (or your software of choice) to something else. The MP4 was too big to upload.

Second, a RAR file (use winRAR to unzip it) of ringtones featuring the guys' voices (thanks, TM!!) I'm checking them out now. All four guys are featured. I would have LOVED to have been in the studio to hear them recording these. Imagine the looks on their faces? I can see Dave and Rich being totally into it, Teek being indifferent and Jon like "are you kidding me?" lol

Anyway, enjoy!

~ Hath

MusicRadar Interview

You asked, Richie answered.
Devotee H got her question answered I didn't :(

You can watch the video at this site.

I'm downloading/converting the video now, and will put it up on my Mediafire later tonight.

~ Hath

Mr. Hath Doesn't Hate Bon Jovi

I know.

I didn't believe it either :)

He gives me all sorts of grief all the time about my little obsession with all news/music/swag Bon Jovi (though that didn't stop me from hanging above my nightstand a gorgeous painting of Richie that my friend J sent me for Christmas).

Over the past few days, I've been sharing little snippets of stories from the four shows I went to last week:

• Jon having to call Tico back before he ran off the end of the circle (arc) at Mohegan because it didn't extend all the way back to the stage
• Richie chewing gum the whole time, and us being amazed that he didn't (a) choke on it or (b) spit it into Jon's face when they were sharing the mic
• Richie's guitar switch mishap
• Jon "yelling" at the crowd for coming in too early on Wanted
• Getting to hear my most favorite song ever (Never Say Goodbye)

and other little gems that just made me laugh.  When I saw the look on his face, I quickly apoligized, saying, "Sorry, I know you hate Bon Jovi."

He quickly replied (yes, quickly), "I don't hate them.  I like their music, just not as much as you."

What?

Did the pod people come and switch out my Mr. Hath for one more tolerant?

Maybe part of it is that he spent some time with my "Bon Jovi Friends" and saw they were normal women. 

Maybe part of it is that he's been -- erm -- "reaping the benefits" of my time spent in Joviland last week.

Maybe he's coming around :)

Maybe hell just froze over. 

I'll keep an eye out for the flying pigs.

~ Hath

Oh look, it's still raining

*grumble*grumble* and if one more person says (cheerfully) "hey, at least it isn't snow" I'll strangle him.

Rain saps what little energy I have left right out of me. Makes me want to stay snuggled up on the couch watching bootlegs on the big screen (Bonnie, Queenie, Wills, you didn't get to experience that, but believe me, you'll never want to get off the couch lol)

Instead, I'm at work, staring out the window at dreary gray yuckiness.

Oh well, at least I have this to make me smile...



When will we see the sun again?

~ Hath

MEMPHIS National Tour!

That's right, the MEMPHIS Announces National Tour, Begins In Memphis, TN in October 2011.

The producers of the hit Broadway musical MEMPHIS announced today that the critically acclaimed production will launch a U. S. national tour in Memphis, TN. Performances will begin in October, 2011 at the Orpheum Theatre (203 South Main Street). Additional cities, dates and casting will be announced at a later date. The national tour will be booked by The Booking Group, contact Meredith Blair (212) 869-9280 www.thebookinggroup.com.

This is fantastic! Only a matter of time before it hits Boston!

~ Hath

Opening Acts for Giants Announced

Whoa boy.

Train on Wednesday, May 26th

Gavin DeGraw on Thursday, May 27th

OneRepublic on Saturday, May 29th

East Rutherford, NJ – March 29, 2010 – As the band is currently rocking and selling out arenas nationwide in the midst of its biggest tour yet, Bon Jovi has announced the addition of three incredible special guests for their series of inaugural concerts at the soon-to-be-opened New Meadowlands Stadium. The three shows in Bon Jovi’s home state are part of “The Circle World Tour,” promoted by AEG Live, and will feature GRAMMY Award-winning rockers Train on Wednesday, May 26th; platinum-selling singer-songwriter Gavin DeGraw on Thursday, May 27th; and pop-rock hit-makers OneRepublic on Saturday, May 29th.

Critics across the country have been praising Bon Jovi’s recent shows on “The Circle World Tour,” with The Arizona Republic raving that “the 27-year old group is playing with renewed focus and power on its latest tour….Fans from age 10 into their 60s stayed on their feet for nearly all of the two-hour-plus show, pumping their fists to such anthems as ‘It's My Life,’ ‘Bad Medicine’ and ‘You Give Love a Bad Name.’” The San Jose Mercury News stated that “Bon Jovi is one of the few acts that manages to come across as both timely and timeless,” while the Las Vegas Sun simply said “Bon Jovi gave until there was no more to give. Electrifying, extraordinary, exciting, enthusiastic and exuberant.”

“The Circle Tour” will find Bon Jovi playing 135 shows in 30 countries throughout much of the next two years. The band announced the two-year global trek on October 22nd, with an exclusive performance on the grounds of New Meadowlands Stadium for a group of more than 5,000 lucky contest winners, fan club members, and on-site construction workers who were then building the venue. Following in the footsteps of their hugely successful “Lost Highway Tour”—Billboard’s #1 top-grossing tour of 2008—Bon Jovi will draw fans around the world into The Circle, with a residency at London’s O2 Arena in June 2010 before returning to North America in July for an additional leg of stadium shows, and further dates well into 2011.

The band's 11th studio album, The Circle, debuted at #1 in numerous countries including the U.S., Canada, Japan and Germany with Top 5 debuts throughout Europe and the UK. Globally, the Grammy Award-winning band has sold more than 120 million albums, and performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans.

source

Gavin Frickin' DeGraw?!? Holy hell.

54 days and counting until my Giants' experience.  In addition to looking forward to spending more time with Cheryl, meeting up with Kiwi and Summer and a whole host of others, seeing Tara and Bonnie again, giving Jon a present (lol)... NOW I have Gavin McGraw to look forward to?

Is it May yet?

~ Hath

Decisions, Decisions

From www.bonjovi.com:

"need a favor folks... call your radio stations and ask them to play superman . they just aren't committed to it either way. if they don't play it no one else will hear it. if you don't like it they should stop all together. we can move onto the next track...jbj"

You heard him! Please pick up your phones and call your local radio stations to request Bon Jovi's single "Superman Tonight." If you live in the US you can look up the request line for your local radio station by going here.

You can also help push the video up the VH1 Top 20 Countdown by voting here.

You can vote as many times as you want so please vote multiple times every day. Simply drag Bon Jovi to the number 1 spot, hit SUBMIT, then select "Rank 'em Again!"

I was all set to call my station (again) but hung up instead. What's the next single going to be? If it's "Love's the Only Rule" (which is getting played at nearly every show, or at least once a city so far) maybe I don't want to badger them to play Superman...

Well, Jonny? I'd like a little more information, please....

~ Hath

Online Updated

Actions Speak Louder Than Words. They surely do. Gifts don't hurt, either. The next installment is up.

~ Hath

Here Comes The Rain Again...

... another dreary day in Beantown.  I'm sure glad we had good weather for trucking back and forth to Mohegan.  Making that drive tired was one thing. Making it tired and in the rain would probably have been fatal.  We're getting another 2-4 inches between today and tomorrow.  In fact, tomorrow's weather icon, instead of a gray cloud with a few drops under it, is a gray cloud with a waterfall under it.

*sigh*

I need a little sunshine to brighten my day, and I thought this favorite shot from Philly I (where I had great seats) would be just the thing.

~ Hath

Say It Isn't So...

... I heard about this over the weekend from Tony K, but didn't comment on it because I was hoping -- no praying -- that this was just some sort of hoax.

The creators of How I Met Your Mother (Craig Thomas and Carter Bays) are working on a new series called Livin' on a Prayer.

Prayer is reported as being a CBS comedy pilot about a couple, Tommy and Gina, who are dating and contemplating the next stage of their relationship. It's shot in the same manner of How I Met Your Mother but the setting takes place in Pittsburgh.

source

*sigh*

When I first heard this, my immediate thought was, "Damn, what a stupid idea.  People hate Bon Jovi already without THIS happening."  It just feeds into the "sellout" mentality some people have about the band, and how they're all about just feeding the coffers (not that I'm worried that this show will make them money lol).

And for the record, yeah, Tommy and Gina could be anyone, anywhere.  But really, they're from Jersey.  I suppose (like most fans) I'll probably check out the pilot, but I don't have high hopes for this.

~ Hath

Circle Arc 4: Mohegan Sun

Section 105 (upper deck, Bobby's side) both nights. Friday row H, Saturday, row B

OH MY GOD...

(told you I would start both reviews that way)

I apologize in advance for the lack of photos on this one.  Willow got her camera confiscated because it was an SLR, and we had security practically at our backs, so I was afraid to take mine out.  Bonnie and Queenie got a few good shots (thanks GF) and the pics here are theirs.

Getting Last Man Standing was FANTASTIC! I haven't heard the song live since Gillette Stadium during Hand (July, 2006). The crowd was enthusiastic, though most of the people in 105 were sitting down (grrrrr). We girls freaked out a little, because Jon and the guys were taking the stage right around 8:45 most nights. We heard This Is Our House as we were making our way out of the Ladies' room at 8:30. We nearly broke our necks getting up to our seats, but did so.

This was the better night for surprises (in terms of how many there were, starting with LMS). We got Captain Crash again (though that appears to be working its way back into the rotation pretty heavily. It does seem to be a crowd pleaser, though only a smattering of folks throughout the arena understood that Crash needed some help with the landing, and we had to wave him in). We got Have A Nice Day -- though I didn't see Richie flip off the crowd. That little moment always makes me smile. We girls up in 105 had him covered though, and flipped everyone off for him.

Hallelujah was back, and whatever was up with his voice Friday for Memory was long gone.  His voice was strong and his tone pure, and when he hit the long note towards the end of this one, he held it extra long as if to say "F you, voice.  THIS is what has to happen."  Very powerful.  Looking forward to reliving that one on YouTube.

The best surprise, though, was Miss Fourth of July. It was just amazing. And it was a very funny coincidence that we were talking about just that very thing on the way home from the venue on Friday night. We thought, hell, David has the accordion strapped on already, why not do Miss Fourth? Then BOOM, they do it. Uh, guys? Are you bugging my car again? And if you are, I certainly hope you stopped listening when the conversation turned dirty... Squeezebox (Who cover) was back for the second night which I LOVED, and Hot Legs came back. Verrrrry nice.

The hands-down best banter moments I've seen thus far (through the endless vids and few shows I've gone to) were tonight. First, Jon skipped the entire "we decade vs. me decade" speech. Thank you, Jonny! I totally believe in the message. I wholeheartedly support the idea of helping a person when he/she is down. I do not, however, need preachifying on the subject. It was a relief to not have to recite along with him on that one.

Second, during the opening few numbers, he got a good look at who was in the pit. He scanned the faces/bodies in the pit and said, "Looks like cougartown in here tonight". Of course, the crowd screamed with delight. He continued with "and I'm on the hunt". He was in a much better mood tonight; we were thinking that his voice/throat/whatever was feeling better.

The third was at the end, during Wanted. This is perhaps the most well-known Jovi song in the catalog. Yet, why is, it, that when it's played during a show, the audience forgets that there's actually an introduction to the song? They always start singing the lyrics WAY too early. This is one of my pet peeves.

Well on Saturday, Jon called them on it (I say 'them' and not 'us' because I know full well when the lyrics come in, thank-you-very-much). He walks up to the microphone, head shaking. Tells the crowd "you people have the worst timing.  I know my fans have more soul than that."  The exact words escape me for the moment, but it was funny as hell.

Finally, the banter before Hot Legs was a riot. The videos on BJCT will capture it exactly, but Jon was talking about how there he was, chilling out in his hotel room, listening to 8000 girls running around the halls when there was a knock on the door. He said he knew then he had a decision to make, whether to open the door... and Richie interrupts with "I know what my decision would be" :)


OK, it seems like there's always some new touring etiquette rule to talk about, and these two shows were no exception. Tonight's rant discussion is on cell phone / Conversation etiquette. Let me paint the picture.

You have paid $212 for a presale ticket.

Presale.

As in, bought it as soon as tickets of any kind were announced because you LOVE this band, ADORE their music, and WANT to see them in concert, even if you have to sit in the upper deck. You schlep yourself to Mohegan Sun, which is at least 1/2 a tank of gas, unless you live in the area. Parking is free (and the valets are super nice), but dinner and drinks you have to pay for. You get something to eat and/or drink, maybe play a table game or two. You've possibly taken a room at the hotel. You cougar yourself up, slinking into the tightest, sexiest outfit you have (girls) or you go casual-chic in jeans and a distressed tee (guys) and get yourself to the arena in time for Dashboard Confessional to leave the stage.

You get yourself to your seats, and chat, waiting for Bon Jovi to take the stage. Finally, "This Is Our House" hits the sound system. You know that this is the precursor to the show starting. The lights go out. You see the circle montage start to play on the big screen, and the crowd is going ballistic! You stand as the screen lifts, and the band starts to play...and then you sit down and continue your conversation. What the hell, people.

And for Pete's sake, don't scream your conversation over the sound of the band because it's too hard to hear what's being said. I really don't give a crap if Sally was going to go to bed with your or not. Really. Don't care. I want to watch my band in peace. Or at least with like-minded fans.

Then there's scenario 2. This one, I was personally privy to. Same scenario with making the effort to get the tickets and have dinner you're dressed up all cougar/chic/whatever and you spend the show sitting on your butt, texting your friends. Now, please don't jump down my throat. I completely understanding tweeting the set list, or the OMG posts to your friends when something cool is going on. Hell, I called girlfriends for certain songs (though I abstained from texting -- it takes too much attention away from the band, IMO). But seriously, the whole show?

Like Jon said when he was urging the crowd to its feet (which he should NEVER have to do), this ain't television, people.


All in all, a very satisfying couple of shows, even though the seats weren't as good. I have to say, comparing this to Philly, these were the better shows for me. Though the setlists and encores were shorter (most likely because of he "eh" feeling the crowds were putting out, and all the damned sitters) the surprises we got made these shine. The boys are off to DC next (Catte, and Wills, I expect full reports and photos, ladies!) and I wonder what surprises the boys will pull out in our Nations Capital?

I'm more jazzed than ever for the shows at Giants. I have a feeling though, not being able to go to the third night, I'm going to miss some historic stuff. Ah well, that's what YouTube is for, I guess.


~ Hath

Setlist
Last Man Standing (!)
We Weren't Born to Follow
Bad Name
Whole Lotta Leavin'
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
Captain Crash
Sleep When I'm Dead
Runaway
When We Were Beautiful
Superman Tonight
We Got It Going On
Bad Medicine/Hot Legs
Homebound Train (Richie vox)
Hallelujah (!)
Miss Fourth of July (!)
Mama's Got a Squeezebox (!)
Someday I'll Be Saturday Night
Have a Nice Day (!)
Work for the Working Man
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Love's the Only Rule
Wanted Dead or Alive
Living on a Prayer


Video links, rips, and MP3s, along with pictures and reviews are up on the BJCT Blog

Circle Arc 3: Mohegan Sun

Section 105 (upper deck, Bobby's side) both nights. Friday row H, Saturday, row B

I almost decided to combine my reviews of these two shows into a site review, because, honestly, they would be quite similar. They start and end with:

OH MY GOD...

But, they turned out to both be fairly long, so I left them separate.


Am I ever glad I got tickets to both of these shows. The standards were all there -- Follow, Bad Name, Bad Medicine, Beautiful, Superman, Work, Who Says, Prayer, Wanted. I am passionate about the set list vs fan debate -- how US audiences get more "vanilla" set lists than the European audiences because we are not as appreciative, don't know the words, etc., etc., etc. We girls (Queenie, Bonnie, Willow, and FM via cell phone) had a great discussion about it over Darlin's in-dash phone system. I have a couple of ideas that I would LOVE to pitch to the band's marketing/tour development department, and am writing them up for the blog to post later this week.

For now, on to Mohegan.

I had the pleasure of attending the Mohegan shows on the Lost Highway. The seats we had this tour were just about the same as we had last tour. We were up in section 105, which is side-stage (Bobby's side), and UP. We were pretty high up (Ticketmaster pre-sale tix) but the view was great. We could see the behind-the-screen goings on at the start of the show, and had AWESOME views of the robots doing their dance.


Most of the pics are mine, though a couple are Wills'.  We had to sneak photos, as we had our SLRs and didn't want to get in trouble for using them.  

Happy Now as the opener on Friday night was fun. It, along with Only Rule, Beautiful, and Superman, are far more powerful live. Superman is my hands-down favorite live performance from Circle. Tico's beat just penetrates through to my heart, changing its beat for those five minutes. I didn't notice what was on the screen during the other shows, but I did see that it was shot after shot of "real" heroes -- everyday people who do heroic things without realizing they're heroic. I saw signs in the crowd declaring "I'm a nurse" or "I'm a fireman", and it was just wonderful.

I want to extend a personal, great big Hath Thanks to Barbara from Italy (EEEtaleee) for bringing her "Never Say Goodbye" sign to lots of shows. Jon noticed it in the pit again. This time, he squatted beside the girl to ask her for her name and where she was from, and said, "How many shows have you brought that to?" He asked her name and where she was from, and said "Barbara from Eeetaleee, I guess we're taking requests now. I'll play this for you, but only if Richie will join me." HOLY SHIT (sorry for the burst of profanity there, but that was pretty much the wave that went through the arena). This was just gorgeous. NSG is my all time favorite Bon Jovi song. It makes me happy and sad all at the same time, bringing back nostalgic memories of High School and all the drama/love/lust that went with it. This was our senior prom song (probably yours too, if you graduated high school in the late 80's) and is just so bittersweet...

This was Jon and Richie (Rich with the double-neck that just breaks my heart every time I see it, it's so pretty) at the top of the circle, sharing a mic. Richie's harmonies were out of this world perfect, and I swear, THIS is what you have to show non-fans to make them understand just what it is about this band that keeps the fans coming back for more. Moments where their skill and talent come together and create something so beautiful it makes you weep (though maybe that's just me. I threatened Willow that she'd have to catch me if they did NSG because I'd probably faint. I didn't though, just had tears in my eyes the whole time.)

I don't normally put the Circle Tour videos up on this site (I reserve that for the BJCT) but this one I have to share. You should share it too.



The crowd reaction should tell them that THIS is what we're waiting for. Older songs that haven't been played for a while and that MOVE us. Damn, I hope they take the hint and bring out more like this. I think I've watched this video at least a dozen times since it was posted.

Squeezebox was another great surprise. Jon and gang surprised the Philly Soul show with a snippet of this song, but we got the full deal (both nights!). Let me tell you, when Jon sings "Squeeze me, c'mon and squeeze me, c'mon and squeeze me like you do, I'm so in love with you", everyone in my section (though they were sitting down) answered with a resounding "when and where, baby". Definitely a crowd pleaser, this one.

Now, there are those who say "I've paid to hear Bon Jovi songs, not cover tunes. Why do they have to do cover tunes when they have such a huge catalog to pick from?"  Of course, I don't know their answer to this question. I do have an opinion, though. Everyone has favorite songs that they want to share with their friends. Even rock stars. Why should The Jovi not pay homage to the bands/songs that they love by playing one or two? Besides, there are only so many accordion songs that David can do :) I for one am not going to complain about it. Though if they're going to take requests (Thanks again, Barbara) and do cover tunes, how about "Drift Away"? Bring that one back.

The rest of the setlist was "standard", and I can understand why when people are going to city after city after city, hearing the same things in the same order would get a little tiresome. We were calling the songs before they started, and were right more often than not. Still, though seeing four shows with much of the same songs, I wouldn't have stayed home from them for anything. I know that when I buy my tickets, I'm getting standard setlists with a few suprises thrown in, if Jon's in a good mood. I can accept that.

Speaking of moods, Jon wasn't to thrilled during Memory. You know that long note he holds for several measures towards the end? How he fades it out by slowly pulling away from the mic? Well Friday, his voice failed him for a moment, and the note broke off abruptly. He let the professionalism slip for half a heartbeat, and we caught a glimpse of Jonny pissed at himself. Wow. It looks like he really does care about the quality of what he puts out there for the fans. We suspected, what with the illness going through the crew (as repoted by Matt B on Twitter), that he was starting to come down with something. We only got two songs in the encore, and attributed it to his maybe not feeling 100%.

It was an amazing show, with a surprise appearance by Jeff Kazee, who looked like he was having a hell of a lot of fun with the guys. We thought David had hurt himself, as Jeff only came out for the songs where D is usually spread eagled between his keys (whimper), but nope, Jeff apparently just wanted to play. He was definitely having a good time.





~ Hath

Setlist
Happy Now
We Weren't Born to Follow
Bad Name
Born to Be My Baby
Lost Highway
In These Arms
Captain Crash
Radio Saved My Life Tonight (!)
When We Were Beautiful
Superman Tonight
We Got It Going On
Bad Medicine/Roadhouse Blues
It's My Life
Lay Your Hands on Me (Richie vox)
Make a Memory
Never Say Goodbye (!)(!)
Mama's Got a Squeezebox (!)
Something for the Pain
Runaway
Work for the Working Man
Who Says You Can't Go Home
Wanted Dead or Alive
Living on a Prayer

Video links, rips, and MP3s, along with pictures and reviews are up on the BJCT Blog

For My Twitter Followers

If you were reading along on Tuesday night, this will make perfect sense to you :)

I'm fine-tuning my review of the Mohegan shows (OMG!) and also one for Memphis; I should have them up later this afternoon.

~ Hath