Richie Interview: Boom 97.3 FM

Richie Sambora was on Boom FM today, with a two part interview. You can download the MP3's here.

Thanks, Iris, for letting us know about the interview,  thanks to Catte for streaming it for me, and big thanks to TaraLeigh for this absolutely delicious photo of the lovely  Mr. Sambora.  *sigh*

~ Hath

JonBon Billboard Article

An article was published in Billboard today, of an interview given during the O2 residency -- while he was sitting on a speed boat, about to trek down the river. He talks about a surprise the O2 fan club get-together ALMOST got.

Do you care about fans having cameras in the audience and your knowing that everything you do could potentially live forever online?

I went to a fan club kind of get together today and I was talking to them, and that's exactly what I said. There's nothing you can say or do without thinking this can be broadcast right now. I'll give you a case in point where it worked against [us]: I was dying to play these people five new songs that Richie and I wrote for "Greatest Hits," but I said "I can't do it." I knew it would be out now, so I couldn't even get their opinions, I had to wait. But my curiosity was killing me. I wanted to see what they thought of them.

Go to Billboard to read the rest of the interview.

~ Hath

Lorenza on XM Radio

Some weeks ago, Lorenza Ponce held an album release show and party. Some of you even got to go. This Sunday, several songs from that show will be featured on the XM/ Sirius show, "FROM THE LIVING ROOM TO THE LOFT" ON SIRIUS/XM (XM Radio Channel 50, Sirius Radio Channel 29)

The show debuts Sunday at 7PM EST.

~ Hath

Toxie Takes Calgary

Hours before he took to the stage for Bon Jovi's Wednesday concert at the Saddledome for the Calgary Stampede, the New Jersey rock band's keyboardist David Bryan made an altogether quirkier appearance in Inglewood.

With his keyboard perched in front of four green toxic waste barrels, Bryan, 48, performed the rock ballad Tore My Heart Out which he described as "a heartfelt breakup song for a monster."

The tune was performed for media at an old consignment store which is being converted into a 120-seat venue called The Space Theatre.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Here are two brief snippets from the interview:





There were two songs performed, the first being "You Tore My Heart Out"



The second was "A Brand New Day In New Jersey"



Toxic Avenger Musical, based on the 1984 cult comedy horror flick The Toxic Avenger, will make its Calgary debut from Nov. 10 to 27.

~ Hath

BSWJBJ Event in Japan

Ultimate Backstage JBJ Experience

• 2 “In The Circle” VIP Tickets to the November 30th show at Tokyo Dome
• 2 “In The Circle” VIP Tickets to the December 1st show at Tokyo Dome
• 2 Backstage JBJ VIP Laminates
• 2 Commemorative Souvenir Concert Tickets
• 2 Tickets to Backstage JBJ Experience Question & Answer Event

The "Backstage JBJ Experience" is an hour-long Q & A

• 2 Tickets to Exclusive Backstage JBJ Question & Answer session on December 1st with
  Jon Bon Jovi and a special surprise
• 2 Backstage JBJ VIP Laminates
• 2 Commemorative Souvenir Concert TicketsDelicious appetizers and refreshments
• Dedicated Backstage JBJ Staff On-Site

The BSJBJ Experience does NOT include tickets to either show.

Both packages go on sale at 9am JST on July 16th.  Visit BonJovi.com for more information.

See, I told you, Bon Jovi (at least Jon) LOVES Japan!  Wonder what the special surprise is.... Could be the rest of the guys stop by...  Could be an acoustic performance....  Could be he doesn't shower first...  Could be just about anything, right?  What do you think it could be?

~ Hath

PS: In case you were wondering, the BSWJBJ trip to Sydney still has places available.  I suspect the Japan packages will go more quickly.

SPAC Pictures

Thanks, Bonnie, for passing these along :)

They're from Times Union out of Albany. The photos are ALL Jon, and were captioned as follows: Headliner Jon Bon Jovi performs on stage at SPAC, on Sunday, July 11, 2010, Saratoga Springs, NY, before a sold out amphitheater, and huge lawn crowd.

We've pulled them down to the BJCT PhotoBucket for this show. There are some YUMMY shots for the Jonny girls. Here are a couple of the best (IMO)...

~ Hath

  

As a reminder, as we find YouTubes, they'll be up on the BJCT for SPAC.

Richie's Cake and JB's WPLJ Interview

Yeah I know those things don't really go together, but I'm late for a meeting.

Here are a couple shots of Richie's birthday cake.  Absolutely stunning.  My mother in law does cake decorating, and I asked her if she could do something like this (though the double-neck Taylor) for me.  She hung up on me.

  

Second, JonBon was on WPLJ this morning.  He was on for all of about 5 minutes or so, but the ever lovely Catte streamed it for me AND put it up on the MediaFire so you wouldn't have to wait for it.  It's in the Random Bits and Bobs folder; titled as JBJ on WPLJ 7-13-2010.

Thanks to everyone else who streamed and emailed me about it.  You guys and gals are the absolute BEST!

~ Hath

About that rest, Jon...

Jon posted an update on his torn calf muscle on Facebook yesterday (it took all my control NOT to correct the capitalization errors lol)

my friend said ..old guys still rock..in chairs.

that hurt. i tore the calf on the left side at the 2:45 mark of NMS stadium show 4. I was just about to go into an endless encore when i popped the calf.

thanks to all the medical team both at the NMS and Riverview Hospital who have done everything to put Humpty Dumpty back together aga...in. Tonight Cleveland ...see you soon jbj

Of course, the first thing I latched on to was "endless encore".  Would LOVE to know what was planned.

Then I thought about JonBon's leg for a moment.  Now, being a veteran of several leg injuries, I know the number one thing the doctors tell you is rest and elevation at first, then ease back into activity.  But since I've never suffered a torn calf muscle, and my medical training is limited to what I gleaned from watching every single episode of E.R., I needed to do a little research on treatment.

Immediate treatment is RICE (rest, ice, compression and elevation) for the first 48 hours. Elevation of the leg prevents swelling. A firm elastic bandage applied from the toes to below the knee, or an adhesive strapping over the calf is helpful in giving support. Resting the leg is important.

I had to stop there and chuckle.  Can you imagine the stink-eye Mr. JonBon would give the doctor who suggested rest?  

Follow-up treatment includes easing into activity, start with walking, after 48 hours of rest.  Use the leg as normally as possible, as pain allows, but limit your activity for 3 - 4 weeks.  

Yeah, sure.  Limited activity.  Though the last couple of shows, Jon has been taking it easy -- not in terms of quality of course, but with the staying still.  It must be KILLING him not to be all over the stage.

The newspapers here in Boston are all running little blurbs about how the show at Gillette is still on, telling us not to worry, that the Jovi Tsunami will be hitting us soon.  I can't help but wonder what the show will be like. I mean I'm sure it will be great, this IS Bon Jovi after all...  Well soon enough it'll be August -- what's always been (and I assume still is) reserved for family time. Hopefully by then he's mostly mended, but I'm sure the month off will do him a world of good!

In any event, my E.R education has clearly paid off.  Can I have my diploma now?  You may call me Dr. Hath :)

~ Hath

Can't Get Enough...

... and can't thank Catte enough for passing this along.



The audio and video are up in my Mediafire.

~ Hath

Listen to WPLJ July 13

As seen on Twitter...

Tuesday at 7:45 EDT, we'll talk to Jon Bon Jovi! See how he's feeling after popping a calf muscle during Fridays show at the Meadowlands!about 8 hours ago via web

Keep track of everything thats happening on the Big Show with Scott Shannon & Todd Pettengill! Listen in the New York City area on 95.5 FM or PLJ.COM


A few of us will certainly try to stream this for you.  For once, being at work at 6:30 EDT will be a GOOD thing :)

~ Hath

SPAC Review ~ by Bonnie

My friend Bonnie attended the SPAC show last night, and offered this mini-review for your reading enjoyment.

The setlist was very very vanilla, but I still had the time of my life. I was 11 rows back from the stage-near the middle. It was gut wrenching to watch Jon hobble out onto the stage, but his voice is as strong as ever.

He stood the whole time-also played the guitar alot. He was able to stand very well-sometimes on one leg, sometimes with his left foot on the ground, but with most of his weight on his good leg. He made a joke about it being confirmed that he will not be appearing on Dancing with the Stars, he sang Happy Birthday to Richie and then made a joke about Cher being in her 60s when Richie was "dating" her.

At times it appeared that Jon was on some very good drugs and/or shot up with steroids in his bad leg. He was making jokes and laughing at stupid stuff-had a constant smile on his face. The show was just 2 hours long-only 21 songs, but if you could have seen him putting his heart and soul into his performance-it was awesome.

Richie looked fantastic and smiled alot too-he and Jon joked around alot too. The stage at SPAC is prety small so there were no big robots or fancy camera work. Jon let Richie sing the 2nd verse of "Wanted"-he is a fantastic singer and performer.

The crowd were on their feet for the whole show-lots of screaming. The crowd was cheering and screaming so loud at the end of Prayer-you could tell from the look on Jon's face that he wanted to do more, but you could also tell he was physically tired.

Dorothea is right-she has said that Jon could perform with his head cut off!Thanks, Bonnie!!

And Hathlet says 'hi'...

David Interview

From 29 Jun 2010 (99.5FM The River): Tred and Kevin chat with Bon Jovi keyboardist, David Bryan

You can download the podcast from the website here.

Thanks, L, for dropping this in my inbox!

~ Hath

Richie's Birthday Video :)

Thanks, Mys, for dropping this in my inbox -- I hadn't seen it yet.  Very cute.



Hope Richie got to hear some of the messages the fans left on that phone number for him.

~ Hath

Bon Jovi tour Canada-bound

I think we've heard a lot of these answers from Richie before, but they're still fun to read.

Bon Jovi's Circle of friends includes plenty of Canadians.

"Love Canada," guitarist Richie Sambora told QMI during a recent interview. "We made three albums up there, starting with our really big breakthrough album, Slippery When Wet. We did that in Vancouver with Bruce Fairbairn and Bob Rock. And we fell in love with Canada right then.

"We went back up there to record the New Jersey album and also the Keep the Faith record -- so we lived in Canada, you know, probably for a couple of years over those three records. And the Canadian people have just been unbelievable to us ... We love Canada, man."

As a token of their gratitude, the New Jersey pop-rockers bring their Circle tour -- a massive two-year trek that includes 135 shows in 30 countries over two years -- to five Canadian cities this month.

Sambora, singer-guitarist Jon Bon Jovi, drummer Tico Torres and keyboardist David Bryan, augmented by longtime bassist Hugh McDonald will play stadiums from Alberta to Toronto, starting with Calgary on July 14.

As the band prepared to kick off the tour in Seattle earlier this year, Sambora sat down for a conference call with journalists.

Check out the full article for Richie's thoughts on these topics:

• On how their songwriting has evolved.
• On how they keep touring fresh after 2,000 concerts.
• On playing their older songs for the millionth time.
• On their predominantly female fan base.
• On criticism.
• On the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

~ Hath

Tico Interview

The River sneaks backstage at Bon Jovi at Spac and catches up with Tico!

I'm pulling this down now for you TicoPhiles who would like it on your iPod...

~ Hath

Bon Jovi Heads to Brazil!

Rock Icons Bon Jovi return to Brazil for a massive concert in Sao Paulo as part of "The Circle Tour" - currently the number one tour in the world! After 15 years, Brazilian fans will have the opportunity to see Bon Jovi live on October 6 at the Morumbi Stadium.

The Circle Tour is brought to Brazil by TIME FOR FUN. Exclusive presales for Credicard, Citibank and Diners clients between July 19th and July 25th via the internet (www.ticketsforfun.com.br), phone # 4003-0696, official box offices and other retail outlets around the Country. Sales for public in general start on July 26th at the same retail outlets. Information about the tour and tickets sales will be released soon.

~ Hath

source

Thanks, Mom

Mom taught me that it was rude to not answer questions when asked.   Unfortunately, that lesson stuck to me a bit.  There's quite a buzz about a new "Tell All" book that's supposedly coming out later this month.  There's even a sensationalist promo video for the thing that offers this by way of information:

Since its very beginning, there has been an impenetrable "CIRCLE" of secrecy surrounding Bon Jovi that no outsider has ever been able to penetrate. But now there's the inside story of Bon Jovi—from their very first gig as an unknown opening act, through their ascent to unimaginable superstardom, told by the only person who was inside the circle with them every minute of the time—Bon Jovi tour manager Richard Bozzett.

The book reveals the astonishing connection between Bon Jovi and the two largest pot and cocaine trafficking operations of their time, how an ill-conceived publicity stunt turned into a career-threatening sex scandal, but ended up with the photographer dead and the pictures missing, PLUS, the shocking reasons for the band's unofficial break-up at the height of their career and reformation 2 years later—along with hundreds of never-before-seen pictures that chronicle the entire story every step of the way!

Whether you're a die-hard Bon Jovi fan, grew up listening to their music or have ever attended one of their concerts, this is the ONE book that will actually take you inside the circle and bring you closer to the band than ever before!

I was asked if I thought this was for real, and what my opinions are on the subject. 

Do I think it's for real?  Probably.  Though the website the video directs you to (where you give them your credit card information and pre-order the book for around $25) looks kind of skeevy.  It seems to be pretty elaborate for a scam, but what do I know?  Still, I'm a cynic at heart, and until and unless it shows up on Amazon, to me, it's not legit.

My opinions on the topics brougt up?  Actually, my very first thought was "I wonder why Richard Bozzett wasn't made to sign a non-disclosure agreement".  I mean an NDA is the rule in the Jovi camp, right?  What happens in the Jovi camp stays in the Jovi camp.  I wouldn't be surprised if this just quietly goes away without much fanfare, and the people who jumped on the pre-order never see their $25 again.  I also wouldn't be surprised if the Jovi Machine goes with the "if we ignore it, it will go away" mentality.  Really, either reaction is completely plausible.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Like anything, there's probably a kernal of truth in some of the allegations.  I mean, the guys, by their OWN ADMISSION, were not saints back in the day.  Who among us were?  I mean really, is there a person among us in Jovidom who does NOT have a skeleton or three in his/her closet? 

Were there piles of women?  It was the 80's.  They were gorgeous, long-haired rock stars.  What do YOU think.  Do I think that they had some photog whacked for some of the pictures he took (the insinuation from the promo text above)?  Uh no.  The "Jersey Syndicate Tour" didn't ACTUALLY mean that the guys were made.

Were there drugs?  It's not really talked about, but I've seen articles and interviews where there's an admittance of light recreational use.  I have to go back to "it was the 80's".  Lots of things that are taboo now were allowed -- hell expected -- then; especially of up-and-coming rock stars.  Do I believe they were buddy-buddy with the cartel leaders?  No.  The astonishing connection?  Probably a roadie with a cousin who dated this girl whose father was... well... you get it.

I think the fact that the band survived their baby years, and came out of it strong and still together speaks more volumes than one gossiper could put together.

Would I read the book?  Not sure on that to tell the truth.  I mean the lure of never-before-seen photos (especially puppy pics) and seeing what the book's promoter is on about is very strong.  But, I saw the 'real' documentary.  I read the coffee-table book.  I've seen countless interviews.  Do I need to read about some of the dirty laundry?  'Need' is strong.  I'm as human as the next gal, and am curious.  But, bottom line, I won't throw it away if it shows up on my doorstep.  I won't go buy it, but also won't disparage any who do.

~ Hath

Meadowlands #4

I know you've seen/heard it all already. About Jonny and his torn calf muscle. Still, I'd be remiss if I didn't post about it. First, the cringe, right around the minute mark.



In the video above, you can clearly see Jon struggling to walk around on stage after the pull. But, he sings the ironic closing song, "Living On a Prayer" as if nothing is wrong.



In the video below, you can see Jon thanking the crowd before being carried off by the rest of the band, which is just heartbreaking:



Jon Bon a Bad Ass?

From Aaron Titan:

First off, can I just say that the dude still sounds like a fuckin' rockstar with that voice. I'm not a huge fan of Bon Jovi or anything, but you can't deny the band's success and talent for what they do. I'm not putting them on the same level as other band's you guys hear me talk up on a regular basis in this column, but Bon Jovi has remained successful and somewhat relevant for a long, long time and there's a reason why.

Very classy of the guy to finish the set out. Lesser artists would have waved goodbye to the crowd and apologized, but Jon did no such thing. Those fans were there and he finished the set out for them so they could get their money's worth. Kudos for that! Never did the lyrics "We'll make it I SWEAR!" ring so true!

Spokespeople for JonBon said that the injury won't keep him from finishing out the July dates.  In fact, at the SPAC they got an admittedly on the shorter side 21-song set, but I haven't heard a single person give a disparaging review of the show (and believe me, people take great pleasure in sending me gloating emails when they think that the Jovi have done something wrong/bad/etc).


You can see nearly ALL the songs/videos from Meadowlands up on the BJCT. I think we're only missing "When We Were Beautiful" :)  SPAC will be up soon!

~ Hath