3/5
Forever On A Prayer.
Sweet sixteenth. Bon Jovi (whoa, oh) are more than halfway there. There being 'Forever' with their brand-new album, that again puts these New Jersey boys in 'Legendary' company with the Garden State likes of those who were 'Born To Run'. Like Springsteen, who these legends took to the stage with recently, these icons have been in the game longer than LeBron James (who frontman Jon Bon Jovi recently gave it up for on Facebook whilst reading his brilliant biography by Jeff Benedict). From 'Livin' On A Prayer' to never going out in a 'Blaze Of Glory', this is Hard Rock Cafe and Planet Hollywood rock and roll at its primetime finest. Even if it took me years to realize what a "steel horse" actually was, much to an ex-girlfriend's amusement.
My best friend back home is going to let me have it for this. He hates 'em, but you've got to love this band who've been with us since they looked like the late, great Tina Turner from afar. And they 'Always' will be, like the classic performance of that powerhouse ballad for Top of the Pops in front of Canada's Niagara Falls, which is always at the top of my YouTube playlist, like his New Jersey game show 'OHHHH!' with Bill Hader on Saturday Night Live ("it says here, you work two no-show construction jobs"). They have may have lost greats, like departing, legendary guitarist Richie Sambora, but they're still here 40 years strong to make you feel old yet. The Hulu documentary miniseries 'Thank You, Goodnight' on Disney Plus serving as living proof for this Bon Jovi story. Now, Jon Bon stands in the middle of a New York City street, as classic as black and white, the name of his band of brothers studded into his denim jacket as the grey hair still flows.
The Jersey boys are back...and they've still got it. Continuing their Train like run of their more inspirational, soaring work since 'Superman Tonight' that you've seen on such albums as, 'What About Now', 'Burning Bridges' and 'This House Is Not For Sale'. Carrying on their steady as she goes output that still keeps the faith, even in times that are slippery when wet. Sure, it's clichéd and corny, but so are Tom Cruise movies. But in this American dream realized, that didn't mean making maverick a top gun was a mission impossible. And this heaven to leather band knows that when it comes to nostalgia in celebrated anniversaries, it's best to just let the good times roll. As they do on the second single 'Living Proof', asking, "Does the sun still shine on a dead-end street?/Will a rose still grow out of broken concrete?/Is there anything left for a sinner like me?" This Island Record, recorded from California's Los Angeles, to the country of Nashville, features beautiful ballads like 'Kiss The Bride' and 'I Wrote You A Song' for your first dance, if 'Always' isn't available. They even brought the 'It's My Life' vocoder sound (BWAH, BWAH) for 'Living Proof'.
'We Made It Look Easy' they declare. And in this day and age where everybody and their mother brags (not mine, but she should, she's the greatest), this band can lay claim to that. Especially after four decades and numbers like 'Waves' and 'Seeds' that still flow and catch you with their hooks that grow in your mind like earworms. The bands first album since 2022 (aptly named '2022' too) and Jon Bon Jovi's vocal surgery is brilliant. Free and feeling good, JBJ hasn't lost a step, like when Janie took her love to town for his solo work, like Christmas with Cindy Crawford. Or a note for that matter. You can hear it from 'The People's House' to the 'Walls Of Jericho'. On this open road, after the long and riding parts, he's 'Living In Paradise', like he was the day he picked up '(His) First Guitar' and a curling iron (hey, JB, I'm just jealous it's still all there). Singing, "Got my hands around her neck, aw/But it's done with respect, aw/I've had a few, but no other/Has the love of my mother." Concept songwriting at it's finest. Aw! But for all the bonus tracks and demos, it's the slow closer of a 'Hollow Man' like Kevin Bacon that's a classic. "How does it work when the words don't come?/It's like pullin' the trigger on an empty gun/You can't makе it rain starin' at the sun/So you work at your work, until the work gets donе." Forever and ever. TIM DAVID HARVEY.
Playlist Picks: 'Legendary', 'Kiss The Bride', 'I Wrote You A Song'.
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