Like A Fine Wine

(Shout out to J.Mo for the title of this blog.)

Terrific, Extraordinary, Awesome, Excellent, Amazing, Fantastic, Incredible, Unbelievable...

These words barely scrape the surface of describing how great the concert on Saturday was.

I've seen Bon Jovi perform twice before, and I held to my belief that my second concert at Nissan Pavilion was the best concert I'd ever been to. That is until Saturday night. That one took the cake by a landslide. They get so much better with age (just like a fine wine). Jon, Richie, Tico, Dave, Hugh, Bobbie, and Jeff performed, played, sang, entertained, etc. for a solid two hours and did not disappoint me at all. After doing this for nearly 23 years, they have quite the bulk of material to choose from, and they did a fantastic job of covering the spectrum. Here's the set list with album in parentheses:

LAST MAN STANDING (Have A Nice Day)
YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME (Slippery When Wet)
COMPLICATED (Have A Nice Day)
BORN TO BE MY BABY (New Jersey)
STORY OF MY LIFE (Have A Nice Day)
I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD (Keep The Faith)
RUNAWAY (Bon Jovi)
NOVOCAINE (Have A Nice Day)
I WON'T BACK DOWN (Tom Petty Cover)
HAVE A NICE DAY (Have A Nice Day)
WHO SAYS YOU CAN'T GO HOME (Have A Nice Day)
IT'S MY LIFE (Crush)
I'LL BE THERE FOR YOU (acoustic - This Left Feels Right version)
BLAZE OF GLORY (acoustic - Crossroads/Young Guns II Soundtrack)
BED OF ROSES (acoustic - This Left Feels Right version)
BAD MEDICINE (New Jersey)
RAISE YOUR HANDS (Slippery When Wet)
LIVIN' ON A PRAYER (Slippery When Wet)

Encore:
WELCOME TO WHEREVER YOU ARE (Have A Nice Day)
EVERYDAY (Bounce)
TREAT HER RIGHT
RUN RUDOLPH RUN
WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE (The Bon Jovi National Anthem - Slippery When Wet)

Highlights:
1. I was so into this concert that I lost 2.5 pounds jumping around and loving every minute of it.

2. The big screen behind them was great. I could see their smiles. (Jon has a great one.) I could feel their energy and once again I left feeling energized but exhausted and knowing that he could have kept going for another several hours.

3. I had told my friend Carla that even though he is 43, he still jumps around on stage as if he's 20 and he just started all this. Then, when the concert was going on, I realized he wasn't moving around as much as usual. (Yes, I know I'm sad...and obsessed...you don't have to tell me.) And at some point in the encore, he said he had an old man story to tell. He'd apparently pulled his back earlier in the day and was "juiced up on every anti-inflammatory drug available" and wanted us to know that if we'd noticed he wasn't jumping around a lot that was the reason.

4. A truth universally known, but professed by Jon himself on Saturday night...WOMEN RULE THE WORLD and have since the beginning of time. And he's actually thankful for that. He wouldn't have it any other way. But he does think it's fun to mess with us sometimes. Oh he's a funny one.

5. 20,000 screaming MCI Center fans singing the choruses of Livin' On A Prayer and Wanted Dead or Alive a capella to the band. That was awesome and amazing to be a part of. You could hear every single one of our voices...what little we had left of them that is.

6. The one time I'd wished I'd had my camera was the acoustic version of I'll Be There For You. Picture a microphone and stand dead center on the stage, Richie on one side with his guitar, Jon on the other side with his guitar, both playing and singing. It was the perfect image for the night. I LOVED IT! They've been best friends for over 20 years and it's performances like that where you can really see how great of a friendship it is.

This picture is from another tour stop off their website.

7. Richie's hand motions during Bad Medicine. I can't say any more than that. :)

8. "Where do you guys think you're going? Get back out here." As spoken by Jon when the guys tried to leave the stage before the encore was over.

Of course I could go on and on, but I can tell you this much...I had a lot of fun on Saturday night...more fun than I've had in a REALLY LONG TIME!!! They never cease to amaze me and I just dread the day that they decide to stop touring. I love seeing people perform their jobs when they absolutely love their jobs. And there is not a doubt in my mind that Jon and the rest of the guys love their jobs. It is so apparent in the care they give to the songs they put on their albums and the way they perform at their shows. Case in point, their current album was supposed to come out around the same time as the box set last year, but when Jon got ready to hand it to the record label, he pulled it back because he knew they'd rushed it and he knew it wasn't what he wanted it to be. I don't know what the original sounded like, but what we were given is nothing short of fantastic. And to get to see them perform those songs they've worked so hard on for the last 20+ years is indescribable. It truly was the best Christmas present I could have asked for.

Thanks guys for showing this girl...this fan a great time. I'll see you in February, but this time I'll be a little closer. :)