Globetrotting rock'n'roller in town
Globetrotting rock’n’roller Jon Bon Jovi is acclimatising to Perth ahead of the start of his seven-date Australia tour which kicks off with a gig at Patersons Stadium tonight.
Bon Jovi and other band members enjoyed a meal at The Raffles Hotel in Applecross last night with the lead singer appearing relaxed and friendly as he was driven away.
The show, part of their epic world tour in the wake of US No. 1 album The Circle, will come two years after the New Jersey veterans rocked a sold-out Subiaco crowd of nearly 29,000 fans on their Lost Highway tour.
The Circle tour began in February in North America and is scheduled to end in Portugal in July next year.
Speaking ahead of his arrival in Perth, the 48-year-old rocker born John Bongiovi explained that the band manage to break up their long tours with trips home to see their families. He lives in Manhattan with his wife, Dorothea, and four kids.
“You don’t want to be away too long — three weeks at a clip — then you gotta go home or else somebody else is going to move in and take over, ” he laughed. “That’s probably the only smart thing we’ve done, you know, to make sure we get home more.”
Bon Jovi, the band, today is far removed from the long-haired glam metal outfit behind chart-busters such as You Give Love a Bad Name, Livin’ on a Prayer and the bombastic Bad Medicine.
But Bad Medicine, a huge hit from the 1988 album New Jersey, is one of the must-play songs among Bon Jovi’s live repertoire of 70-plus songs reaching right back to 1983 debut single Runaway.
From Bad Medicine to hard times, the economic woes of the US inspired Bon Jovi to write several socially conscious songs on The Circle, including Work for the Working Man, When We Were Beautiful and lead single, We Weren’t Born to Follow.
Bon Jovi has copped flak for the high prices of some concert tickets, with some VIP packages costing more than $1000.
“I’m not aware of that, ” Bon Jovi began diplomatically. “I knew that they had VIP sections. There’s also very reasonably priced tickets so it doesn’t exclude anyone from getting the entire production.
“In all honesty, we bring such a massive production such a far way that it costs a lot of money.”
Bon Jovi are rock’n’roll royalty and may be enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next year. The band is one of 15 nominees for induction in 2011.
Bon Jovi in action in New Zealand
