Nice article on tonight's show and opening act Billy Falcon.
By Brian Dukes
Staff writer
When it comes to rock bands, they don't come more legendary than Bon Jovi. The New Jersey natives will rock out at Raleigh's RBC Center Monday night.
The performance is part of the globe-trotting Bon Jovi Live 2011 World Tour, which kicked off in Pittsburgh Feb. 11 and concludes in Lisbon, Portugal.
Over the course of Bon Jovi's 27-year history, the band has put out 11 studio albums, sold more than 130 million copies worldwide, and landed 10 tunes in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. That includes four No. 1 hits - "You Give Love a Bad Name," "Livin' on a Prayer," "Bad Medicine" and "I'll Be There For You."
"They are simply one of the best and most-enduring rock bands of all time," said Stoney, an on-air radio personality and DJ WFLB 96.5 FM.
One of the secrets to Bon Jovi's success, Stoney said, has been the band's consistent songwriting.
"They have great songs with great choruses, and they always talk about love," said Stoney. "That's the formula, and they've managed to stay current."
Unlike many of their big-haired band brethren of the '80s, Bon Jovi avoided burning out, Stoney added, by staying ahead of the curve.
"They didn't fall aside like Ratt or Poison; they stayed away from the makeup," said Stoney. "And they have a rabid fanbase who supports Bon Jovi no matter where they perform."
That fanbase, Stoney said, has grown with the band, remaining true followers throughout the years, even as Bon Jovi has taken a hiatus or two, and even when the band crossed over into country music terrain.
"2007's 'Lost Highway' was a great album that had a lot of country appeal to it," said Stoney. "And they wrote 'Who Says You Can't Go Home,' which became a hit duet with Jennifer Nettles from Sugarland."
No matter what genre Bon Jovi's music occupies, fans can easily identify with it, Stoney said.
"These guys are from (New) Jersey; they're hard-working grinders," said Stoney. "They always put their fans first, never forget where they came from, and have a 'real life' appeal to their music. It's no surprise they're still filling stadiums."
Meet the opening act
Billy Falcon, a longtime Bon Jovi songwriting collaborator, singer and performer, will be the band's opening act. Falcon has co-written more than a dozen songs on the last six Bon Jovi albums, including "When We Were Beautiful" and "Superman Tonight" from Bon Jovi's 2009 album "The Circle."
He also has a song on the soundtrack for the recent film, "Country Strong." He co-wrote "Give In To Me" with his daughter, Rose, and Elisha Hoffman. Faith Hill performs the song.
Falcon toured with Bon Jovi in 1992 and opened for Richie Sambora a number of times. To return the favor, Jon Bon Jovi and guitarist Richie Sambora wrote songs for Falcon's new solo album, "When."
"I'm psyched about the show," said Falcon. "It's going to be a great show. Sometimes I still can't believe this all came together."
Weekender caught up with Falcon to talk about his connection to Bon Jovi, his music, and more.
Weekender: On your website, Jon Bon Jovi gives you quite the ringing endorsement. He says, "Billy Falcon is not only one of my favorite guys, he was - and is still - one of my favorite songwriters." What's that like?
Falcon: (laughs)Jon's been great to me over the years, really supportive. It's really cool, actually.
Weekender: How did you two become so close that he endorses your new album, "When," on your website as well?
Falcon: It's a long story, but basically, I've been writing music since I was 18, and Jon was a fan of these little records I'd made from 1979 to 1987. Well, he knew a guy who knew a friend of mine, who told me that Jon wanted to meet me. This was in 1990, around the time Jon's hit "Blaze of Glory" was all over the charts.
Weekender: So what happened next?
Falcon: Jon looked me up out of the blue. It was hilarious. I sent him some music from my album "Pretty Blue World," but I didn't think anything would come of it. A year went by, and I was in Nashville then, recording and hadn't heard anything from him.
Weekender: So things were dead in the water?
Falcon: Jon's a busy guy.(laughs)I wasn't worried about it. But then, again, through a friend-of-a-friend, Jon gave me his phone number and I called him and he asked me, "What the heck are you doing in Nashville?" After that, he invited me to dinner in New York with him. We hung out, played some songs, and then he just offers me a record contract! It was so Hollywood and so ridiculous.
Weekender: Whoa! What were you thinking?
Falcon: I remember thinking, "What the heck am I doing here?" But Jon told me my music got me there and he wanted to work with me. It's been great ever since.
Weekender: What's it like to collaborate with Bon Jovi?
Falcon: It's been fun. It's always a process - very different than writing for myself, though we like the same things when it comes to the craft of songwriting. We have a lot in common, musically, so that made it a good fit. He's from New Jersey and I'm from New York, in Queens, but we're cut from the same cloth.
Weekender: What's your favorite Bon Jovi song?
Falcon: "Born to Be My Baby." It was playing when I went to meet Jon for the first time.
Weekender: What can you tell us about your latest album, "When"?
Falcon: It's the best music of my life. People are really responding. Jon's help has sparked all of this. I really feel it's a songwriter's album.
Weekender: What's next for you?
Falcon: I'm still writing a lot and recording, but I'm also producing a number of groups and working with up-and-coming acts in Nashville. And my daughter, Rose, is in the business, too. She co-wrote "Give In To Me," which is featured in the movie "Country Strong," and performed by Faith Hill on the soundtrack. It's been a long, strange trip.
If you go
Who: Bon Jovi with Billy Falcon
When: Monday, Feb. 21, 7:30 p.m.
Where: RBC Center, Raleigh
Tickets: $19.50, $29.50, $49.50, $89.50 and $129
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