Bon Jovi: Is Richie back? The Richie Rehab 2011 Saga part 10,387

While this is a step in the right direction it's not 100%

 

Thanks to the always awesome Abby @Clothesrock  for posting this.  If you're going to one of the European shows and you see her, say Hi!  She's very nice!!!

Bon Jovi: It just makes you want to lick your computer screen...

Especially if it's in HD.

Thanks  @janinejovi! for sharing this on a Friday afternoon (and for many of us here in the States a 3 day weekend. )

Bon Jovi: It's all Greek to me..... Part 9,545 in the Richie Rehab 2011 Saga

This article doesn't confirm or deny anything but I get to use a funny headline.

I don't know anymore than you.  But the Greeks.... You know they invented Democracy and other things.

Greek-Canadian Phil Xenidis Named Lead Guitarist on Bon Jovi’s Tour

Posted on 27 May 2011 by Marianna Kourti

He plays the guitar perfectly and when he performs live, steals the show. He is of Greek descent and he will be at the OAKA Stadium in Athens, on the 20th of July. He will be performing next to rock star Jon Bon Jovi, replacing Richie Sambora.

Phil Xenidis, known as Phil X, was born in May 1966. The Greek-Canadian guitarist is the co-founder of the band Powder. In the last decade, the band was characterized as one of the surprises of the contemporary music scene of Los Angeles. Through Powder he became well-known not only in the USA, but also in Europe. For a long time he replaced Rik Emmett in Triumph. Until today, he has cooperated with many people from the rock scene such as Rob Zombie, The Drills, Aldo Nova, Frozen Ghost and more.

The temporary exit of Richie Sambora from the Bon Jovi band was official announced on the 29th of April. The top guitarist became a victim of his drug addiciton and he is now at a detoxification centre. Phil Xenidis accepted the invitation and now he is with the legendary Jon Bon Jovi on this year’s tour as his lead guitarist.

His first appearance was at the New Orleans Jazz Fest’s Acura Stage. This year’s tour was very much publicized and ends on July 31st in Lisbon.

The picture they use above and title "Xendis" is actually Richie & Jon.

Maybe I do know more than the Greeks.  God help us all.

Man I need to drive to Tarpon & get some baklava now.

(Thanks @Gutter_Mistress)

Non Jovi: 5 Questions With Southside Johnny

I don't claim to be a SSJ fan. I've never seen him live.

But anyway lots of you are also SSJ fans. He mentions how Bobby "Faux Hawk" Bandiera is a part of his band usually but he needed to hire a replacement (cause Bobby is playing the In These Arms solo WTF???  WHY???).

Enjoy

5 Questions With Southside Johnny By Mike Pritchard Sometimes it’s easy to forget that New Jersey has more than 130 miles of beach and coastline. And that can lead to some differences in culture along the Atlantic. For John Lyon, better known as Southside Johnny, and his band the Asbury Jukes, there are parts of the northern New Jersey shore where they aren’t just one of the best party bands ever, they’re music gods. Trust us. Near Asbury Park (from which the band obviously derives its name), for a certain age group, not knowing the words to “We’re Having a Party” could get you deported to Metuchen or some other non-beach locale. Southside brings that legacy to the southern shore Saturday with a concert at Ocean City’s Music Pier (8pm, $30 in advance, $35 at the door. Call 800-838-3006 or visit brownpapertickets.com). For such a shore icon, Southside admits he doesn’t get below the Mullica River all that often. "Not nearly as much as we should,” he says. But south or north, The Jukes always carry with them that magical feel of a time when they and other acts (some guy named Springsteen comes to mind) put the Asbury Park/Jersey Shore sound on the musical map. We caught up with Lyon at his Ocean Grove home for a phone interview and asked him five questions. We found him relaxed, funny, and as always, ready for a party. Since the band’s inception in the 1970s, you’ve seen a huge amount of amazing musical talent play with the band. We’ve heard that its more than 120 guys. Is that really true? "That is true. We count everybody though. If you play in the band even one day, then you’ve been a member of the Jukes. So there are a lot of people who have played in the Jukes and they’re just guest appearances. But the truth is that we have had over a hundred and some musicians pass through that were, you know, they played in the Jukes. There’s a guy over in England, Mike Saunders, who did a family tree for us a few years ago — I guess like 10 years ago now — and he had over a hundred people then and we’ve had many people pass through since then. So yeah, it’s been a real breeding ground. … of what I don’t know. One of those guys currently is Billy Walton, a South Jersey favorite, who will play with you Saturday. Can you talk about him being in the band. Well, Billy’s band opened for us a couple of times, I think once down in Virginia at the Birchmere, one of our favorite places to play. And so we were casting around for a guitar player. Bobby Bandiera, who had been with me for the last 20 years, went out with Bon Jovi. And Jon started adding more and more dates. So we needed somebody to fill in, actually take over the seat. Then we got Glen Alexander and then we had another guy and then this guy. And Billy, we asked him to play one time. I heard him play at The Birchmere and I said, 'I really like this guy.' And he’s just a great guy.  He’s just a terrific guy to have in the band. He’s always up and he doesn’t cause problems. And he doesn’t bring any neuroses with him, at least I haven’t seen any. And he kind of fit in. So we’ve taken him with us to Europe. Sometimes we have two guitar players and usually he’s the second guitar player. Sometimes, he’s the only guitar player. He’s just a great addition and a lot of fun to have on tour. Speaking of touring, you’ve been doing a lot. You were just in Norway and you’re going to the UK in the fall. But it seems like you purposefully left the summer months open to play close to home. We were just in Norway and Sweden for five dates. We happen to be fairly popular in Norway and Sweden and really all of Europe … except France, which is weird, because we’ve played France several times and its one of my favorite countries. Paris is one of my top five cities and yet  … (laughs) I don’t know. But yes, we want to be here in the summer. You know the winter is kind of a dead season as it is for most bands — we have the winters to record —  but when spring comes we just get out there on the road and we keep moving and moving and moving. We play as much as we can. And it’s a good time for bands to be out there. Everybody needs a little break from their worries right now. And that’s what we’re all about. You know sit back, have a few beers and have a good time. You’re a long time veteran of the music industry. What’s your view of all the changes in the industry that have happened with the reliance on digital and the Internet to get music out there. Some say it’s great, others say it destroying the industry. “I think it’s the greatest thing that ever happened to music … after recording. It lets you run your own show. You’re not going to have the big promotional money that a record company can give you, but then you get paid for every record you sell. I mean there’s no A&R man telling you what songs you need to record … not that I ever listened to anybody like that. But you’re in charge of everything. You’re in charge of the artwork, you’re in charge of the songs you record.  And it’s a great feeling. It’s so immediate with the audience now. You get a Web site. They can contact you. You can talk to them. It makes it so that’s it’s your own business and you don’t have to be part of a conglomerate to get it done. You’ll probably never get to be a multi-millionaire —  though some people might — but it’s such a relief not to have to deal with people who don’t really care about the music. I like it much better this way. And I think its great for young artists. If you look at how the music business has been run, they’re looking for the one artist they can promote. I always think of Whitney Houston, some great-looking person who makes pop music. Everybody else is second tier or third tier. And 99.9 percent of the people making music these days would be in those lower tiers. They really wouldn’t get a lot of respect or help from a record company. And I’ve known some record companies. It’s tough to get paid, to get your just desserts. This way they can stand or fail on their own.” Your own sound can be very diverse, At times it’s very bluesy and yet it can also rock. What can people expect when they come out to see you Saturday? “A good time. (laughs) You know we’re based in rhythm and blues. That’s where we actually started.  But there’s always been some rock n’ roll in there. I come from a blues background of listening to it and playing it. There’s some jazz, because we have horns so guys like to do a little jazz thing here and there. We play what we musically want. If we feel like doing some country songs, we’ll do some country songs. We don’t cater to the audience as much as we cater to our own impulses and urges at the moment and we hope to make it palatable to the audience. But we can always go to one of the songs we’re recognized for — you know our so called hits — if people are saying ‘If they play one more George Jones song I’m leaving.’ Then you go right into “I Don’t Wanna Go Home” and everybody’s happy. You have to do that one and that’s fine because it’s a singer’s song and you never get tired of it. Especially when you see the audience react to it.”

Bon Jovi: Awww if this doesn't make you miss happy healthy Richie....

I don't know what will.



Even in rehab (inpatient/outpatient or detox)I bet a day being Richie Sambora is a better day being a lot of us.

Except Jon.

Bon Jovi: Things Jon loves to do

Oh look at Mr Happy *SARCASM* as he does some radio bits for some European cities.





I wonder how many takes it took? Jon seems like he would challenge himself to do each on in one take just to get it over with and move on.

Bon Jovi: Another article from Forbes

A little something about Jon's start in the music industry recording R2-D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas.  It's just an awful album, anything Christmas related that George Lucas has allowed Star Wars to be attached to is crap-wrapped-in-cheese-tastic.  If you don't believe me Youtube Star Wars Holiday Special.  Harvey Korman & Beatrice Arthur at Mos Eisley (Bea is the bar matron for F*cks sake).  Obi-Wan turned in his grave in the Force (he doesn't have a grave he became one with the Force).  Although I don't really know how much of a secret this is to all of us fans.

Jon Bon Jovi’s Star Wars Secret

Zack O'Malley Greenburg

THE BEAT REPORT

Jon Bon Jovi: These aren't the songs you've been looking for.

Over the past three decades, Jon Bon Jovi has played 2,700 concerts in 50 different countries. With his eponymous band, he raked in $125 million over the past 12 months, good enough to land him the No. 8 spot on FORBES’ latest Celeb 100 list. But few people know that he got his start a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.

The year was 1980, and an 18-year-old John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. was looking to earn a few extra bucks between gigs at New Jersey dive bars and his job as an errand boy at his cousin Tony Bongiovi’s radio station in New York. A producer by the name of Meco Menardo asked Tony if he knew of any good singers looking some work. And with that, Menardo was quickly introduced to the man who’d become Bon Jovi.

“This guy Meco would hire session guys and they’d orchestrate stuff with disco beats,” Bon Jovi recalls over a tuna sandwich in Manhattan. “He did Star Wars rip-off stuff in the wake of all of George Lucas’ success. And he needed a kid.”

Specifically, Menardo was looking for someone with a high voice to sing lead vocals in the song “R2D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas,” a spectacularly corny track praising the world’s most famous droid (see below). The song was one of nine he was producing for an album called Christmas In The Stars: Star Wars Christmas Album. Other choice cuts included “What Can You Get A Wookiee For Christmas (When He Already Owns A Comb),” which reportedly charted at No. 69 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1980.

When it came time to record the R2D2 song, Meco tried to sing the part himself. But his mature voice didn’t exactly fit in with a chorus of children singing “R2D2 we love you, it’s true” amid the constant clatter of jingle bells. That’s when he connected with the future “Livin’ On A Prayer” singer.

“Meco tried to sing it himself, and he didn’t sound like a young boy,” says Bon Jovi. “So he said, ‘Can you really sing?’ I said, ‘Yeah,’ and he said, ‘Do it.’ So they wrote me down like a session musician … It took 20 minutes, there was nothing to it.”

Menardo paid Bon Jovi $180 for his efforts, and the two parted ways. Subsequently, Menardo has said he predicted stardom for the youngster immediately; indeed, Bon Jovi’s big break came in 1983, when he wrote and recorded the song “Runaway.” After sending the tape to every record company he could think of, to no avail, he took his cassette to Long Island radio station WAPP, which was so new it didn’t have a receptionist. He banged on the window of the sound booth and convinced the DJ to play the song, which quickly exploded onto the mainstream radio scene.

“‘Runaway’ was that fluke great story of a kid that knocked on a window with a cassette tape and then broke nationally,” he says. “That same cassette that was sitting on every record guy’s desk was suddenly getting me phone calls.”

One of those phone calls came from Mercury Records, which signed Bon Jovi to his first record deal that same year, prompting the singer to shorten his name from John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. It wasn’t until the 1986 release of Slippery When Wet that Bon Jovi became a household name, thanks to hits like “Livin on a Prayer” and “Wanted Dead or Alive.” The album has sold 28 million copies worldwide.

Christmas In The Stars, however, did not enjoy quite so much success. After making its CD debut in 1994 (the original was released only on cassette), it was clear that Menardo’s masterpiece wasn’t going to be joining Bing Crosby in any holiday radio marathons.

“Few Christmas albums are as truly terrible as Star Wars: Christmas in the Stars,” wrote Allmusic.com. “Fans of the series should give it a listen just to hear how bad it is, but this is really only recommended for those who enjoy terrible music for its comic value.”

Still, Bon Jovi has no regrets.

“It was cute, it was funny,” he says. “I got my $180, and that was the end of it.”

Bon Jovi: Back in 1988 in Vancouver...

I'm guessing during the final days of recording New Jersey back in 1988, on this day, May 24th the following happened:

In 1988, Jon Bon Jovi joined Bryan Adams on stage as Adams gave an impromptu performance at a Vancouver nightclub. All 900 tickets for Adams's show, which wasn't announced until that day, were snapped up within seven minutes. Adams donated the $20,000 raised to Vancouver Children's Hospital for treatment of young cancer patients.

Source

And wouldn't you know someone posted on YouTube part of the performance.



Check out Jon singing the same song (@ about 5:15) just over a year ago in Kansas City. You can all thank @gutter_ceo for this vid.

Bon Jovi: The Buisness of Bon Jovi in Milwaukee

And now the crappy news lull between legs of the tour.

Bon Jovi and Milwaukee means money

The Business Journal - by Mark Kass

Date: Monday, May 23, 2011, 10:34am CDT

Scott Paulus
Bon Jovi's concert Saturday was a huge financial boon
for the Bradley Center and also the Milwaukee Bucks.

Bon Jovi made what has become its annual appearance in Milwaukee over the weekend and the sold out event was a big money winner for the band and the Bradley Center.

In fact, between 2003 and 2011 in Milwaukee alone, Bon Jovi has appeared at the Bradley Center four times, twice at Summerfest and once at Miller Park. The band sold a total of more than 110,000 tickets and grossed more than $7.5 million from the six Bradley Center and Summerfest shows, according to the group's public relations firm. The Miller Park show in 2005 was part of Miller Brewing Co.'s 150th anniversary celebration.

"There's just something about playing in Milwaukee that keeps bringing us back," lead singer Jon Bon Jovi told the crowd on Saturday.

The concert was a huge financial boon for the Bradley Center and also the Milwaukee Bucks. Even though the building had to pay Bon Jovi a large fee to play the concert, the event drew more than 18,000 fans, many of whom spent big money for their tickets, parking, merchandise and concessions.

As is the case with any event at the Bradley Center, the Milwaukee Bucks reaped the benefits of the money spent on food, beverages, programs and parking, both in the stands and in the luxury suites.

Under the National Basketball Association team's lease with the Bradley Center, the Bucks pay no rent and receive 27.5 percent of total gross receipts from concessions other than programs and merchandise at all events. The team also receives 13.75 percent of gross revenue from food and beverages sold in the building's luxury suites.

"There is no doubt this is a good day for the Bradley Center," Steve Costello, president of the Bradley Center, told me as we watched tour crews build the stage Saturday morning.

The Business Journal was given exclusive access by the Bradley Center and Bon Jovi for the day to chronicle the business of putting on a major rock concert from how the tour transformed the Bradley Center for its show to how it maximizes its ability to earn revenue through VIP packages.

Watch for additional blogs this week and see our May 27 issue for a photo spread on the event. There also will be an extensive photo slideshow on our website on May 27.

Non Jovi: Facebook

I have personally been on Facebook for a couple of years.  So I just decided to give this blog a Facebook page as well.  This blog will "feed" right onto Facebook and into your (and my) news feed.

Feel free to friend me.  The badge thing is to the left.  Or click below:

De Bee

Create Your Badge

Bon Jovi: Bon Jovi keeps it real at Scottrade show

Bon Jovi always keeps it real even on the last *cough* show of the US tour. *cough cough cough* Sorry I have a frog in my throat.

Big Thanks go to Phil X. Those are some big shoes to fill. So now everyone has to speculate on if Richie will be back. I just want Richie healthy and if that means he stays home all summer, I would rather have Richie alive in California, than another victim of Rock N Roll Excess.

Bon Jovi keeps it real at Scottrade show

By Daniel Durchholz • Special to the Post-Dispatch | Posted: Monday, May 23, 2011 10:09 am

Nearly 30 years into its career, Bon Jovi remains a force to be reckoned with.

The New Jersey band, led by singer/guitarist Jon Bon Jovi, recently ranked No. 8 on Forbes Magazine's Celebrity 100 list, thanks to earnings of $125 million in the past 12 months. Some of that jack came from the band's 2010 tour dates, which grossed more than any other rock and roll road show last year.

During a sold-out show at Scottrade Center on Sunday - the last stop of the band's American tour - Bon Jovi showed how it has continued to hold such a high place in the rock firmament - by working hard, giving the people what they want and above all, keeping it real.

The show's opening number, "Last Man Standing" said as much. Singing from a platform toward the back of the arena, Bon Jovi boasted how he doesn't lip synch and how the band can actually play.

For the next two-and-a-half hours, they did just that, mixing favorites "You Give Love a Bad Name," "Runaway" and "Livin' on a Prayer" with more recent fare such as "We Weren't Born to Follow," "When We Were Beautiful" and "Superman Tonight."

During a couple of numbers, Bon Jovi called for some "jukebox music," interpolating Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" and the Isley Brothers' "Shout" into "Bad Medicine" and Bachman-Turner Overdrive's "Takin' Care of Business" into "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead." After the latter number, he laughed and exclaimed, "I get an A+ for remembering those words!"

Some of the singer's stage moves are reminiscent of that other guy from New Jersey - Bruce Springsteen - and so is some of his repertoire, notably the epic story song "Dry County." But Bon Jovi is a tireless performer, and he isn't afraid to play off his boyish good looks, which are still intact at age 49. When a little bump 'n' grind routine got a reaction from the crowd, he said, "Hey, I just gotta loosen things up around here."

Bon Jovi had to work particularly hard to draw attention away from the absence of his primary onstage foil, guitarist Richie Sambora, who left the tour last month to enter rehab. Journeyman Phil "X" Xenidis filled in admirably, especially on "Wanted Dead or Alive" - usually a bit of a showcase for Sambora - and Bon Jovi himself offered a few lead guitar licks here and there. But Sambora's presence was definitely missed and was the evening's sole sour note.

Near the end of the show, Bon Jovi mentioned the success of the tour and noted "I like fighting with the Irish guys, making sure we're still on top." Memo to Jon: Those "Irish guys" - U2 - sold out Busch Stadium in July. Still, on Sunday at Scottrade, the Jersey boys were champs.

The show, incidentally, drew the highest attendance in Scottrade history: 20,648. A band-supported food drive to aid victims of local flood and tornado victims brought in more than 7,000 pounds of food. According to the St. Louis Area Foodbank, this will provide more than 6,000 meals for the area's needy.

Set list:

"Last Man Standing"

"You Give Love a Bad Name"

"Born to Be My Baby"

"We Weren't Born to Follow"

"In These Arms"

"Superman Tonight"

"It's My Life"

"Runaway"

"We Got It Going On"

"Bad Medicine"/"O Pretty Woman"

"Keep the Faith"

"When We Were Beautiful"

"(You Want to) Make a Memory"

"I'll Be There for You"

"Who Says You Can't Go Home"

"I'll Sleep When I'm Dead"/"Takin' Care of Business"

"Someday I'll Be Saturday Night"

"Have a Nice Day"

"Blood on Blood"

Encore

"Dry County"

"Wanted Dead or Alive"

"Livin' on a Prayer"

Second encore

"Twist and Shout"

Bon Jovi: Bon Jovi keeps the faith, minus guitarist Sambora

Bon Jovi keeps the faith, minus guitarist Sambora

Reuters

Jon Bon Jovi performs in Boston, at an earlier stop on his tour. Bon Jovi played the Bradley Center Saturday night.

In the middle of Bon Jovi's sold-out show Saturday night at the Bradley Center, frontman Jon Bon Jovi paused to answer one question that might have crossed the minds of a few fans.
"I don't know how to say this, but the world is still here tonight," the singer said, remarking about the day's widely reported speculation of an apocalypse.

Dedicating a song to Harold Camping (the man behind the purported rapture), Bon Jovi offered up a fitting cover of R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)." It was a moment of levity in the midst of a brightly produced 2 ½ set of hits from the New Jersey band.
Another question that many fans were probably asking themselves wasn't so directly answered: How would Bon Jovi fare without original guitarist Richie Sambora?

Jon Bon Jovi barely mentioned his longtime sidekick, who bowed out of this tour after checking into rehab. He name-dropped him ("Richie is doing the best he can") in the lyrics of "Blood on Blood" and thanked fans for their loyalty even when the band was "a man down."

The group coped musically thanks to the more-than-competent fretwork of newly added Triumph guitarist Phil Xenidis and some solo work from their regular touring guitarist Bobby Bandiera.
While Sambora's charisma was obviously missing from the show, his absence seemed to ignite the band's energetic lead singer.
Dressed in black jeans and a vest, Bon Jovi already had his fist pumping as he climbed onto the large stage for the opening "Lost Highway." Backed by drummer Tico Torres, keyboardist David Bryan and bassist Hugh McDonald, the still-boyish 49-year-old lead singer was greeted by an audience that was ready to sing along with every word.
The band sampled widely from its repertoire, at one point pairing its 1983 breakout single, "Runaway," with "The More Things Change," a new track from last year's "Greatest Hits" album.
The show was rife with rock anthems, bright lights and stage effects. Bon Jovi climbed a transforming staircase of video screens to sing "We Got it Going On" to the fans behind the stage. He shook his head and swiveled his hips while adding a verse of Rod Stewart's "Hot Legs" to an extended "Bad Medicine." He ventured through the crowd to a satellite stage for a set of slower songs that included the 1992 power ballad "Bed of Roses."

Encore performances of "Wanted Dead or Alive" and "Livin' on a Prayer" incited the loudest audience response, but it was the main set closer, "Keep the Faith," that brought the band and its front man to their peak.

Shaking a pair of maracas and reaching out over the crowd as sweat pored from his brow, Bon Jovi crouched like a prize fighter and led the band into an arena rock frenzy of swirling lights and wailing guitars.

Bon Jovi: It's the End of the World.... Or is it?

Jon made reference to the "Rapture" last night at the show in Milwaukee.



He then played REM's classic 'It's the End of the World as We Know it"

LEONARD BERNSTEIN



Thanks aspenrose for the quick uploads.

Here's another from SOXBEARS GO JON!!! He gets all the words. :)