Live: Bon Jovi

By James Desborough, 08/03/2010
The Staples Center, Los Angeles

About five minutes into their chest pounding opening tune Blood On Blood - Jon Bon Jovi wryly smiles, as the guitars and drums fell silent, and quietly sings a capella: "Well me... I'm still a singer in a long haired rock'n'roll band."

A moment of reflection, a nod to the crowd for their support, or perhaps a modest expression and reason why this New Jersey born song machine are still among the royalty of rock.

The full house at the Los Angeles Staples Center yelled, screamed and hollered, before the band kicked back into their opener - an unofficial anthem showing how JBJ, Richie Sambora, David Bryan and Tico Torres have stuck it through thick and thin...and thank the Lord they have.

Their Thursday night Circle Tour show was a masterclass in how to wow a crowd for two-and-a-half hours.

Some critics see the way JBJ runs his group as a business-minded affair - but don't be scared by that, because when these exceptional musicians take to the stage - it's just like watching four kids jamming to their favourite tunes in their garage.

Forget the fact they have been doing shows for over 25 years, Bon Jovi make the crowd feel it is their first on the road for a long time - a vintage performance.

Jon strutting around, and boogying away, as Richie effortlessly whacking out the riffs that make these guys something special.

The lesser-spotted Tico Torres is the heartbeat of this outfit - you can't help but chuckle at the way his close cam behind the drums showed the three inch veins bulging through his neck muscle as he pummeled each skin into submission.

Jon doesn't need to say much - a simple "Are You With Me" and off we go again another 25 minutes of those tunes that you can't stop humming - We Weren't Born to Follow, You Give Love a Bad Name, Born To Be My Baby, Lost Highway, Superman and Bad Medicine.

It's easy to forget how many hits they've scored.

And when things slowed down, Jon and Richie showed in person how their voices are astonishing together, superseding anything they put down on CD. The harmonizing on When We Were Beautiful and acoustic I'll Be There For You were breathtaking.

Halfway through Jon goes solo to deliver his version of Hallelujah. For a man seen AS a rock front man more than lead singer, he demonstrates why he is still at the top of his game.

However, the stand-out vocal moment comes courtesy of Richie - yep, that man who usually gets his spotlight on guitar solos.

He sings Bon Jovi's 1970s blues rock homage Downtown Train - a lesser known nugget from their New Jersey album.

The last 50 minutes is a non stop party thanks to those sing-along anthems: Who Says You Can't Go Home, Wanted Dead Or Alive, Keep The Faith and the band love it as much as the crowd.