"You forgot the most important contribution Bon Jovi ever made. A strong, impassioned version of 'Wanted Dead or Alive' in any karaoke bar is sure to get you laid." - reader David H.
I usually start with a song lyric, but someone e-mailed that to me and I thought it was damn funny. Plus, it segue's oh so nicely into this very special X-Factor. As for my buddy Iago Ali and recent coments he made, let's just say I'll be appearing on Wrestling Observer Live to bash 411 when Widro won't let me hang an Ali dummy in effigy.
Anywho, like the sands through the hourglass, so is...
THE SOUNDTRACK TO YOUR LIFE
Music is pretty cool.
We all have that one band that becomes as important a part of their life as their own families do. They're the friends you turn to when life is good and whom you rely on when you feel there's nowhere else to turn. Regardless of what's going on in your little corner of the world, you can always rely on their music to be the one true friend you have. The different songs all become "snapshots" of a specific moment in time - a specific memory. As you get older, you can listen to each song and look back the same way you would go through and old photo album. The music really does become the soundtrack to your life.
For me, that band is Bon Jovi. So I invite you take a trip with me as I reflect back and take a look at the music that was playing in the background.
Slippery When Wet
Two things will always stand out about this album. Like most children of the 80's, "Slippery..." was my introduction to Bon Jovi. The thing is that when I first heard him, I thought he was Ozzy Osbourne. Before everyone starts laughing, I was only 11 and was just getting into music. All I knew was that Ozzy had a song called "Shot in the Dark," and I heard a song on the radio where the line went "Shot through the heart..." Hey, I was young :)
The other thing is that this was my first ever CD. My birthday was coming up and I was the only one of my friends who didn't have a stereo. I asked for one for my birthday and my mom, being the oh-so-hip lady that she is, decided to get me a CD player instead because I'd just be bugging her for one anyway. I had gotten all excited that I was going to be the first one to get a CD player, I never asked for any CD's. Luckily my mom saw the "Slippery When Wet" cassette lying around the house and figured I liked it. Good call mom:)
Favorite Songs: "Let in Rock," "Wanted Dead or Alive," "Raise Your Hands"
Crush
It was a comeback album of sorts for the band. When I bought it, I was finishing a road trip for Scoops (the now defunct wrestling website I used to write for). They sent me to Baltimore and Richmond for "The Great American Bash" and "Monday Nitro" respectively. Tuesday morning, I had a long ass wait for my plane. So, I drove around looking for a Tower Records. I swear, walking through those doors was like walking through a culture warp. The floors we carpeted in yellow, orange, and brown. They had the same display's up from 1983. Worst of all, there was an odor wafting through the air that isn't even describable. God bless Virginia, eh? Anywho, after arguing with the clerk that the album did indeed come out that day, they found me a copy and I was off to catch a plane.
For me, Crush will always be the soundtrack for my relationship with my now ex-girlfriend, who we'll just call "Mary Jane" for the time being. We were both huge fans and when the album came out, we had only been together for less than six months. When I spoke before of each song being a "snapshot," this album is sort of a photo album of sorts for us. MJ loved music and song lyrics so much that she actually sat down with the album and write out the words to each song since they didn't come with the CD booklet. We even celebrated our one-year anniversary by driving to Philadelphia to catch the Bon Jovi live. MJ and I spent the better part of two years in each others company and had a lot of really great times, but if I had to choose one it would definitely be this concert.
It's funny how life works out because we'll probably never talk to each other again, but anytime I listen to "Crush" it's like the drama from when it ended any bitterness that's lingered completely disappears. There's only the good times, and it feels like it's 2000 all over again.
Favorite Songs: "100 Years," "Just Older," "Captain Crash..."
New Jersey
I don't really have any cool anecdotes about this album, other than the fact that it's my all-time favorite out of anything Bon Jovi has released. The main reason is because it's home to not only my favorite Bon Jovi song, but my favorite of all time, "Blood on Blood."
The funny thing is, I had completely passed over the song whenever I had listened to the album. It wasn't until I saw a copy of the Moscow Music Peace Festival and heard it played live that I fell in love with it. "Blood on Blood" is just an awesome song about friendship and brotherhood, and about finding those people that'll always stand by you when you need them. When you get right down to it that's what life is really about...me and Danny and Bobby.
Favorite Songs: "Blood on Blood," "Stick to Your Guns," "Living in Sin," "Wild is the Wind."
These Days
I can't talk about this album without being taken back to the 1995 MTV Music Video Awards. A few of my college cohorts and I were in town for the CMJ New Music Marathon. I don't remember how, but the school put us up in the Marriott Marquis in Times Square. Now, you take a group of college kids and put them up and classy hotel like this, it's only a matter of time before we suck the class right out of it. However before we did, we noticed that they were setting up a stage right outside in the middle of Times Square.
The following morning, after an evening of shitty music and shitty beer, I was woken up by my friend jumping on my bed and screaming. Then she shoved a copy of a newspaper in my face. Apparently the stage was being set up for a FREE BON JOVI CONCERT as part of the VMA's. What luck! Not only are we staying right outside the concert, but I was a card-carrying member of the Bon Jovi fan club at the time. I was able to weasel my way onto the VIP line and we were all of five rows back for the performance of "Helter Skelter" and "Give Me Something for the Pain," as well as a few classic tracks to entertain the crowd before they went live.
These Days wasn't a bad album either:)
Favorite Songs: "Lie to Me," "Something to Believe In," "Hearts Breaking Even."
Crossroads
"Crossroads" is their greatest hits album and to promote it, the set list for that tour was chock-full o' the best songs from their entire catalog. I caught their concert on Long Island, and it was the best show I'd ever seen, up until Bon Jovi played Giants Stadium in July of 2001. The band played every song I wanted to hear for close to three hours, was called out for three encores, and even threw in a few songs from "These Days," which was just released the week prior.
My only complaint was the little girl sitting in front of me. She was there with her parents, and when the band played "Runaway," she asked them if it was a new song. That was my first taste of having someone make me feel old:(
Favorite Songs: "Someday I'll Be Saturday Night," "Always."
Bounce
We'll have to wait and see...
