So ... I attended the Jon Corzine fundraising event last night in Newark.
It was ironic to find myself, once again, sitting in the New Jersey Performing Arts Center waiting for a Jon Bon Jovi appearance. As I mentioned in my HoF review, I really do love that venue ... its a wonderful facility and home to one of the often overlooked good orchestras in this country.
Anyway, upon finally arriving (not sure why the Light Rail line only comes every 25 minutes during rush hour ... argh) I was happy to receive a free drink ticket and went upstairs to find my friends (and a bar!) Of course, though the printed ticket said 6pm, the actual program didn't start until 7:30pm ... so the bar did come in handy. ;-)
At 7:30pm I took my seat way up close to God in the third tier where many other Bon Jovi fans were sitting. After a few speeches -- including a never-ending one from the volunteer chair for the campaign (as a friend said "22 minutes of my life I can't get back") and a rather amusing speech from the Governor of Montana - it was obvious the crowd was getting restless for Jon Bon Jovi to take the stage.And so he did ... he sounded wonderful, with the regular musicians we have grown to love (Bobby, Lorenza, Jeff and Everett.) Its been posted everywhere what they played - Who Says, Prayer and Here Comes the Sun - and complaining and nastiness has ensued about the fact that it was only three songs (more on that later.) It was short and sweet for sure ... heck! I think Jon was already in the SUV on the way home before Governor Corzine finished speaking. LOL
Jon also spoke for a few minutes about his friendship with the Governor and, in particular, work that the Soul Foundation is doing there in Newark and an upcoming project in Camden. It really is fantastic what the foundation is doing - I still think they could use an experienced non-profit professional on their staff (...hmmm...who might I be thinking of? ... hehe ...) but they'll cross that bridge when they get there.
Much has been said of Jon's inherent ability and obvious interest in politics and how that may translate into a future run for office - well, I think he summed up his feelings last night when he referred to politics as "an ugly stage to perform on." I think the only office Jon is going to be running for is the one in his home when the phone is ringing. LOL
Anyway ... back to the event ... then Governor Corzine spoke - this is where it started to get ugly. It was apparent that fans were NOT happy JBJ only did three songs and started screaming things from various sections. It was disrespectful to the Governor and, in reality, it was disrespectful to Bon Jovi. It continued thru the majority of Corzine's speech to the point that, as a Bon Jovi fan, I was embarrassed at how people were acting. I'm glad Jon didn't see that ... I think he would have been disappointed.
In closing, it was a political fundraiser/rally -- there were going to be speeches and such. I do feel that the Corzine campaign totally misrepresented the event saying that it was a "rare acoustic concert" by JBJ. They could have said that JBJ was "making an appearance in support of ..." and playing a few songs -- but I understand ... that wouldn't have raised as much money -- a campaign staffer told me the house was heavily papered as it was (that means comped.)
In the end, I'm glad I went - gave me my mini-fix to hold me over until Summerfest and I was able to catch up with some Jovi friends I hadn't seen in a while.
P.S. I still get a laugh out of thinking how many times I used to give Corzine the run-around when he was calling my former boss. Sorry, Governor! I was just doing my job. I bet my boss would take your phone call now. LOL
P.S.2. I knew one of the girls had gotten video ... thanks for posting it M.
