It's definitely going to be a slow, lazy Monday for me as I'm still recovering -- mentally and physically -- from the extraordinary show "that damn band" put on in Pittsburgh on Saturday.
I have done some pretty crazy travel things over the years in the name of good music -- so this past weekend wasn't really so out of the norm I guess. Still, it's a lot of time sitting on your tush. Strangely reminiscent of that 18-hour round-trip train ride to Niagara Falls for the Asbury Jukes, my trip to see Bon Jovi in Pittsburgh made me appreciate my iPod and Blackberry even more...the iPod for obvious reasons and the Blackberry so that I could follow Jeff Kazee's play-by-play of the Grammys last night. (If you've never followed one of his "award show evenings in front of the TV" you really should ... some seriously witty stuff. You can find him on Twitter at ... well ... @jeffkazee ... LOL)
Now, on to the show on Saturday. I'm bummed I missed Friday, but after not being at work on Wednesday and Thursday for "the Lorenza show", I figured I should probably put an appearance in at the office before they FIRE me! LOL ...
My friend S and I were blessed with great pit tickets on David's side. I swear that everybody and their brother was there - friends from ALL over the place -- Chicago, Dallas, Seattle, Cincinnati, DC, Philly, Jersey and more! And I was incredibly relieved that both my girls who missed the Starland show due to the snow were there to enjoy this incredible night.From the moment the screen went up and they launched into "Just Older", you just knew it was going to be one of those nights. Oh, and it was! Any lingering worries I'd had after Wednesday's State College show (yay Lorenza!) about J&R being sick were obliterated by Richie Sambora's wailing guitar and Jon Bon Jovi's unbelievable energy and super-strong vocals. I want some of whatever was in their chicken soup!!
To all those who were disappointed that I didn't do the pbp (awww...thanks!), sorry, but there was just no way to do that and try out my new camera and still actually ENJOY the show at the same time. But, I think my random "Holy Crap!" and "This is insane!" tweets pretty much summed up the evening.
What a treat to hear two of the new songs from the Greatest Hits album - The More Things Change and (my personal fave) This Is Love, This is Life. I have to say that I hope they add This is Love to the regular set list. It worked VERY well live. That was one song where I just put down the camera and sang my heart out. Somehow I feel very connected to the song. *sigh*
Speaking of "the camera" ... a number of you asked last night on Twitter what I got. Well, it's the Nikon P100. And so far, so good. A big THANK YOU to my friend CY who fixed all the settings (since I had just bought the darn thing less than 24 hours before the show. LOL)
So, let's get down to business ...
...this ad for your local dentist brought to you by JBJ...
...those dance lessons are really paying off, my friend!...
Jon: "Damn that Sambora is good! ...
... but, HA! I have a better butt!"
... seriously, folks...the show was great. Jon sounded fantastic on Hallelujah...
...and NOBODY hits like Tico -- and y'all know my mom will be happy I got some decent pics of him! :-) ...
Heck, I even got a good shot of Hugh on the other side of the stage in the dark!
Richie was so funny during LYHOM ... very flirty and bluesy ...
...this was one of my favorite shots of the night...
...and oh, yes, almost forgot David (who sang along and did the hand motions with me on Who Says ... #DefinitelyMadeThatSongMoreBearable LOL) ...
I still have about 300 shots to go thru, so I may post some more later. But, for now, I will leave you with just a few more ...
Ok...I have to get some ACTUAL work done now. Will be back later.
Until then, be safe, be strong, be yourself because ...
THIS IS LIFE!
xoxo
BAJG
