BON JOVI – “Because We Can” (2013 Island Records Japanese single)
There was a time I used to look forward to new releases by Bon Jovi. It’s been a long time since I felt that way. I thought the band bounced back (pun intended) with 2002’s Bounce, then they lost me immediately again with This Left Feels Right. I don’t like to give up on bands that I used to feel strongly about, so I decided to check out Bon Jovi’s newest single, “Because We Can”.
I chose the Japanese single as it had one more track than the European. I had not even heard the song yet. It is written by Jon, Richie and songsmith Billy Falcon, produced by Jon and John Shanks. (In other words, more of the same…) The single came with a small 6-panel fold out poster and lyric booklet in English and Japanese.
The light glare completely erased Dave Bryan from this photo!
Like many fans who have been hanging on long past Bon Jovi’s best before date, I found the song disappointing. Rather than growing, it sounds like Bon Jovi are returning to the mainstream modern pop sounds of Have A Nice Day or even Lost Highway. Bon Jovi’s never been the hardest rocking band, but they have written some great passionate rock songs in the past. “Because We Can”, by title alone, should be in your face and proud of it. Instead, it’s another faceless Pop Jovi song. I’m going to write my own Pop Jovi song called “Who Says We Ain’t Strangers Tonight Because We Got It Goin’ On”.
I hate the chorus, it would be embarrassing to be caught singing this one. There are some nice guitar licks flitting here and there, almost Brian May-like in sound, but barely audible. Everything is buried under a thick blanket of backing vocals, plastic drums and electronic sounds. You can barely make out Richie’s voice, and what passes for a guitar solo is really just a layered guitar melody. At least the Japanese single comes with an instrumental version, which will allow you to hear Richie’s simple and sparing guitar.
The third and final track is a 7 minute live version of “Keep the Faith”, from 2010 in New Jersey. Even this is slightly more laid back than the original 1992 version. But at least it shows that Bon Jovi can write and play challenging material while keeping it accessible. From the manic drum patterns to Richie’s smokin’ solo, this live version is everything that “Because We Can” should be. Richie really shines on this track; I hope he comes back. Bon Jovi without Richie ain’t Bon Jovi.
Based on this single, I won’t be buying the new album What About Now unless I find it cheap.
In 2003, we did a promotion with the Canadian DJ and writer, Alan Cross. We were selling his book, although I couldn’t tell you which one anymore, and he came in to do a meet & greet / book signing deal.
I had no idea who Alan Cross was.
All I know is that I had to run down to Hortons and pick up a large container of coffee and some donuts. And not to be alarmed, because he had a large dog that he was going to be bringing with him. No problem, I liked dogs, and Al King from Encore Records had a large dog that he often brought with him.
Anyway, long story short:
1. The dog was cool, sat there quietly and bothered nobody. I would have assumed the dog was dead if I didn’t know better!
2. Alan was cool to everybody. We had a small turnout, but the people that did come out were obviously huge fans of this guy that I had never heard of. I wasn’t into the radio at the time, but even my most recent ex, Radio Station Girl, had never heard of him either. Her reason for not knowing him was that she knew nothing about music. My excuse was that Cross specialized in alternative music, a genre I tended to loathe for sidelining my beloved heavy metal in the 1990’s.
But regardless, Alan was cool and spent a lot of time with every single person. He had extended conversations and stayed longer than he was booked to stay. So credit where credit’s due: I’ve heard tales of people showing up to do signings and acting like total dicks. Alan was not one of those people. Every single person who spoke to me said how cool he was. Which was nice, since I had no idea who he was! At least I knew he was a nice guy!
MARILLION – Sounds Live (2012 Racket Records/Abbey Road LiveHereNow/EMI)
This is one of those “Instant Live” type discs. While the discs have art pre-printed on them, they are CDRs. There is no track list on the case, probably because the setlist wasn’t set in stone! (I have a Slash “Instant Live” style disc with the setlist printed on the back, which was completely wrong, as the singer had a sore throat and they had to change up the set!) The label is Racket Records/Abbey Road LiveHereNow, licensed to EMI, but even though Racket has their name on it, you can’t buy it from them. You can buy it from Abbey Road Live, however.
The show was recorded on 16 September 2012 at the Forum in London, on the Sounds that Can’t Be Made tour. The sound quality is excellent!
Marillion bravely opened the show with “Gaza”, the powerful, swirling, 17 minute new song from Sounds that Can’t Be Made. I don’t know how many new fans were in the audience that night, but if there were any, they must have been in utter confusion and shock. Hogarth delivers the song with all the passion he can muster.
Not letting up for a moment, Marillion follow this monster with another 10 minute epic: “This Town/100 Nights”. Incredible. And once again, H imbues the song with so much emotion it literally leaks out of the speakers.
“This next song is a strange song,” says H, regarding track 3. “‘Cause everybody claps along at the beginning and by verse one, they think ‘Shit, you can’t clap to this, it’s far too sad and tragic!” And that is how H introduces the Marbles top ten (#7!) single, “You’re Gone”. An upbeat pop-prog track with a drum program accompanying Ian Mosely, this was probably a good selection to follow two epics in a row!
My favourite of the new songs follows: the title track from Sounds that Can’t Be Made, a simply great catchy Marillion track. My only beef here is that I can hear pre-recorded Hogarth backing vocals.
And then…another 10 minute track? The incredible “Neverland” from Marbles is up next, a personal favourite, and seemingly a crowd favourite too. This one defines the word “epic” as far as I’m concerned. Powerful, too.
From the 2007 Somewhere Else album comes “A Voice From the Past”, not one of my personal favourites (also not one of my favourite albums). This is followed by “Power” from the new album. “Power” is one of the better songs from an album I just haven’t wrapped my head around yet. In live form, the chorus soars.
Disc 2 begins with yet another Marbles classic: the soft and uplifting “Fantastic Place”, a personal favourite. Steve Rothery’s solo is sublime. Another personal favourite follows, the incredible “Real Tears For Sale” from the very dense Happiness is the Road album. It’s an album I’ve never fully absorbed, but this song is incredibly powerful and at times is even reminiscent of older works like Brave or even Script in parts (listen to the flute-like keys).
Another new song, “The Sky Above the Rain”, is one that is really starting to grow on me. This is the last of the new songs played at the London gig. It’s 11 minute long, and it begins lullaby-like before H’s passionate, melodic vocals begin. There’s a sadness, but also a brightness to the music; truly the blue sky above the rain.
It’s into the classics now! “The Great Escape” is an undeniable fan favourite, and I never tire of hearing it. What did surprise me was the resurrection of the lengthy “A Few Words for the Dead” from the underappreciated Radiation album. I’ve always been fond of Radiation (it was the first Hogarth-era album I heard) but this track is absolutely a challenge. Over 10 minutes long, it builds very, very slowly. As the closing track on a challenging album, it was perfect. As an encore at a Marillion concert, it’s extremely brave and mind-blowing. This is one of the best live versions I’ve heard.
The only Fish-era song played is “Sugar Mice”, but it is one that H seems comfortable with. I will never tire of this classic, even though H lets the audience sing the first half of the song for him! Rothery’s anthemic solo is the centerpiece of the affair.
The final surprise is that the show closes with the morose “Estonia”, from This Strange Engine. H dedicates the song to the family of Neil Armstrong. I’ve never been particularly fond of this dour song, although it has been played in concert many, many times over the last 15 years. Obviously, many fans “get it” and love it. I’m not one of them, so for me, Sounds Live ends with a thump rather than a celebration. I would have preferred something like “Garden Party” or “Easter”, but I’m not complaining.
Speaking of “Easter”: Conspicuous by its absence is any music at all from Seasons End. You can’t fit ’em all in, and tour after tour, Marillion have always changed up their setlists. You will never see the same Marillion concert two tours in a row.
While Marillion have dozens of live albums (especially when you include the 43 Front Row Club releases), this one is a valuable inclusion in the canon as the first physical live release of Sounds that Can’t Be Made songs. I don’t know how frequently I will return to it, given the amount of live stuff I have, but I did enjoy it.
mikeladano.com 