Although they won't know or care, the music of Bon Jovi has played an important part in both Sarah's life and mine. She grew up with the sound of New Jersey from her brother's stereo; I discovered Jon Bon during great years at university thanks to a housemate; lending Sarah a tape (probably Slippery When Wet) was one of the ways I inadvertently and auspiciously first attracted her attention; and playing Keep the Faith LOUD was a surefire way to calm down Bump (who became Adam) on long car journeys.
In light of this, it seemed appropriate that Sarah's first concert should be Bon Jovi and her birthday gave me the perfect opportunity to splash out on tickets for their residency at the O2 arena. When I saw photos taken of another concert from the vertiginous upper tier, I was very glad I paid extra to be within sight of the stage, not just the screens. Although it has to be said the screens, clustered in stacks and mounted on a track around the periphery of the stage or perched on universal joints as a backdrop which turned into a flight of stairs, were a joy in themselves.
The passage of time meant Sarah actually attended another concert first: the Stereophonics at Cardiff. By coincidence it was in the same city that I saw Bon Jovi previously: the 1995 Crossroad tour with support from the brilliant Van Halen and my personal favourites Thunder. A purpose-built arena would be a different prospect though.
Come Sunday we found ourselves witnessing a momentous occasion, although for a rather strange reason. Bon Jovi keyboard player David Bryan has branched out into musicals and was in New York collecting Tony awards for Memphis, the first time in 27 years that he's missed a Bon Jovi concert. Jeff Kazee from the Asbery Jukes stepped in, hidden under a hat, and I couldn't tell the difference.
It's only fair I record that Jon Bon Jovi can no longer reach some of the high notes; a problem covered moderately well by a few altered arrangements and by the old staple of audience participation. I commented whilst watching a Robbie Williams concert on TV several years ago that he got the crowd to sing Angels because he couldn't hit the top notes without autotune, and I was only half joking. Sarah disputed it - she's quite a fan of Robbie and if all else fails, points out he can sing better than me - but reminded me of this comment after JBJ hid from the upper registers. Probably I should also note at this point that Jon should hold off on the botox and let his face catch up with his neck.
Despite this, it was a great show. 23,000 people were there to be entertained and, I suppose in many cases, to remember the old times. There was a broad range of ages and it was noticeable that far fewer people sang along with the more recent songs. Sarah and I were largely lost on anything from The Circle and seemed in a minority in knowing Something for the Pain, which goes back about three albums now. The other big difference I noticed, compared to the National Stadium Cardiff 15 years ago, was that lighters have been replaced by the grey glow of mobile phones and digital cameras, held aloft in their hundreds from start to finish.
A review in one of the London free papers suggested Bon Jovi had rehearsed the show too much, but I just thought it was slick as you would expect with some fun elements thrown in. Richie Sambora led Lay Your Hands on Me (sung almost entirely by the crowd) during a JBJ costume change and about an hour in, the band ventured onto a semi-circular stage between the VIP area and mosh pit for an acoustic interlude which included the brilliant Bed of Roses. There was still another hour, plus the excruciating wait for an encore which included In These Arms and of course finished with Livin' on a Prayer, sung first a cappella by the crowd to the first chorus and then again from the start in its entirety by the band.
For us there were only two disappointments. The first was that the set didn't include the wonderful These Days; the second was that it had to end. I may well never see Bon Jovi in concert again - been there done that and literally got the T-shirt last time as well - but we're now downloading the back catalogue. That should ensure Bon Jovi continue to play a part in our lives in the future too.
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