ALBUM OF THE WEEK #279 BON JOVI - BON JOVI (IN MEMORY OF MY OLD FRIEND, MATTHEW MOORE)

[RJhog (Admin)]

I'm calling an audible this week with regards to Album of the Week.  No, I'm not posting an album that has anything to do with Halloween.  I'm interrupting my regularly scheduled 60's album post to remember an old friend (and I'm doing so a day early).  I'm posting an album that reminds me of him every time I hear a song from it.  My friend's name is Matthew Moore, and he tragically lost his life yesterday.   Although Matthew and I attended high school together, I have not seen him in many years.  Here's my memory of him.

You see, we graduated from high school in 1984.  We had a pretty close knit group.  We all enjoyed hanging out together.  We had already endured the death of a classmate right before our senior year.  But the rest of us made it through, and like all graduates, we couldn't wait to get to the beach.  Sitting on Myrtle Beach, side by side, Matthew placed a tape in the player.  He said something to the effect of "this is a new band, take a listen".  Matthew had great taste in music.  I was just reading a couple of comments from members of our group on Facebook mentioning some of the bands that Matthew had introduced them to: Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Dokken, Dio, Motley Crue, Saga and Night Ranger.  Back to the tape, I was blown away.  That tape is the subject of this week's Album of the Week, the self-titled debut from Bon Jovi.   Now, we all know the story, Bon Jovi rose to super-stardom during the mid to late 80's and early 90's.  But we didn't know that then, we just knew that we enjoyed listening to this debut album. By the way, the album had only been out since January of '84.  

I enjoyed it so much that as soon as I got home from the beach, I went out and bought the album, the vinyl edition if memory serves.  The band couldn't be further away today from what they were then, but that doesn't matter.  What matters to me is that I truly enjoyed Matthew's friendship and I realized today that I've been missing the boy pictured below for many years now.  Rest In Peace my old friend.

[Niels (Mod)]

I was about to trash your choice of AOTW, but then I read the reason, and my text will be quite diferent:

Off course, I have no knowledge of your friend, but I'm sorry for the loss for his family and friends.

I have had many loses in my family, but I have never really experinced losing a friend, not even a former friend, not that I now of. I don't know under which circumstances your friend died, but when people we know start to pass on, when they are having the same age as us, we must realize, that our time on this earth is not known at all. We must cherish each and every day. RIP, Matthew Moore.

Bon Jovi's debut-album came to my knowledge, when a friend of mine bought it in 1984. Which month it was, I can not remember at all. I liked "Runaway", but that was about it. When "Fahrenheit" was released the following year, I bought it and hated it. I gave it for free to my "Bon Jovi-friend". I ended up buiyng two more BJ-albums, but to me, they are definitely a "Greatest hits"-band.

Out of respect for this week's AOTW, I won't write, how this album sounds to me now.

[RJhog (Admin)]

Thanks for the kind words Niels.  I know Bon Jovi is pretty much panned around here.  That's okay.  I chose it because it's part of the soundtrack to my life.  A soundtrack that Matthew had a hand in providing.  I still think side one is quite good.  She Don't Know Me was the track that really stood out for me.  I remember hearing it on the beach that day and thinking I had to have that album.  I actually like Bon Jovi up through New Jersey, their fourth album, then skipping ahead I liked their sixth album, These Days.  That one has been posted here before.

I don't expect anyone's opinion of the album to change.  That's not why I posted it.  I just wanted to share a memory of my late friend.

[Jon]

Sorry to hear about your friend.

This was the first Bon Jovi I bought, picked it up at the record store on the base. I don't remember if I picked it up because of "Runaway" or just because it was there. It was probably "Runaway" because I vaguely remember it on some video show in England. Or maybe it was on the radio. Or maybe I just don't know anymore. Except for that song and "She Don't Know Me", none of this album sounds familiar so I'm guessing I listened to it maybe once or twice. I did buy the followup album and that was it for me. 

[Scott]

Nice of you to pay tribute to a friend.  Sad to hear this was a tragic loss, so assuming it was unexpected.  Cant be easy for anyone, so I pray peace and comfort for all who are impacted especially close family and friends...

I never imagined there would ever be a good reason to post a full Bon Jovi album but you found the one reason that makes it OK.  My story about this album is much like Jon's, I picked it up because of She Don't Know Me and Runaway, but cant remember anything else about this at all.  Even after all this time and owning the album, only these two  radio/Mtv songs ring any bells.  And they've not aged well...

The rest are stuck very much in 80's production and clichés.  Shot Through The Heart cracked me up since they reused this to greater success later.  Kind of hear a bunch of bits and parts that would be reused later in these songs.  Apparently the approach was to write an album and then tweak it until they got more hits...  Clearly Sambora is the star, really the guitar work is what stands out above everything else.  The songwriting, vocals, and keyboard work is not very good IMO.

But if I was forced to say anything good about the album it would be that Love Lies is actually a nice ballad.  Best track on here, even better than the "hits".  But its not enough to give me any reason to listen to them again.  Though I will admit to owning this on vinyl, its practically brand new in the sleeve still to this day. 

My wife on the other hand likes Bon Jovi, though I think its for non-musical reasons.  Because of that she owns (I will not claim ownership) Slippery When Wet, New Jersey, and Crush.  They exist in my iTunes library for the sole purpose of her listening experience and updating her iPod...

RIP to your friend and his family.  I'm glad to have participated in a memory of him!

[RJhog (Admin)]

He was hit by a car while crossing a street downtown.  The driver was not at fault, apparently he was crossing against traffic at night and she just didn't see him until it was too late.  Thanks to each of you guys for the kind words.  Like I said, he was into so much great music and he introduced many bands to our circle of friends.  One more to add to the list was the Scorpions.