Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi > My show reviews > NOVEMBER 28, 2000 - Montreal, Quebec, Canada

My show reviews

NOVEMBER 28, 2000 - Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Venue: Molson Centre
Ticket: Section 330, Row CC, Seat 10
Pictures: Not available
Videos: Not available

Oh yes, after more than 5 and a half years of waiting, I would finally see my idol of all times again! Very exciting morning, since I was in Sherbrooke and I needed to be in Montreal in the afternoon. I decided to go on Musique Plus' website to convince myself that Jon and the gang would not be coming to Musique Plus this time. In the "Interviews to come" section, I saw Jon and Richie's names (Richie being the guitar player). My heart skipped a beat! I took the phone with trembling hands and I dialed Musique Plus' number. The secretary was not able to confirm the time of the interview, but in her mind, it was at 6h pm. I panicked and I asked to talk to Malika (the person I know at Musique Plus). The secretary transferred me, but I got the voice mail; Malika was not in the office. It was just 9h am, so I told myself that she must not come in early. I then doubled the pace at which I was getting ready, because my bus to go to Montreal was leaving at 11h30 am, but I left an hour early to be sure not to miss it. In the bus, I obviously listened to Bon Jovi, and I started crying because I was happy; I had just realized that I would see Jon again!

The ride was not too long, I was a little tired, and Bon Jovi music kept me company. When I got to Montreal, I called Musique Plus again to talk to Malika (to finally be able to go in the studio with Jon), but she was still not there. I wandered around the streets of Montreal while searching for the Ste-Catherine street... (I found it after 1h30 of walking; I was at the corner of Maisonneuve and Berri and I went the wrong way!) I called Musique Plus again around 3h pm, no Malika. I started freaking out and I came to the conclusion that it was not my day to meet Jon. I went to wait for Karine (we had planned to have dinner together at 5h pm). Around 6h pm, we were in a super cool restaurant (the fancy McDo, as I was saying; the chef prepares your pasta in front of you!), but my head was elsewhere. I was really wondering if Jon was at Musique Plus!

Around 6h45 pm, we got to the Molson Centre. When we got in, I bought a Bon Jovi tour program. It is super cool and it was relatively expensive: 30$! We sat down at our seats. Despite the fact that we were in the white seats across from the stage, I find that we could see the stage relatively well nonetheless... I've always settled for little when it comes to Bon Jovi, so... I was wearing my light beige cargo pants, a dark beige tank top with a shirt; before the guys come on stage I'm cold; after, I'm sweating!

The first act began their show at 7h25 pm. I don't recall looking that forward to seeing a band stop playing! It was a real joke (wasn't it Karine?!); they were called Less Than Jake and the guy in red who had a mask on his head and would not stop dancing looked really really crazy! They could see that the people were tired of them, so at exactly 8h pm, they told us their goodbyes! Phew! It was over! The big wait began! But it wasn't as big a wait as in 1993 (that had been almost an hour!). I knew that one of my friends from Sherbrooke was two sections to our right, so during half of the time, I tried to locate him with my binoculars, or my "butt-watching device" as I was saying! Hihihi Moreover, we were lucky to succeed in doing the wave and the whole Molson Centre got into it; it was really amazing! Even the people on the floor were raising their arms!

At 8h25 pm, the walkie-talkies like in the Lay Your Hands On Me video began to be heard; the band was ready! The "We've got band ready for stage" echoed in my ears like words I didn't believe I would hear again in my life! Shortly after, on the giant screen, we saw the band in an elevator that was coming. Everyone reacted immediately! The beginning of the flute played during One Wild Night was being heard. All the girls screamed when the elevator doors opened! The reaction was very predictable; Jon arrived first and I couldn't hold it inside anymore; I screamed like I was losing my mind! The guys looked very formal when they came on stage... It was majestic!

Obviously, they started the show with One Wild Night, one of my favorite songs on Crush. I was beyond myself, but nobody in my section was standing up, so I went crazy with excitement on my seat while singing the lyrics so loudly that I could hear myself sing! Hihihi

In order, here are the songs that my idols played that night:

Encores:

At 11h02 pm, the band left the stage for good... Almost two hours forty minutes with my idol and the rest of the band, it is not enough, but... Time flew by so quickly; they had already played 10 songs when I realized that half of the show was completed!

Well, I didn't spend enough time on my opinion of the songs! Hihihi During You Give Love A Bad Name, there is a solo and Jon took the opportunity to dance with a girl on the side of the stage. At the end, Jon kissed the girl on the mouth! There was an immediate reaction from the women at the event. I sang to lose my voice during all the songs! I really loved this show, because I've known Bon Jovi since almost 8 years now, and all the inside jokes that Jon told or all the known demos that the band plays at a show, I know them now!

There were a few girls in my section who were also very happy to be there. They were dancing and they were almost always up on their feet. It helped me, because I felt bad (I'm not 15 years old anymore now) when I was the only one standing up! I enjoyed myself like crazy (and I was crazy, so it's good!). And yes, I sat down a couple of times, by respect for the people behind me! I hadn't worked out much for this show, so when I was jumping for too long, I was out of breath... Karine, who was beside me, was able to know how hot I was from screaming, jumping, singing, dancing like I was doing just by the sweat that came down from everywhere! When I came back to the apartment (two hours later from travelling after the show), I then noticed that the money I had in my back pockets was wet. I had not been aware of how hot I got until that moment!

The giant screen that was in front of us (we were facing the stage) allowed us not to miss anything from Jon's moves. It was great! I had bought a disposable camera and within three or four songs, I had taken all the available shots! I could only take 15 pictures with it! I was simply too happy to be there! :)))))

I screamed "JON" very loudly a couple of times and a few girls in several rows below turned around! Hihihi And also, obviously, during the solos, the beginning and the end of the songs, I was screaming with a very high-pitched voice.

Since the last times I went to see Bon Jovi, I never knew in what order the songs were played, I had brought a piece of paper and a pen and at the beginning of a song, I was writing down its title. Even if I were trembling, I could write! Hihihi The piece of paper is very crumpled and the writing is very crooked, but well!

I watched the videotape of the live Bon Jovi show in England so many times in the past few years, that I knew by heart the moves that Jon does in very popular songs! I caught myself doing exactly the same moves at the same time as him! It was great! The arms in the air, the jumping, etc.; everything was engraved in my head!

At the beginning of You Give Love A Bad Name, Jon made the people sing and we were singing almost as loudly as him! It was really great, the fans contributed positively to a pleasant atmosphere and responded really positively to the old Bon Jovi songs! As expected, they played Livin' On A Prayer, and I have an mp3 file on my computer on the live beginning of this song and it was exactly the same for Montreal. The crowd sang so loudly! Jon seemed very happy!

When Runaway began, there was only David at the keyboards playing some chords. These reminded me of one of their songs, but I couldn't tell which one. For those who know the original version, it has quite a beat, but there, it was a version almost a cappella that Jon made and it was really great! Since the sound level was not very high during this song, at some point, the tension inside of me was so high that I screamed as loudly as I could: "I LOVE YOU!" A few girls in the last rows of the red seats turned around, so my scream reached very far away! hihihi

Jon turned to the crowd and said: "It's been 5 years since our last show in Montreal. A lot happened in those years; some of us got married, we got children, acting, and I was nominated sexiest rock star alive. (Reaction from me and the girls, you believe????) And while we were gone, all you found to replace us are boy bands! Well, baby, tonight, we've got a man band for you!" Obviously, the women's reaction was to scream!

When Jon said that the following song would be the first single from Crush, fans got up all at once and went crazy while the first notes of It's My Life were being heard! This song is so lively in concert! Just like One Wild Night and Captain Crash!

During the second single from Crush, Thank You For Loving Me, the girls, just like me, started screaming to show their happiness! I screamed: "Thank you for loving me Jon!" during the solo! I had never pointed at Jon like that during a show! At each "you", I was pointing at him! He was just in front of me all the time, so it was easy!

At the beginning of Lay Your Hands On Me, we had the privilege of hearing David's voice while Jon was changing his clothes. He led us all to the beat and when Jon came back, he took over! The song didn't last long enough! Jon made us sing and it was really fun!

At the first notes of I'll Sleep When I'm Dead, I knew that we were in for ten minutes at least, because Jon always takes the opportunity to do a medley (a mix of 2 songs)... Instead, he sat down (or stood still, I don't quite remember), the whole band stopped singing and playing music and Jon told us a very funny story!

The story comes from the fact that a few years ago, Jon began his acting career. Just like he said, this resulted in him being big-headed and he stepped in his "Mr. Hollywood Phase". However, he found that he didn't get enough attention from the media, so he had the brilliant idea of planning his own kidnapping! To do that, he sent a letter to his mother saying: "We hold your son hostage in a hotel in California and if you want to see your son alive, you must send us quite some money." The evening when the letter was sent, he called the FBI, the CIA and he turned on the TV to CNN to see what impact it would have! His only word to summarize: "Nothing." So, he realized that he hadn't put his mother's right address on the envelope, so he wrote another one that read: "If at 5h pm tonight, the money is not at this hotel, queeck! No more Jon!" (With the gesture of someone who cuts the throat of someone else during the queeck!) That night, once again, he turned on the TV and flipped through the news channels. Once again, "nothin'!" So then, he was really discouraged! He was still hiding in his hotel room and like he said, superheros then came to rescue him from this hostage-taking! And then, surprise surprise, the other 4 band members were behind Jon without me noticing and when Jon asked the people who these superheros were, he said: "No, it's not Arnold. It was..." And he turned around to show the other band members! The crowd gave a standing ovation to the band! He was so funny when he told this story! Now, don't start a rumor, the story is not true! But there is still a little bit of truth, that is if the band hadn't believed in Jon, I wouldn't have had the chance to see them again in Montreal! Before finishing his story, he started singing Rockin' All Over The World with the band, and he stopped after the first chorus while saying: "What am I doing now??!!" He continued his story and then, after the fans applauded their idols and superheros, the band started to play the end of I'll Sleep When I'm Dead.

Jon then said: "Is there a doctor in the house?" This sentence announces the beginning of Bad Medicine in concert! People went crazy and everyone was dancing! It was really great! Jon also asked us: "How are you doing so far, ok?" And also, he told us that we were all in his church and he made us raise our arms in the air to prove it! Hahaha Obviously, since 1995, during Bad Medicine, there is a part of the really really lively song called Shout after the solo! Moreover, Jon showed his voice talent by keeping the same note during close to 20 seconds! The girls screamed to show their satisfaction!

At the end of Bad Medicine, Jon thanked everyone for coming and he pretended to leave with the rest of the band! The series of encores began!!!! The people applauded so loudly!!!! Jon reappeared a short while after! When the lights were off on stage and the band was hiding at the back of the stage, I was screaming like several girls to tell Bon Jovi to come back! And I was screaming: "DON'T GOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! COME BAAACK!!!!!!" at the top of my lungs! I knew they were coming back, but I panicked, because I knew that the show was almost over! The first encore was Next 100 Years! This song doesn't seem long in concert, unlike on the CD where the solo lasts for at least 3 minutes!

Then, the famous I'll Be There For You! I don't know why, when I hear this song live, I only think about the video where we see a girl grab her hair with both hands and start to cry of joy and lower her head down because she cannot hold it in anymore! This song is magical in concert and Jon gets pointed at a lot! :))) After the song, Jon pretended to leave again! The crowd went hysterical, so they came back, but it took them more time! Jon started Just Older, very very beautiful song in concert! I was screaming: "You're not old Jon, just older!" Then came the biggest Bon Jovi hit worldwide, Wanted Dead Or Alive. Richie as usual was wearing black with his double neck guitar! Jon made us sing also during this song!

Afterwards, Jon took a bow and I really believed that the band was leaving for good, because the European shows were ending with Wanted. But, after the bow, Jon nodded in a way that was telling that he had a lot of gratitude towards our love! He thanked us for coming in large numbers and I then shouted: "It's my pleasure Jon!" The band didn't leave in the shadow this time, they started Twist And Shout which was excellent!!!!! Then, Jon introduced the band members and they went and hide themselves again at the back of the stage! But, like Jon was saying, until the band doesn't go in the elevator, the show is not over. So, I was wondering what they would play for the last song! Jon came back with a huge smile and while he was heading towards the stage, he was touching his chest softly close to his heart and when he came back at the microphone, he said something like: "You're too great, this is from the bottom of my heart!" And oh joy, he started singing Never Say Goodbye!!!!!! With even a slower beat! It was fantastic! I was telling them endlessly, apart when I was singing (I knew it was the last song, because in the last few days, they were playing this song last), "I love you Jon" not very loudly but loud enough to hear me say it! Endlessly, the 4 words came to my mouth! I was continuously blowing kisses as well (I was sitting down and very tired) and I was sending kisses by the ton!!!!! And then, I realized that it was almost over, I got pinches in the heart and my eyes filled with tears! I was crying! I was so happy to be there! And it was already over! And when Jon pressed on the arrow to make the elevator go up, I was very sad; how had 2h30 of my life passed by so quickly?????? Jon was still as handsome. (I looked at Jon with the binoculars a few times!)

One of my friends gave me a lift back to Sherbrooke and throughout the ride, the other passengers were drinking and eating; I had been fed with love and intense joy for more than 2 hours and a half, I didn't need anything... I closed my eyes out of exhaustion when we left the island of Montreal and all I could see were Jon wandering on stage and the giant screen above! It was extraordinary! I totally fell asleep, I skipped through parts of the ride! And when I arrived at the apartment, when I told my friend good night, I could barely walk and my voice was extinct!!! I was so tired! I slept like a log!

We are Friday night December 1. Wednesday, I had the hardest time in the world to go up the stairs, my legs made me suffer! Thursday, the worst was getting down the stairs. My arm and back muscles were hurting very bad and the muscle that holds the vocal cords as well!!! Today, my arms and my back still hurt and sometimes when I talk, my voice breaks! The most beautiful war there is, I'm proud to be hurting for Jon's sake! :)))))

Copyright © December 1, 2000 Marie-Hélène Cyr

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