“Runaway” when I didn’t have a band. He was the obvious and only choice to tour with the band after Alec John Such’s departure in the mid-90s. It’s Hugh and Tico’s chemistry that makes us sound so good. And, truth be told, it’s Hugh and Tico in my monitors every night. No need for much of anything else.
Jerry Edelstein is by trade an attorney, but to me he is a father, a brother, and the reason we are who and what we are. He is the Godfather—not only to my firstborn but to me. I wish any kid who starts in this business the blessing that you might find your own Godfather to protect you in this wicked world.
Jack Rovner took this vision and made it a reality. Every idea needs someone to implement it and make it better than it was when it was conceived. Jack did that. It has been his diligence that made this film and book possible. If he keeps opening doors for us, we’re not shy, we’ll walk right in.
And then there are the fans of the band. Every band says they owe it to their fans, but in our case it couldn’t be more true. We didn’t have the media on our side. We didn’t have the machine. We had—and still have— you , the generation that came up with us and the generation you’ve passed our music on to. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to write this down, twenty-five years in—and counting.
—JBJ
Lost Highway tour, Twickenham Stadium, London, England, June 28, 2008.
Phil Griffin
BAND OF BROTHERS
Outtake from Bounce photo shoot, Ten 9 Fifty Studios, Culver City, CA, July 10, 2002.
Kevin Westenberg
Band photo shoot, The Eleanor, Long Island City, NY, December 2, 2008.
Phil Griffin
Lost Highway tour, end of show, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
JON: Why are we here at this point in our lives?
Because we have chosen this path. We’ve chosen to be here.
From the day I got into this, I wanted to write a song, and if you wrote a song and you felt it was a good song, you wanted to record it. If the recording came out as good as the piece of paper that you wrote it on, then you wanted to share it with as many people as possible.
I want to be out there because I want to see the reaction. I want to know that it touched you. I want to know that it touched your life. This is who we are. This is what we do and we do it well.
RICHIE: We are a real success story. If people learn our story, they’ll get an insight into how we navigated our way through the music business and through our relationships within this band.
Lost Highway tour, end of show, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
TICO: We are a tight fist and it works better that way. We’re guarded, always have been. If you are going to tight fist the world as a musician, it’s not about your being angry. We are going to do it together. We are going to fight and make it the best band, the best music, the best show possible.
People see us as a band of brothers. Sometimes we manage to connect onstage where you couldn’t fit a sliver of paper between us.
JON: Everybody brings a lot to the table. There’s no dividing line. Everyone’s a shoulder to lean on; everybody’s got a real, true opinion; everyone has shown each other how to grow, how to be responsible, be driven, be excitable, to have fun, and live in the moment.
TICO: That’s the family side of Bon Jovi. There’s a bubble, an insulation we have when we’re together. We are a family and I think that does translate onstage.
These Days tour, the band’s private plane, Cardiff International Airport, Cardiff, Wales, 1995.
Herbie Knott/Rex
Lost Highway tour, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
THE BEGINNING
Sanctuary Sound II, current Bon Jovi recording studio, Middletown, NJ, April 2009
Phil Griffin (2009)
JON: I think any kid who picks up a guitar should only ever think that he’s going to be Mick Jagger—not “I want
Jerry Edelstein is by trade an attorney, but to me he is a father, a brother, and the reason we are who and what we are. He is the Godfather—not only to my firstborn but to me. I wish any kid who starts in this business the blessing that you might find your own Godfather to protect you in this wicked world.
Jack Rovner took this vision and made it a reality. Every idea needs someone to implement it and make it better than it was when it was conceived. Jack did that. It has been his diligence that made this film and book possible. If he keeps opening doors for us, we’re not shy, we’ll walk right in.
And then there are the fans of the band. Every band says they owe it to their fans, but in our case it couldn’t be more true. We didn’t have the media on our side. We didn’t have the machine. We had—and still have— you , the generation that came up with us and the generation you’ve passed our music on to. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to write this down, twenty-five years in—and counting.
—JBJ
Lost Highway tour, Twickenham Stadium, London, England, June 28, 2008.
Phil Griffin
BAND OF BROTHERS
Outtake from Bounce photo shoot, Ten 9 Fifty Studios, Culver City, CA, July 10, 2002.
Kevin Westenberg
Band photo shoot, The Eleanor, Long Island City, NY, December 2, 2008.
Phil Griffin
Lost Highway tour, end of show, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
JON: Why are we here at this point in our lives?
Because we have chosen this path. We’ve chosen to be here.
From the day I got into this, I wanted to write a song, and if you wrote a song and you felt it was a good song, you wanted to record it. If the recording came out as good as the piece of paper that you wrote it on, then you wanted to share it with as many people as possible.
I want to be out there because I want to see the reaction. I want to know that it touched you. I want to know that it touched your life. This is who we are. This is what we do and we do it well.
RICHIE: We are a real success story. If people learn our story, they’ll get an insight into how we navigated our way through the music business and through our relationships within this band.
Lost Highway tour, end of show, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
TICO: We are a tight fist and it works better that way. We’re guarded, always have been. If you are going to tight fist the world as a musician, it’s not about your being angry. We are going to do it together. We are going to fight and make it the best band, the best music, the best show possible.
People see us as a band of brothers. Sometimes we manage to connect onstage where you couldn’t fit a sliver of paper between us.
JON: Everybody brings a lot to the table. There’s no dividing line. Everyone’s a shoulder to lean on; everybody’s got a real, true opinion; everyone has shown each other how to grow, how to be responsible, be driven, be excitable, to have fun, and live in the moment.
TICO: That’s the family side of Bon Jovi. There’s a bubble, an insulation we have when we’re together. We are a family and I think that does translate onstage.
These Days tour, the band’s private plane, Cardiff International Airport, Cardiff, Wales, 1995.
Herbie Knott/Rex
Lost Highway tour, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
THE BEGINNING
Sanctuary Sound II, current Bon Jovi recording studio, Middletown, NJ, April 2009
Phil Griffin (2009)
JON: I think any kid who picks up a guitar should only ever think that he’s going to be Mick Jagger—not “I want
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