Bon Jovi – Forever (2024) (Japan Shm-CD Edition) , MP3+FLAC

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Imagine for a moment that you are Jon Bon Jovi. It’s difficult, but quite fun. Imagine that you are that guy, the one who became so mind-blowingly famous that his band basically opened rock music up to millions of fans that would not have given it more than a sideways glance had it been left to Mötley Crüe. Having sustained barely conceivable levels of stardom for decades, at 62 you’d be feeling pretty relaxed about the future.
BON JOVI‘s ”Forever” is an album by an artist who has much to celebrate and nothing left to prove. Last year, Jon spoke with great candour about the trials he’s facing with his voice, having vocal cord surgery, still not knowing if it’d be enough, and feeling quite prepared to walk away if it isn’t.
The music here, then, has a kind of open-road joy about it. The songs are reflective, certainly, and often chime with Bon Jovi classics of the past. ‘Living Proof’ is pedigree Jovi, even bringing back the distinctive talk box effect that makes the ubiquitous Livin’ On A Prayer so instantly identifiable. ‘The People’s House’ emotionally echoes Keep The Faith, while the superb ‘Waves’ tips the cowboy hat to Jon’s solo hit Blaze Of Glory.
This Japanese edition pressed on SHM-CD includes two exclusive bonus tracks.

Amid softer, acoustic-led material are jubilant anthems like ‘Walls Of Jericho’, the biggest-hearted, most openly singable Bon Jovi track for many years. ‘We Made It Look Easy’ and ‘My First Guitar’ salute the past in different ways, but both are fond and emotive rather than chest-beating, and ‘Living In Paradise’ is another big chorus showpiece that grows in both momentum and feels.

It says a lot, however, that Jon chooses to close this comeback with ‘Hollow Man’, a sparse and haunting track that echoes his hero Bruce Springsteen’s eerily stark Nebraska. ‘What do you write when the book is done?’ he asks, returning to the notion this might yet be the end. If it is, there can be no more apt and genteel final bow for one of the most popular figures in rock history. One more time then, with feeling.
Highly Recommended

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1 Legendary 4:05
2 We Made It Look Easy 3:15
3 Living Proof 3:39
4 Waves 3:52
5 Seeds 5:05
6 Kiss The Bride 3:51
7 The People’s House 4:36
8 Walls Of Jericho 3:48
9 I Wrote You A Song 3:25
10 Living In Paradise 3:16
11 My First Guitar 4:55
12 Hollow Man 4:54
13 That Was Then. This Is Now (Japan Bonus Track)
14 Legendary - Demo (Japan Bonus Track)

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