Bon Jovi - The Crush Tour
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Production
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Bon Jovi - The Crush Tour Performance
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I remember seeing Bon Jovi as the opening act for the Scorpions (or one of those metal bands that were big in 1982) back when they were riding the tide of their first hit single "Runaway". I remember thinking "these bunch of big-haired, balladeers won't amount to jack". I guess I was a little off with that prediction. About six years later I saw them again when they were headlining in support of their ridiculously huge Slippery When Wet album, and they were on the verge of taking over the world. This was one of the most exciting and entertaining concerts I had ever attended. It didn't hurt that the audience was about 60 percent horny, young girls either. Bon Jovi has that magic formula for success that their British counterparts Def Leppard also had - the ability to rock just hard enough to attract a loyal male following, while simultaneously churning out the lighter-flicking, radio-friendly, pop ballads that are sure to keep the girls weak in the knees. Jon Bon Jovi becoming a gorgeous movie star, and Ritchie Sambora marrying a gorgeous movie star, didn't exactly hurt their cause either. The Crush Tour was recorded at Letzigrund Stadium, Zurich, Switzerland, in August 2000. Bon Jovi was finishing up a mammoth world tour in support of their latest hit album Crush, which was somewhat of a comeback for the band. The band has managed to stay together for nearly 25 years, the only casualty being the replacement of their original bassist Alex Such with Hugh McDonald, shortly before the tour. For a bunch of guys who are old enough to be my older brothers, they still give a wildly energized and enthusiastic performance. If only they were still sporting those massive, manes of 80's-metal hair, and the pretty eye mascara, you would swear it was 1988 again. The band wasted no time whipping the 50,000 strong, Swiss audience into a frenzy by opening the concert with their two most rockin' hits from the Slippery When Wet album, "Livin' On A Prayer", and "You Give Love A Bad Name". It was pouring down rain during the beginning of the concert, but the crowd didn't seem to care the least. Sambora is one of the last of the guitar "talk-box" users and his marvelous playing all throughout "Living On A Prayer", is what gives that song its unique flavor. All of the new songs fit the Bon Jovi formula perfectly, and they were just as well received by the audience as their classics. "It's My Life" (more tasty talk-box) and "Someday I'll Be Saturday Night" were particularly strong numbers. "Runaway", the hit that started it all for Bon Jovi, was transformed into a gentle piano ballad, when they finally got around to playing it about half way through the concert. The new arrangement is perfectly understandable, as I can imagine how sick they must be of playing that original version. Two songs later, before playing "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead", Jon gave one of his best lines of the night, trying to pump up the crowd: "You've spent too much time with those boy bands.....you got a MAN band tonight baby!". I laughed so hard I nearly cried. Jon and Ritchie came out wearing their finest cowboy costumes to close out the first set with their classic urban cowboy anthem "Wanted Dead Or Alive". Ritchie strapped on his double-neck electric guitar and Jon accompanied him on the acoustic as they performed a faithful, but electrifying rendition of one of their best songs. Sambora hit the jackpot when he wrote the fantastic guitar solo for this song. It is one of those perfect solos that you are able to hum from memory, many years after hearing it. They finished the show on a strong note with an inspired performance of one of my favorite Bon Jovi songs, "Keep The Faith". The live version really accentuates the excellent bass riff and powerhouse drumming that begins the song. The production quality of this DVD was about average for a recent stadium concert recording. I wasn't very impressed with the Dolby 5.1 mix, as it tended to sound somewhat muddy, with mediocre instrument separation. The bass output was deep and powerful, but the guitar tended to get lost in the mix at times. The lead vocal mix was kind of unusual in that it was completely in the center channel, and when Jon stopped singing it would almost completely cut off, like there was an on/off switch that reacted to a certain db level. It just sounded odd when you were listening up close, but when listening from a normal viewing position it wasn't really noticeable. The rear surround channels featured some audience noise and some live ambience, which provided a decent enveloping sound, as if you were at the center of the stadium. The video looked pretty good considering that it was raining during the show and there was some apparent digital enhancements to remove the rain from the picture. The sharpness and detail varied throughout the show depending on the camera angel and how much zoom was used, but it was quite good overall. Split screen images were used affectively to show Jon side by side with the entire crowd, or with another band member. This was used infrequently enough as not to be distracting. The camera work was excellent. The excitement of the stadium concert was impressively captured by some panning, wide-angel shots looking down over the entire stadium, as well as shots of the entire stage while the band was performing. Bon Jovi proved here that they can still rock a football stadium with the best of them. Almost every song they play now is an instantly recognizable hit, which makes each show a non-stop thrill-fest for their biggest fans. If you were ever a fan of these boys from Jersey, or are just a fan of flamboyant, pop-rock, in general, then this DVD comes highly recommended. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - February 2004 |
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Running Time: 122 Minutes |
DVD Release Date - December 2000 |