Raise your hand if you didn’t know that Jersey lifers Bon Jovi had a new single out and you live in the tri-state area. I know, right? It’s kind of amazing, given that any movement by the band would have sent tremors ’round the WWOR broadcast zone as recently as a few years back. “We Weren’t Born To Follow,” the first single from their forthcoming album The Circle, actually came out last week. The track, credited to Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, is pretty standard Bon Jovi fare with a few exceptions—first, there’s no guitar solo, and second, there’s a tremolo-ish guitar underneath the whole thing that sounds like it was lifted from U2′s “Where The Streets Have No Name.” Well, at least Jon still sings the word “born” exactly the way he did on the New Jersey-era classic “Born To Be My Baby,” so as to soothe any fans who might be confused! (Clip of that track after the jump.)
New single: We Weren’t Born To Follow [IDJ]
Bon Jovi-Born To Be My Baby [Dailymotion]
Any confused fans might be soothed as soon as the stream of cliches kicks in with JBJ’s vocals. More than U2, this sounds to me a bit like Bon Jovi’s idea of a Kings of Leon song, no? Also the “yeah yeah yeah” in the chorus reminds me of another song, but I can’t put my finger on it – anyone?
You know, I’ve seen a lot of ‘Jon Bon Jovi IS The Smug Asshole‘ photos but that one ranks up there with the ‘best’
Where does Jon’s asshole rep come from anyway? He’s never seemed anything but nice from what I can tell.
This song’s okay, but I’m pretty sure “It’s My Life” was their last hurrah.
@brasstax: Hahah well the full story is in Jon Ginoli’s very great book Deflowered and I know it was online somewhere too, but he tells a great story of how Mr. Bon Jovi acted backstage at a Christmas radio charity concert in NYC back in 1994. Supreme assholedom. (Mind you I had had it in for him for years, and I still laugh over a claim in Melody Maker back in 1992 that he helped inspire grunge. As a counterexample, perhaps…)
@NedRaggett: I have chosen to believe all these stories, and many more sordid ones besides, are 100% true.
@Chris Molanphy: I heard they pumped his stomach and found Rod Stewart’s dignity. This was in 1986, mind you, so you can imagine Stewart’s dignity was rather ripe.
Can someone please tell aging 80′s back lines, cough(David Bryan,Rick Savage), that the bleached poodle mop does not make them look young.
David Bryan is who you get when you cross Michael Bolton with Kenny G, isn’t he?
iv heard the new single ,its good,but theres better to come if i know bon jovi,
25 years of hits and memorys for us all, each song or album give us a time captured in our lives ,like you remember that song when you met you first girl,or dance slow and rocked to them live,there the best for me and always will…..peace and rock to you all.