Bon Jovi – New Jersey

Initially intended to be a double album, “New Jersey” was recorded subsequent to their recent worldwide major tour. Reconvening with hired hack Desmond Child and producer Bruce Fairbairn, the band was keen to recreate what they achieved on their hit third outing. It was an objective that would lead the band to struggle to produce a batch of songs as timeless, transcendent and resonant as "You Give Love A Bad Name" and "Livin' On A Prayer".

It isn’t so much that Bon Jovi had a propensity to adapt, but they did expand their formula and add some depth to their repertoire as they progressed. “New Jersey” arrived on the scene two years after their imperial phase began in 1986. Largely following the same pattern as "Slippery When Wet" in terms of blue-collar cowboy subject matter and rough-and-ready rock & roll, “New Jersey” sustained the metal-lite sound pioneered by Bon Jovi and their contemporaries. As expected then, Bon Jovi dutifully satisfied the demands of their fanbase, albeit with the welcome infusion of some technical enhancements and country and western undertones. That being said, there are as many variances as there are permutations, such as Jon entering full-blown heartland romantic mode on “Blood on Blood” and “Homebound Train”, portraying a rambunctious cowboy on “Ride Cowboy Ride”, “Stick To Your Guns” and reaffirming his bond with Richie Sambora and co on the uncharacteristically low-key mono outro “Love for Sale”.

On the surface at least, the album appears to be musically consistent with “Slippery When Wet”, accentuating Sambora’s electric riffs and foregrounding the thunderous rhythm section courtesy of Tico Torres. In fact, all involved are on career-best form here, with additional musicians providing solid support with new instruments such as a flamenco guitar, organ, cello and harmonica supplementing the harder rock style employed by the main line-up. From the outset, the album weaves between sleaziness, blue-collar brashness, romantic commitment and gaucho rowdiness, displaying the utmost confidence and brotherly love on each and every composition. “Lay Your Hands On Me”, “Bad Medicine”, and “Born To Be My Baby” make an instant impression as three of the band’s punchiest and catchiest songs. One could argue that commencing with such a cohesive triptych is too daring a move, but setting up the rest of the album with a powerful statement creates a residual effect rather than diminishing returns, generating a cavalier spirit and overriding self-assurance. Overdubbed choruses and sweet melodies abound the aforementioned salvo, and this epic scope and anthemic quality flows through each successive song with ease, especially on the barnstorming ballads “Wild Is the Wind”, “I’ll Be There for You” and “Living in Sin”. There’s no hiding the fact it falls short of its dynamite predecessor - commercially and apropos the congruency and immediacy of the collective material - but “New Jersey” is a well-executed tour de force nonetheless, winning the day with a steady flow of accessible, glossily produced rockers and diverse, experimental dynamic numbers.

Rating: 4.5/5