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| And who doesn't want an intimate, revealing night with Zen Jon? |
November 16, 2009
Alice Tully Hall
New York City, New York
You know how sometimes you have those “is it all worth it” moments, particularly when it comes to Bon Jovi? Usually they come right after you’ve spent several thousand dollars on concert tickets, right? And of course, that always seems to happen right before the holidays too (WTF is wrong with the Jovi planners any way?).
By mid-November, 2009, I was in one of those funks, particularly coming on the heels of the “secret show” in the NMS parking lot.
Of course, it wasn’t just Jovi. I was also wrestling a bear of a project at work that was taking WAY too much of my time and required me to be in Europe for the first half of November. Yep -- when they were playing the Berlin wall, I was close enough to taste the fact that I wanted to be there. Ultimately, I’m glad I wasn’t because the weather was HORRIBLE.
But news broke about the special show at NYC’s Alice Tully Hall while I was over there. At first, the details were sketchy. I was severely jet-lagged and hop-skip-jumping my way across central Europe, in and out of meetings. I had been through all the ticket melodrama just a week or so before getting my shows lined up for the spring leg of the tour and the last thing I wanted to think about was trying to get tickets for another show.
And this one was weird, because the ticket info was being tweeted by American Express since this was their event. But nevertheless, I secured seats for me and Big Apple Jen, miraculously, from my slow-ass internet connection, on my PHONE, from a cocktail party in Dresden, Germany.
Then, literally the day AFTER I returned from Germany, I was getting back on a plane to head to NYC (even though I had just flown through NYC the night before).
Yes, my life is sometimes fucked up.
Here’s how the news went over that night at home:
Me: Hey honey, I’m home...finally...
Mr. Sam: Good. These goddamn kids have been driving me crazy. I’ve ordered pizza and told them they’re going to bed early. Then it’s time for you to rub me.
Me: But babe, I’m a little jet-lagged.
Mr. Sam: I suppose I can wait until morning.
Me: About that....I’m going to New York tomorrow.
Mr. Sam: Since when?
Me: Since yesterday. It’s this long, fucked up story involving work and Twitter -- you really don’t want to hear all the details. But I’m only gonna be gone for one night.
This wasn’t really a lie. I was at work (in Germany) when I got the tickets, for which I found the information for on Twitter. Don’t judge.
Mr. Sam: One night? Let me guess. This isn’t about work. You’re going to see Jon Bon Jovi, aren’t you?
Me: I’m going to work. I swear.
And I did. I slept on a colleague’s couch AND we had an important meeting the morning after the show (during which I showed her all my JBJ pics).
So the show itself was so cool. I sort of felt like Jon Bon Jovi was chilling at my house, drinking wine from a plastic cup (why DOES he do that?), telling me and a few (hundred) friends about the WWWB documentary, singing a few songs.
I’m sure y’all have seen the YouTubes and heard the oot-bay eg-lay, but from my vantage point, it felt incredibly intimate.
Did I mention that vantage point was in the third row, almost right in front of him?
God bless the fine folks at American Express.
So long story short, JBJ TOTALLY redeemed himself for the parking lot show. And Mr. Sam finally got his rub. All’s well that ends well.
Nothing else I can say could do it justice, so here are a few pics.
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| Zen Jon: Seriously? "Rub" is his code word? WTF? |
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| I just love a man who's not shy about his wine habit. |
Lesson Learned: Just when you start to think to yourself, hmmmm...I could walk away from this if I wanted to...he lures you back in with a wink and a smile.
THE SET LIST:
Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night
Who Says You Can’t Go home?
Livin’ On A Prayer
Lost Highway
Whole Lot of Leavin’
Superman Tonight
We Weren’t Born To Follow
Hallelujah
Wanted Dead Or Alive
