LOCATION : United Center - Chicago, Illinois
BANDS : Daughtry, Bon Jovi
WHEN: February 26, 2008
This writer used the magic of myspace to score some free tickets to the Tuesday, February 26th performance of these two rock bands. This was their 3rd performance in the city, and after seeing the other night’s set list and talking to Chris Daughtry, this may have been the best of the three.
Daughtry played first, and I and five others were escorted to a standing area up near the left side of the stage. Josh Steely, lead guitar, was standing right in front of us and doing everything he could to garner the girls attention that were in my group. Chris Daughtry came over a few times during the concert to interact as well.
Daughtry played his record almost in its entirety CD; nine songs in total. Most opening acts get crappy sound systems, however, Daughtry sounded clear and had a ton of energy on stage. Always moving around, and interacting with the audience, Daughtry even made Bon Jovi fans interested in their performance.
Daughtry as a band was really nice too. They were cordial and friendly as we did a meet and greet between the two performances, and grabbed a cool picture too. Did I mention the drummer wore a kilt? Only drummers can pull that off!
Bon Jovi had a surprising lack of bombast. No pyrotechnics during the entire performance. Their songs had energy, and Jon Bon Jovi no doubt had the crowd in to it, but personally, I prefer my hard rock concerts with some explosions and fire. They did have rotating/separating video screens that had some pretty cool images on them during the concert. The back part of the stage even raised toward the audience at one point and had some video displayed, although for the most part, it wasn’t stunning.
They started with their hit single, “Lost Highway,” and then started a small set of much older songs for the truly dedicated fans. For me, it wasn’t that exciting, but the crowd just seemed to want more. Mid-way through the concert is when things really started to heat up. Chris Daughtry came back on stage and sang “Blaze of Glory” with Jon Bon Jovi and according to the Bon Jovi website, it is the only night that the two paired up during their time in Chicago. Being a Chris Daughtry fan, this was the best song of the night.
Bon Jovi then went on and sang classics like “Livin on a Prayer,” “Living In Sin” and “Bad Medicine.” They humorously combined “Living in Sin” with “Going to the Chapel,” which was somewhat ironic. Richie Sambora created an interlude by singing the new track “These Days” on his own.
After the midway point, Jon Bon Jovi showed up on a tiny platform in the midst of the audience and sang songs like “Bed of Roses” and “I’ll Be There for You.” He even took a lady from the audience, danced with her, and gave her a nice kiss to complete her dream. A nice touch for a rocker that is known to make the ladies swoon. Richie Sambora even came to the platform to play out in the audience.
The encore came with “Wanted Dead or Alive” and “Blood on Blood, “but then the crowd was so excited, it appeared that Bon Jovi decided to go a little longer and played “Treat Her Right” and ended with “Twist and Shout” at which point Jon Bon Jovi came off the stage and walked through the aisles of the audience. A master doing what he knows best.
If you missed your three opportunities to see these bands, you missed a double bill that was worth the ticket price. If you like the music and you want to be energized by music, catch these bands in the future at a venue near you.
By: Josh Wheeler - Contributing Writer
