Here is where Bon Jovi changed for the worse

[ParaDime77]

Circle Tour 2010. The band sounds noticeably softened, drums especially. Jon wheels out a bunch of new soft rock clunkers. Band had zero edge after this tour ended.

https://youtu.be/DVe51-xjDPU?si=iml909btTbSgflAQ

[War_in_D]

It started with Lost Highway.

To me, they peaked with the Have A Nice Day album and tour. Sure, the album had a couple clunkers...but the tour was close to their best. It's the last time they were a true rock band...or as much of a rock band that Bon Jovi could be.

[roxxxtar]

The last great song they ever recorded was Dry County.
He might find one here and there that’s just OK, but that was the end of their greatness right there

[dweezil]

It started with Lost Highway.

To me, they peaked with the Have A Nice Day album and tour. Sure, the album had a couple clunkers...but the tour was close to their best. It's the last time they were a true rock band...or as much of a rock band that Bon Jovi could be.

I'll second this one...
That Lost Highway tour, you can tell JBJ was all in on the country pop thing with a little rock thrown in. But the audiences weren't taking too well to the country ballads, so they were trying to compensate by trying too hard to rock up everything... and somehow having a full-time violin player for that tour.

Didn't help that this was the time JBJ's vocal limitations were starting to show on the Have A Nice Day tour... even on the new-at-the-time songs.

[Jason Jennifer Leigh]

Yep started in 2009 - 2010 after the When We Were Beautiful documentary … poor Jon has to do it all, his life is miserable, starts calling the band his employees, doing interviews alone and after that it was the Jon Bon Jovi Band.

The next album Shanks takes over, Richie just said in the Corgan interview he shows up to write What About Now and Jon says “that’s ok me and Shanks wrote about 30 songs” … Shanks writes most of the guitar solos, probably plays the solos too … Shanks starts telling Sambora what to play and how to play it (the SAME thing he does with Phil X) and next thing you know Sambora leaves.

Jon has nobody to blame but himself.

[Anthrax442]

It started with Lost Highway.

To me, they peaked with the Have A Nice Day album and tour. Sure, the album had a couple clunkers...but the tour was close to their best. It's the last time they were a true rock band...or as much of a rock band that Bon Jovi could be.

Wait wait wait...Bon Jovi PEAKED with Have a Nice Day?

I mean...if that's what you think, but I'm pretty sure the answer to that question is the first leg of the New Jersey tour, before Jon blew his voice out.

[skinni]

Young Guns Ii soundtrack

That's an amazing release. I also liked his other solo release, Destination Anywhere.

[Rocker4Real]

Have A Nice Day contains their song that became a hit on the Country charts. That's why Last Highway exists.

[Hatchets Molly]

Have A Nice Day contained their song that became a hit on the country charts. That's why Last Highway exists.

Who Says You Can’t Go Home

The video is worth watching when Jennifer Nettles was smokin’ hot.

[DonJuanDeMarco]

Circle Tour 2010. The band sounds noticeably softened, drums especially. Jon wheels out a bunch of new soft rock clunkers. Band had zero edge after this tour ended.

https://youtu.be/DVe51-xjDPU?si=iml909btTbSgflAQ

You might be right but personally I think as long as Richie was there, it was still ok. Bobby Bandiero was the other guitar player. He was Southside Johnny's guitar player. He's there really just to fill in the sound. He has no stage presence.

When John Shanks and the black percussionist joined. And I think even a full time violin girl. And no disrespect to Phil X but it's a gig no one could replace. That's when it obviously went downhill. JBJ went grey and forgot how to sing and couldn't let go of the mic. That last mini tour was a mess and Jon knew it. It's the focus of the entire Hulu documentary for God's sake.