The Boys Are Back In Town

Long-serving pop-rockers Bon Jovi took time out from their world tour to drop by for a chat...

Your new album has been hailed as your best album ever, did you  expect that sort of response?
Jon Bon Jovi: We heard Liz Hurley liked it and that was our gauge.
Richie Sambora: We liked it and we're very very happy that everyone  liked it as much as we did because when we first made it we thought  it was cool.

Your new single is 'Thank you For Loving Me' what's that all about?
Jon Bon Jovi: It was from going to the movies, believe it or not. I  saw the Grim Reaper grab a beautiful woman and say 'thank you for loving me' and I thought 'what a courageous statement for Death to say' but then he had to twist her head off. The film was 'Meet Joe Black '. It was really pretty cool.

Do you find it easier to write love songs or uptempo tunes?
Jon Bon Jovi: You know they're just different, they're not any easier  or harder.

Are you enjoying being back on the road again?
David Bryan: Yeah, it's fun. It's been a fantastic tour so far...

Did you get back into it easily?
Tico Torres: Well we started in Japan and we did five or six domes there, and that was a good way to warm in. So by the time we got to Europe we were back in the saddle, hot and heavy.

What's your favourite song to perform?
Richie Sambora: That's a very hard question.
David Bryan: All of them. It's just fun to play.
Tico Torres: You know we change the arrangements, do 'Runaways ' as a sombre ballad, more of a storytelling. It's just different ways of interpreting the old songs which makes them more fun to do.

You've been together for over a decade and still get on well - what's your secret?
Richie Sambora: Oh Jeez!
Jon Bon Jovi: We've been together a long time. We enjoy playing together - you know we've been through everything together it's really rather a good feeling to come out with an album like 'Crush' and know that's it's done so well. Everybody gets on and all the hard work comes to fruition at this time in our lives. It's something that we can't share with anyone else in the world, not your wife, not your mother, not your brother. It's just 'the band' you can't break that.

In the UK we've had a spate of popstars collapsing with exhaustion from their gruelling schedules do you have any advice for them?
Jon Bon Jovi: Babies!
David Bryan: They're weak! Stop being weak! Grow up, be men! He he he he.

Do you have any lifestyle tips for them - how to keep going for instance?
Tico Torres: Hygiene is very important. Comfortable shoes.
Jon Bon Jovi: Good wine.
Richie Sambora: Don't wear underwear - it's one less thing to wash!

Bon Jovi chat about everything from the last Wembley Stadium gig to their children's strange taste in music...

What do you think of the big US bands at the moment?
Jon Bon Jovi: I actually like Limp Bizkit. If I had to chose between  Limp Bizkit and N'Sync I'd pick Limp Bizkit.

What kind of music are your kids into?
Jon Bon Jovi: Tom Waites
David Bryan: Barney Sings.(the dinosaur)
Jon Bon Jovi: My kids went straight from Barney to the Foo Fighters.
David Bryan: Basically devil chanting. Devil worship music, you know?!

You're credited with inventing the genre pop-metal. Do you agree?
David Bryan: There is no such thing. We just call it 'American Rock n 
Roll'. Just Bon Jovi.

You played the last two Wembley Stadium gigs ever, what was that like?
Jon Bon Jovi: We loved it. We felt really honoured to tell you the  honest to goodness truth.
David Bryan: It was amazing.
Tico Torres: You know playing England's always been just like home -  we've always been well-accepted and the fans have always been with us. So it's a beautiful thing.

Do you have any funny stories about over-eager fans? You must have a huge fanbase...
Jon Bon Jovi: We do have a big fanbase. We see the same people a lot of times - people that have been to close to 200 shows, stuff like that.
Tico Torres: Most of them are our crew!

What's the strangest thing you've read about yourself in the papers?
David Bryan: I was Bruce Springsteen for a day. I was! I opened up the paper in Ireland and there was a huge picture of my head and underneath the caption said 'Bruce Springsteen is in town'!

Do you plan to keep recording together or continue with your solo projects?
Jon Bon Jovi: No, I think the intention is to do another band record  after this tour ends.

Jon, are you still interested in acting?
Jon Bon Jovi: (assumes durbrain voice) Yes, I'm acting right now aren't I? (Seriously) I'm doing a vampire movie starting next month is called 'Los Meurtos' at the moment but they're going to work on that title, I don't like it too much. It translates as 'The Dead'. It's a vampire movie set in Mexico. I'm a vampire hunter - the hero.