Bon Jovi

If staying power were the measure of anything other than staying power, Bon Jovi would have to go down as a major rock marvel. From hair metal to Young Guns cowboy dirges to gleamy latter-day radio songs, the band has given Bruce Springsteen a run for his Jersey-dominating money. Bon Jovi practically clubs listeners over the head with workingman’s woes on 2009’s The Circle, with songs like “Work For The Working Man” and “Brokenpromiseland” giving current events a pop-rock sheen. Yet the concern for people’s hard times didn’t extend to ticket prices for the band’s 2010 tour, which featured three different VIP packages ranging in price from expensive to ludicrous. For 2011, The Circle Tour has morphed into Bon Jovi Live, which features the same mix of new tunes and stone-cold, stonewashed classics. Sadly, a recent run-in with rehab may keep guitarist Richie Sambora away from most of the group’s U.S. dates.

Updated 05/11/2011