What I'm Looking Forward To Musically in 2015

There might be some really cool music coming out in 2015. There is going to be some surprisingly good stuff. There are going to be some duds.

Whatever happens, there is going to be some really good stuff that nobody knows about.

Here is what I'm looking forward to in 2015. Some may not live up to what I expect, but there will be plenty more to take their places if it doesn't live up.

Halestorm is counting down to the release of their third album. If it is anywhere near as good as The Strange Case of.... it will not disappoint.

Blackberry Smoke is another band with another album in the can and Holding All the Roses is another release that I'm looking forward to. If you're a fan of Southern Rock, Blackberry Smoke is your band. Along with Whiskey Myers, they are doing it right.

I don't know any details, but Grace Potter and the Nocturnals are poised to release an album in 2015. Kind of eclectic, they rock. I have high hopes for this one.

This one I am most excited about. Richie Sambora and Orianthi are going to release an album together. Check out each of their solo work and then search youtube for some live collaborations. I'll admit, this one may let me down the most if it isn't great. But I'm optimistic.

When it's all said and done at the end of 2015, none of these may have resonated with me. But I'm hopeful that they will. If not, there will be something else that comes out of the woodwork. It always does.

Working Women's Wednesday: Dolly Parton

Yeah, I know. Last time Stevie Nicks, this time Dolly Parton. Nothing groundbreaking in featuring these two icons.

But a lot of people don't know of their greatness, their contributions, their legacies. And that's a shame. If I can educate just one person, I've done something.

Dolly Parton has recently released her 1,497th album. You might want to fact check that....it's just an estimate. Blue Smoke came out in the U.S. in May of this year and hit #2 on the country album charts. You probably won't hear any of the music on mainstream country radio.

How does Dolly stay relevant, other than the fact that she is Dolly freakin' Parton? Why not commission the boys from Bon Jovi to re-write "Lay Your Hands On Me"? Sure.

Playing to a huge crowd at Glastonbury, England, accompanied by estranged Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora, Dolly killed it, as only Dolly can.

This performance overall, not this particular song, has come under some scrutiny as being lip synced. While I don't believe this song was, you can read more about it here at Saving Country Music.




Whether solo or with Porter Waggoner or Kenny Rogers, Dollly Parton has always commanded attention. I would be remiss to not include some version of "Jolene".  So here you go:

Richie Sambora and Orianthi Record in the Works

If you read this blog at all, you probably know what a huge fan of Orianthi I am. I've done an artist spotlight on her. I've written about her on-stage collaboration with Richie Sambora. I'm also a big fan of Sambora, specifically, and Bon Jovi, generally.

Now it seems as though Orianthi and Sambora are working on a record together. No specific timetable has been set for the album's release, but according to Sambora and Orianthi themselves, recording has already begun.

The two are about to embark on a European summer tour, hitting many of the festivals. Let's just hope this venture comes out sooner rather than later and they hit the States for a tour.

Here's a taste of them doing Orianthi's "You Don't Wanna You" acoustically.

Good Music on a Saturday: Richie Sambora and Orianthi

Sometimes what you can find on radio, or even satellite radio, or Pandora, etc. just isn't enough.  That's when I take to the internet to find interesting stuff.

This is Richie Sambora (on hiatus from Bon Jovi, which I won't get into) and Australian guitar chick Orianthi at the Midnight Mission Benefit concert doing a couple of Bon Jovi songs with a little Allman Brothers thrown in.

Personally, I love the version of "Living on a Prayer".

Hope you enjoy.

An Evening with Bon Jovi: Because We Can Tour Concert Review

We definitely lived up to the blog name on this one.  We had cheap seats.

We saw Bon Jovi on their (yes, their, not his, this is a band, not a solo act......more on that later) Because We Can tour.  Aptly named.  Sold millions of records.  Sold out arenas and stadiums worldwide for years.  Have more money than they can spend.  Why do it?  Because they can.

The four core members of the band are most decidedly a band.  The bass player has been with them for years, but never appears on album covers and such as a member of the band.  The second guitarist was just that, a second guitarist, although they did allow him a couple of solos and proper acknowledgement.  But the four guys who have been in the band since the inception are the band.

Tico Torres played flawless thundering drums.  The kick drum could be felt in the gut, as it should  be.

David Bryan is the pop metal generation's Jon Lord.  He plays keyboards as a lead instrument and not as a layeing instrument.

Richie Sambora's playing was at times inspired and when needed was flawlessly true to the original recording.

Jon Bon Jovi stills knows how to make the girls scream, although now the screaming girls are middle-aged housewives.  His pipes are still excellent and he delivered in every way fathomable.

What was interesting to us, as Bon Jovi fans since their debut album, was the crowd.  There were many families there, obvious attempts by the parents to expose the offspring to music that they loved.  There were many, many people there of our age (middle class and middle age).  There were some younger college and high school-aged kids in attendance.

Fortunately, the majority of the crowd was like us - grew up on the Bon Jovi hits of the late '80's/early '90's. When those classic songs were played, the fans like us were up, singing and dancing and reliving our youth.  The younger generation just seemed bored.  Sad.

Bon Jovi opened the show with the '80's classic "You Give Love a Bad Name".  Not a bad start.

They have a new album out, so, of course they played four songs from that album.  Not bad songs, but since the album just came out this week, nobody knew them.

But for people our age, every song you wanted to hear, they delivered.

Highlights?  While there were many, out favorite was what they closed the regular set with.  "Bad Medicine" with "Old Time Rock N Roll" thrown in towards the end.  The entire song, not just a passing tidbit.  That had  the crowd on its feet and singing along.

Another highlight was the performance of  "I'll Be There For You".  If there was any doubt that this a band (or at the very least a two-man show) this was it.  This was the first time they performed this song this tour. Richie Sambora sang lead on the song.  Jon Bon Jovi was not on stage.

The only critcism we have with the show is they did not do anything from 7800 Farhenheit.  Granted, not many people know the songs from that album and, admittedly, it was not one of their stronger offerings.  This is just us, but we first saw Bon Jovi in support of that album, so it kind of holds a special place in our hearts. Would have loved to have heard "Tokyo Road" or "In and Out of Love".  But that is minor.

However, they did do the song that first turned us on to  Bon Jovi back in the day - "Runaway".  We were pleased.

Speaking of, the first time we saw Bon Jovi was, we think, 1985.  Opening for Ratt.  The first concert we attended.  So this kind of closes the circle for us.