Bon Jovi at Wembley Stadium

It’s been a long wait, but finally the day has arrived for Bon Jovi to return to the stage. After a four-year tour hiatus following Jon Bon Jovi’s vocal surgery, there was much anticipation for the Forever Tour – and not a little bit of pressure, as captured with emotion in the 2024 Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story documentary, which not only charted their history but also Jon’s doubts over the longevity of his performing capabilities.

As fans flooded into the huge expanse of Wembley Stadium, many clad in Bon Jovi tees or other band-themed paraphernalia, British singer-songwriter James Bay, on support duties, held his own with his earnest and heartfelt Americana-meets-folk-rock songs (on his birthday, no less). Donning signature long locks, wide-brimmed fedora and all-black attire, his raspy-edged voice soared, with favourites Let It Go and Hold Back the River among the obvious highlights, attendees already in full singalong mode and clutching their loved ones on the repeated refrain “Let us hold each other”.

After a break, it was time for rock royalty to make their entrance. And what an entrance – and what a response. It was clear that time away had not diminished the fan love for the band, but rather, if anything, strengthened it, the roar of an adoring 90,000-strong audience rising into the late-summer sky via the stadium’s open-air roof before an apt opening number – a cover of the Beatles’ With a Little Help from My Friends – set the tone for the night.

Jon perhaps seemed a little timid in the initial tracks, a sense of concentration and containment as he held tight to the mic, bolstered by the band’s backing vocals, where once there would have been full-throttle energy from the off. But it was to be expected, given his journey to this moment, and by the gig’s midway point, it felt like any tentativeness had fallen away, Jon settling into the muscle memory of performer mode like putting on old shoes, that inimitable voice finding its former footing and hyping up the crowd: “We love you guys so much!” You could tell this was a redemptive, vindicating moment he’d been waiting for, and it did not disappoint.

The New Jersey band gave their audience exactly what they wanted via a career-spanning sweep through the back catalogue of arena rock-meets-pop, transporting us back to the 80s. There may have been less volume in the hair and less skin on show than in their hair-metal heyday, but the music held strong through classics and deeper cuts alike. Slippery When Wet‘s You Give Love a Bad Name gave way to the ultimate power ballad Bed of Roses, before the double whammy of It’s My Life and Livin’ on a Prayer and a main-set finale of 1992 hit Keep the Faith, with Wembley singing back every word.

If there was any doubt the silver-haired musicians might not be able to sustain a full night at full tilt, it was dispelled as they launched back into an encore, delivering New Jersey‘s I’ll Be There for You, Wanted Dead or Alive, the blistering Bad Medicine, and of course, Always. It was hard to leave with those words and guitar riffs still lingering in the ears without reflecting on how rare this kind of stadium-sized songwriting now feels; timeless tracks that really might last “forever and a day”.

Sarah Bradbury
Photos: Cherie Hansson/David Bergman

For further information and future events, visit Bon Jovi’s website here.

Watch the video for Livin’ on a Prayer here: