To coincide with the release of the band’s ‘Greatest Hits: The Ultimate Collection’ on CD, the band also released a DVD full of the band’s video hits and live versions as well. The DVD was released on November 10, 2010 about 2 weeks after the CD. It isn’t a full career retrospective as it is only 17 of their numerous music videos. And it omits anything from the first two albums which is a huge misstep by the band as they continue to ignore those two albums. I honestly hate when a band does that. It is stupid and an insult to fans who love those albums even if they don’t. You guys truly suck for this!!!

But what is here, is really great. It kicks off with two tracks from ‘Slippery When Wet’ with “Livin’ on A Prayer” and “You Give Love A Bad Name”, two videos that really showcased the band’s live performances and what helped draw millions of fans in to the fold. They then jump to “In These Arms” from ‘Keep the Faith’ and surprisingly enough, it is another live concert performance to the studio song. Honestly, these type of videos are great as they aren’t some cheesy video telling a story that is not what is in the song, but gives you an idea of what the band is live. Now, I say that and you then get Sam Kinison and people talking through cut-outs of Elvis for “Bad Medicine” But that was only the opening as the rest was live concert shots as well.

“Born to Be My Baby” is full of studio shots as if the band was recording the song for the first time done in black & white. Very laid back and I like it because it isn’t the exact studio version of the song, it is a different edit. Then we go full on color with the ballad “I’ll Be There For You” which is more stage performance except this time it is in front of an empty arena. A great song shot perfectly here. “Lay Your Hands On Me” gives us another live style video. Honestly, I don’t remember all their videos being basically concert style.. They did not waste a lot of money on videos and it paid off for them and save them a ton of money. The videos are all professionally done, no denying that.

The live style finally changes with the video “It’s My Life”. It brought Bon Jovi to a whole new generation with a young kid rushing to get to a Bon Jovi show. A nice change of pace and a great video actually. The band still is playing live in a tunnel, but the rest is an action video with that kid doing everything he can to get there. Then we get “Always” and isn’t a live concert setting, but it is the band in a loft (or warehouse) playing the song as if live. Another very well shot video. They always keep the focus on the band as how it should be. Then you hear the wind blow, it all goes to black & white again and in comes “Wanted Dead or Alive”. A concert style/road weary band looks exhausted and plays one of the best songs they’ve ever written. A classic!!

“Bed of Roses” sees Richie out on top of the mountain playing this beautiful ballad. Richie looks cold, while Jon is at a piano in a hotel room all warm and comfy. Richie you got screwed on that one. There also studio shots of the band and all pieced together for a very nicely done performance. For “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” it is a concept video where the band is playing outside at the Habitat For Humanity houses that the band helped build. The workers went around lip syncing the song as the band looked all cheesy in a living room playing. Great thing they did for Habitat, but dang what a cheesy video. “Have a Nice Day” is another modern one where Jon autographs the new album by drawing a smiley face on the album cover when the kid snaps a pictures sends it to a friend and it goes viral. As the band walks through the city, their new album cover is everywhere. I have to admit, a great concept. And very fun.

“We Weren’t Born to Follow” has the band playing on the roof top while showing pictures throughout history of people fighting to win and standing up for what they believe. A touching, uplifting video without being too cheesy. Then with “What Do You Got?”, we get the one video I’ve never seen before. It has the band playing in a dark studio while this rich guys drives around and goes home to an empty house with no one to love. Does he find someone by the end? Watch it and find out. “Keep the Faith” is up next and what a great bass line, damn!! A classic video show in the city with the band walking through town intercut with performances. If you like Jon, there is a lot of him in this one. The final studio video track is for Jon’s solo song, “Blaze of Glory”. It is a western style song with shots of a run down town and the desert with Jon on top of mountain. Great song, and a pretty good video too.

Now, that is all of the studio version videos and the second half of the DVD is live performances for each and everyone of these songs. I have to admit, I don’t think this has been done before. Usually you get the videos only. I am not going through each of these live videos for one reason, all but 3 of these we have already talked about as they are from the live concert videos we have already discussed during this series. As most are from ‘Live From London’, ‘Live at Madison Square Garden’, ‘Crush Tour’, and ‘This Left Feels Right Live’.

Of the three, first is “Wanted Dead Or Alive” which is from ‘Lost Highway: The Concert (Stripped)’. which we didn’t talk about the video, only the CD. This is in a very intimate setting, meaning really small stage. The band is acoustic with an extra violinist and slide guitar player. Nicely done, but how can they screw this one up. “We Weren’t Born to Follow” is from the video “London O2 Arena Rooftop”…and rooftop is right as they play not in the arena, but on top of it…on the roof. A great setting for an okay song. The final live video I hadn’t seen is for “What Do You Got?” which is Live in Peru. Not a favorite song, but live it isn’t bad, but at this time in their career, this band was aces live.

And there you have it. Let’s get through the faults. First, it is not all their videos as it is missing a lot, especially anything from the first two albums. Second, when it comes to career retrospectives, I actually like them in order so you can really see how the band has changed both musically and visually…different clothes, hair, you name it. But what they got right was the fact they included live versions as well. The band prides themselves on playing so they are giving you a look at what is in store for you if you see them live, not a bad idea. It is chock full of music and a great selection of hits. The band does not have a lot of cheesy videos. that is amazing considering they came from the 80’s. It is a great set of songs and videos and if you like videos, you need this one. My Overall Score is a 4.0 out of 5.0 Stars. A must have in the collection.

NEXT UP: BON JOVI – ‘INSIDE OUT’ (2012)

THE BON JOVI COLLECTION SERIES:

1. Bon Jovi – The Albums Box Set (2017)
2. Jon Bongiovi – The Power Station Sessions (1980-1983) (2001)
3. Bon Jovi – Bon Jovi (1984)
4. Bon Jovi – Shot Through the Heart: Live in Cleveland, OH March 17, 1984 FM Broadcast (Bootleg)
5. Bon Jovi – “Burning For Love” – 12″ Single – Japanese Edition (1984)
6. Bon Jovi – 7800° Fahrenheit (1985)
7. Bon Jovi – Slippery When Wet (1986)
8. Bon Jovi – “Borderline” – 12″ Single – Japanese Edition (1986)
9. Bon Jovi – New Jersey (1988)
10. Bon Jovi – New Jersey: Super Deluxe Edition – Disc 2/DVD (1988)
11. Bon Jovi – “I’ll Be There For You” – Cassette Single (1988)
12. Jon Bon Jovi – Blaze of Glory (1990)
13. Jon Bon Jovi – “Blaze of Glory” – Cassette Single (1990)
14. Richie Sambora – Stranger in this Town (1991)
15. Bon Jovi – Keep the Faith (1992)
16. Bon Jovi – “Keep the Faith” – CD Maxi Single (1992)
17. Bon Jovi – “I Believe” – 7″ Single (1992)
18. Bon Jovi – Cross Road (1994)
19. Bon Jovi – “Please Come Home for Christmas” – CD Single (1994)
20. Bon Jovi – These Days (1995)
21. Bon Jovi – Live From London – DVD (1995)
22. Jon Bon Jovi – Destination Anywhere (1997)
23. Richie Sambora – Undiscovered Soul (1998)
24. Bon Jovi – Crush (2000)
25. Bon Jovi – Live From Osaka E.P. (2000)
26. Bon Jovi – “Thank You For Loving Me” – CD Single (2000)
27. Bon Jovi – The Crush Tour – DVD (2000)
28. Bon Jovi – The Love Songs E.P. (Promo) (2001)
29. Bon Jovi – Tokyo Road: Best of Bon Jovi (2001)
30. Bon Jovi – One Wild Night Live: 1985-2001 (2001)
31. Bon Jovi – Bounce (2002)
32. Bon Jovi – Unauthorized: Rock ‘n Roll Legends – Bootleg DVD (2002)
33. Bon Jovi – Target E.P. (2003)
34. Bon Jovi – This Left Feels Right (2003)
35. Bon Jovi – Wild in the Streets: Unauthorized – Bootleg DVD (2003)
36. Bon Jovi – This Left Feels Right – DVD (2004)
37. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Part 1) – (2004)
38. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Disc 1, Part 2) – (2004)
39. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Disc 2, Part 3) – (2004)
40. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Disc 3, Part 4) – (2004)
41. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Disc 4, Part 5) – (2004)
42. Bon Jovi – 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong (Disc 5 & 6, Part 6) – (2004)
43. Bon Jovi – Have a Nice Day (2005)
44. Bon Jovi – Live from the Have a Nice Day Tour (Walmart Exclusive) (2006)
45. Bon Jovi – Lost Highway (2007)
46. Bon Jovi – Lost Highway: The Concert (2007)
47. Bon Jovi – The Circle (2009)
48. Bon Jovi – When We Were Beautiful Documentary DVD (2009)
49. Bon Jovi – Live at Madison Square Garden – DVD (2009)
50. Bon Jovi – Greatest Hits: The Ultimate Collection (2009)
51. Bon Jovi – Greatest Hits: The Ultimate Video Collection – DVD (2010)
52. Bon Jovi – Inside Out – DVD (2012)
53. Richie Sambora – Aftermath of the Lowdown (2012)
54. Bon Jovi – What About Now (2013)
55. Bon Jovi – Live E.P. (RSD – 2013)
56. Bon Jovi – Live 2 E.P. (RSD – 2014)
57. Bon Jovi – Burning Bridges (2015)
58. Bon Jovi – This House is Not For Sale (2016)
59. Bon Jovi – This House is Not For Sale – Live From the London Palladium (2016)
60. Bon Jovi – The Albums Box Set – The Extra LP (2017)
61. RSO – Radio Free America (2018)
62. Bon Jovi – 2020 (2020)
63. Bon Jovi – 40th Anniversary Box Set (TBA – I Hope it is out by the time we get here)

We’ve reviewed a bunch of pieces already over the years and won’t review again. They are as follows:

1. Bon Jovi – The Brotherhood Tour Book (1988-1990)
2. Bon Jovi – Bon Jovi Tour 2011 – Tourbook
3. Bon Jovi – The Rock History – Bootleg CD
4. Bon Jovi – “You Give Love A Bad Name” – 12″ Single
5. Bon Jovi – “You Give Love a Bad Name” – 7″ Single
6. Bon Jovi – Red Hot & 2 Parts Live E.P. – 12″ Single
7. Bon Jovi – “Wanted Dead or Alive” – 7″ Single
8. Bon Jovi – “Bad Medicine” – 7″ Single
9. Bon Jovi – “Born to Be My Baby” – 7″ Single
10. Bon Jovi – “I’ll Be There For You” – 7″ Single
11. Bon Jovi – “Lay Your Hands on Me” – 7″ Single
12. Bon Jovi – “Living in Sin” – 7″ Single