SUMMARY: APPROX. RUNNING TIME: 50:00 Min.
In 2007, Mercury Records released Bon Jovi’s tenth studio album, Lost Highway, as the band’s first entry in the Contemporary Country genre. Lost Highway was subsequently nominated for a 2008 Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album.
With several tunes composed by various members of Bon Jovi, the twelve tracks are:
- “Lost Highway” (4:13)
- “Summertime” (3:17)
- “(You Want to) Make A Memory (4:36)
- “Whole Lot of Leavin’” (4:16)
- “We Got It Going On” (with Big & Rich) (4:12)
- “Any Other Day” (4:01)
- “Seat Next to You” (4:21)
- “Everybody’s Broken” (4:11)
- “Till We Ain’t Strangers Anymore” (with Leeann Rimes) (4:43)
- “The Last Night” (3:32)
- “One Step Closer” (3:35)
- “I Love This Town” (4:37).
REVIEW:
It’s a solid effort, though Lost Highway isn’t necessarily a must-have. If compared to Bon Jovi albums from the band’s big-hair rock prime, Lost Highway explores an intriguing change of pace. Specifically, Bon Jovi opts for a middle-of-the-road (pardon the expression) approach between upbeat rock and a Contemporary Country bar band. The end result delivers – probably more as smooth quantity than surefire quality.
Tracks # 3: (You Want to) Make A Memory and # 5: We Got It Going On (with Big & Rich), for instance, are standout tunes in an album where the melodies tend to blend together. That’s not a knock so much, as one can appreciate Bon Jovi’s attempt at a more introspective and mature sound. Well-played team-ups with Big & Rich and Leann Rimes, in that sense, demonstrate nuances in the band’s artistic depth.
Still, Lost Highway consistently sticks to a formula of low-key, appealing tracks that won’t likely linger with listeners afterwards. This album, nonetheless, is a classy road trip to take with Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, and their pals.
PACKAGING:
The list of tracks and their running times are provided on the CD case. The insert booklet includes: each song’s lyrics and credits; the album’s technical credits; thank-you’s; and an assortment of color and black-and-white photos of the band.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 7 Stars
