Seattle, WA - Key Arena
April 15, 2003

From: Sophy

Ok...on to the review! I attended both the Portland and Seattle shows, but someone allready posted a great and thorough review of the Portland show...so I'll just skip to Seattle First off, I couldn't believe our good fortune! Because the stage jetted forward considerabely, our 10th Row tix were acctually 2ND ROW!!! And on top of getting these fantastic seats, Tracy (from WOG), her friend from Portland, and my sis and I had our seats together!!! We were so stoked about that Not only that, but no one was sitting in the seats in front of us so we had FULL GOO VIEW....yippee!!! When the lights went down and the music started, the awesome audience screamed and jumped to their feet and gave the Goos some love...that was nice to see after a couple of contradictory reviews. And, luckily, no one asked us to sit down at any point...as a matter of fact, my sis gave a couple who were sitting down a look as if to say, "Get your booty up and show some love, damn it!"...lol And they did. We had signs for them that said "GOO...YOU KICK SO MUCH F****'N ASS!...AND SO DO WE" (lol), "GOO, WE'RE HERE 4 U!", "GOD IT'S GOO'D 2 B ALIVE!"...and I also made one that said, "CAN WE SEE THE ITALIAN TABLE DANCE....P...P...PLEASE!" ...lol...but I didn't have the balls to hold it up high, so I kept it down on the seats in front of us...don't know if he saw it, but we got lots of those priceless smiles ...just love how he squints to read them I also made one with flashing stars and a crown just like his new tatt that said "NICE TATT JOHNNY!" The setlist was pretty much the same...John didn't sing "There You Are" however no complaints here!!! Robby was dearly missed...but I'd rather him get better...hope your'e getting better by the minute Robs! (I looked up some info on "cellulitus", and it's not something to take lightly). Dean did a good job at filling the bill musically. I asked someone why Andy wasn't playing instead, and they said that Dean has been with the Goos longer and knows the songs better. I was also told that the Goos like the opening spot, partly because it's just a bit of a break for them. Also got to talk to Jason and Greg for a bit...so glad they're touring with the Goos...they're so nice and talented and I hope they go on to do great things! One advantage to the Goos opening was that Mike was much farther up and I was better able to see him BEAT THOSE SKINS! I was just in awe at how quick and powerful those arms are...not to mention how much energy he has....I would've been tired after one minute! Speaking of which, Johnny was playing his ASS off...and on "All Eyes on Me", his fingers were moving like lightning, and he was strumming that guitar like his life depended on it! lol ...I was simply blown away and would've like to see the look on my face . He also said "shitty world" instead of "petty world" in Big Machine...I can't blame him . And Trac, help me out, cause on one of the songs he did a little variation on...where he sang it a lot slower without the music for part of it...I want to say it was Black Balloon...I could be wrong...but it sounded like he was about to sing "A 1000 Words" He didn't, but it was beautiful anyhow! And last night I got the pleasure of seeing John with a new look...he had a beanie on over his hair, but instead of pulling his hair back, he had it spiking out of the front and flipping up...it looked SO cute!!! I could just see him in the mirror going "hmmmn, this looks good!" lol Speaking of looking good...this was my first time seeing John bon Jovi up so close and although he has a great smile and I've thought he was cute, HE IS NO COMPARISON TO JOHN R ...tight pants, unbuttoned shirt and all! Also, this didn't get mentioned about Portland, but he had blinking lights on his shoes, hence the "I want your shoes" shout from someone in the audience to which John replied "You want my shoes?! ...they stink!" LMAO! Mr. Quick Witt. I'm pretty sure he was wearing his white tank top and camo pants, but I can't honestly say...I was just in lala land as always...lol. John didn't tell any stories...didn't really expect him to since they are on a time limit...and I'd rather hear as many songs as possible anyhow...but he did talk and say some amusing things here and there...like teasing Greg about getting a little too fancy with his guitar work...lol "You've got to caress the strings" LOL! Our highlight of the evening was after John finished with Dizzy, he said, "It's nice to see some familiar faces", and he gestuered toward us gals...thanks John...you've got a way of making someone feel all warm and fuzzy inside We met John a couple of nights before but didn't ask for autographs or pics...just didn't feel like the right time or place...but I got to give him some lyrics and poetry I wrote (yeah!) and Trac let him know we were going to the show It was a quick chance meeting, but he was as gracious as can be and even made sure he pronounced my name correctly What else...Oh! How can I forget!!! Since Robby wasn't there, I imagine John was workin' it a bit harder and singin' his ass off because when Jason got on the sax, John fell to his knees in front of him and leaned back...don't know if he was exhausted, or paying homage to Jason and his playing, or both...but, OMG, I was speachless!!! I took a couple pics of this and I'm prayin' they turned out John also gave props to BJ for having them open and mentioned how we all have got to stick together And before he left the stage, he held the microphone out the audience...and let us scream our butts off...it really didn't seem like he wanted to leave Trac mentioned that Bon Jovi had not played in Portland for 13 years...so, esentially, I feel really spoiled Goo wise here in the Northwest Thanks guys! I hope Gutterflower continues to do well as well as your next album...but that you can soon start living a normal life for a sustained and substantial amount of time...shit, two Goo shows and four days of non-stop driving were enough to leave ME exhausted and a little detached...so I can't even imagine how you must feel! God Bless to you all and thanks for the great music and fantastic performances...you truely do KICK SO MUCH F'N ASS!!