The Circle (Deluxe Edition) - Bon Jovi

After playing a nearly 100 date tour in support of 2007's Lost Highway album Bon Jovi had planned to take some time off for a well deserved rest. There was to be a greatest hits album and a live DVD but no new album from the guys. However when Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora got together to record a couple of new songs for the greatest hits record they found that the world's current economic and political climate inspired them to write enough songs for an entire album and so The Circle was born. Prior to its release Bon Jovi described The Circle as "uplifting" and a "big rock n roll record" after the country influences of Lost Highway and ...  Read the complete review

For those of you who don't already know I am a huge Bon Jovi fan, so I have been counting down the days to the release of their latest studio album 'The Circle'. At the end of their world tour last year, the idea had been for the band to take a well earned rest, and there was talk of them releasing a greatest hits album this year. However, feeling inspired by the economic crisis amongst other things, Jon Bon Jovi got together with guitarist and co-writer Richie Sambora and came up with around 28 new songs. They decided on a new studio album, the greatest hits album was shelved, and they began to work on the album which was definitely going to be a return ...  Read the complete review

After the carefree Have a Nice Day and the Country inspired Lost Highway, Bon Jovi return to the fold with The Circle; an album which combines the best of the previous two to create a fantastic set of tracks which have everything one could expect of a Bon Jovi record. When We Were Beautiful is a beautifully subtle track, and while it isn't a typical Bon Jovi ballad its cutting edge is perhaps typical of the rest of the album - something which has perhaps been missing from the previous two records. The album really is what you decide to make of it; for one I thoroughly enjoyed The Circle and hope it can reignite Bon Jovi in the future years to ...  Read the complete review