Bon Jovi: Forever With Friends — An Album Review

Duets!

I’m an avid Bon Jovi fan.

Anything they release, I’m all over it. So, I got pretty excited when they released this lineup of artists working with them to create what chops up to be mostly a duet version of their album “Forever.”

Along with the official announcement of this album in late August, they released “Red, White & Jersey,” “The People’s House,” and “Hollow Man” as singles. “Living Proof” was released as a single closer to the album’s release.

Bon Jovi’s sound has evolved from the 1980s, when they were at the height of their power. They have managed to adapt to changing times and still pump out some big hits, so in a way, this can feel like just another attempt to immortalize the legacy of one of America’s most iconic bands.

With all the controversy over whether Jon Bon Jovi will still be able to sing after having surgery, it certainly felt like the end was near, but writing a new song for this album and being able to record it in “Red, White & Jersey” shows that maybe the train hasn’t left the station just yet for this band.

This album can be looked at the same way Happy Gilmore 2 (2025) was. While that film turned out well, it didn’t go unnoticed that Adam Sandler had a lot of friends looking to cash in on the legacy of an iconic movie. In fact, this album was marketed as Bon Jovi bringing friends along to reimagine the sound of these songs. You almost wonder what the motive really was. Was it to have a good time with friends and honour what could possibly be Bon Jovi’s final album? Or was it just another celebrity cash grab?

Intentions aside, they matched these artists with songs that complement their vocal style and sound. The War & Treaty, Bruce Springsteen, Jason Isbell, Avril Lavigne, and Ryan Tedder were among the most well-suited artists on their respective tracks.

The additional version of “We Made It Look Easy” featuring Carín León was interesting. Usually, when artists include a different song cut, it’s the de facto hit song, which would be “Legendary” or “Living Proof.” I’m sure they tried different songs from the album, with León singing in his language, and “We Made It Look Easy” sounded the best. That was the only true cover of a Bon Jovi song on this album, and his sound complemented the instrumentation so well.

Overall, I really enjoyed this album’s reinvention of these songs. It features many big names, so with a star-studded list of collaborators, you really can’t go wrong. I can only imagine how albums like “Slippery When Wet” or “New Jersey” would be, and who would be on them if they had duet versions.