Bon Jovi + James Bay @ Wembley Stadium, London 6th September 2026
Bon Jovi arrive at Wembley Stadium for the second of three nights, which close their campaign to promote their most recent album, Forever. In support, they bring James Bay, who, as far as I’m aware, is the only rock star to originate from the Hertfordshire town of Hitchin, which is probably not known as a hotbed of riotous rock ’n’ roll activity.
Including himself, James has a five-piece band we’re not introduced to, which he simply refers to as “the lads”. Although James has another guitarist in his band, on the opening song Up All Night he shows he’s more than capable of cranking out a mean solo himself. James and the band are a bit rockier than I was expecting, but also have something of a transatlantic feel, which I guess is what makes them a good support act for Bon Jovi. For much of the set, James alternates between a Gibson Les Paul Junior and a Gibson 335. Us has a piano intro and is piano-led, with James on a twelve-string acoustic. I must confess it’s a little AOR for my taste.
James switches to a six-string acoustic for Let It Go, which is another piano-led ballad. Again, this is a bit soft and commercial, but it does give James the opportunity to demonstrate his impressive falsetto. Things go up a gear or two for You and Me Time, which has a cool dual-guitar intro. James fingerpicks before peeling off a solo that simply oozes feel. Wanderlust is pokey and riff-driven, and reminds me somewhat of the original version of Here I Go Again by Whitesnake, before its ruinous re-recording for their 1987 album. This is probably the best song of the set. Best Fake Smile is lighter than Wanderlust. It’s positively fleet-footed, in fact. Set closer Hold Back the River is James’s big hit, and the bulk of the crowd sing along. I must confess that I think James has been punching above his weight somewhat here, but he’s done it with no little aplomb. In time he could headline at the Stadium, which is even better than playing at Hitchin Club 85, I expect.
James Bay has been a more than adequate appetiser for Bon Jovi, who, after a short introductory film, come onstage through sliding doors at the back as if they are just coming out of a lift. They look like a gang, in the best possible way. They kick things off with a cover of Joe Cocker’s cover of The Beatles’ With a Little Help from My Friends, which, dare I say, was far superior to The Beatles’ original. This version is pretty much faultless, with Jon Bon Jovi replicating Joe Cocker’s scream, which in itself is quite remarkable considering the vocal problems that he had a few years ago. Phil X’s guitar is equally impressive, which is quite something considering that the guitar solo on the original was played by one James Patrick Page.
Beautiful Drug sounds positively loose-limbed compared to the hard rock of With a Little Help from My Friends, and features some more stunning guitar work from Phil X. By We Weren’t Born to Follow it becomes clear that this is a stadium show that somehow makes you feel as if you’re part of the action. That’s certainly not something that I’ve ever experienced before. Maybe it’s because the video screens are really bright throughout the show, and the video coverage is excellent. Maybe it’s because the band members seem like ordinary blokes that you could bump into down the pub rather than rock stars. Also, they’re clearly having a really good time! They seem to be enjoying the gig every bit as much as the audience, making it feel more like a shared experience. Whatever it is, the gig feels very inclusive, as if there’s no barrier between band and audience. There’s visible audience participation too, and that participation spreads right to the back of the stadium. Live, the band rock far harder than I was expecting, too.
It being a Sunday, Jon Bon Jovi welcomes us to “communion with the magnificent seven” before the band rip into You Give Love a Bad Name. Most people who were sitting are now standing and bellowing along. There’s a howling guitar solo from Phil X in Born to Be My Baby, before James Bay is welcomed onstage for Legendary, which is the opening track from Bon Jovi’s most recent album, Forever. Is the song legendary? Possibly not, but it’s certainly good enough. There’s some cool dual lead guitar from Phil X and John Shanks.
Bed of Roses is clearly a crowd favourite, with most of the crowd turning their phone torches on. Back in the day it would have been cigarette lighters. Times change! Have a Nice Day rocks like hell. For this song, John Shanks is playing a Schecter Telecaster, which is not a guitar that you often see. Jon introduces the most recent additions to the band – most of whom have been involved with Bon Jovi as either session or touring musicians for many years: Everett Bradley on percussion and backing vocals, Hugh McDonald on bass, and the aforementioned Phil X and John Shanks on guitars.
This House Is Not for Sale is a song that should be far more well known. It has a real Springsteen feel about it, which is possibly not surprising as both he and Bon Jovi originate from New Jersey. Phil X slides his guitar down Jon’s mic stand before piling into an absolutely storming solo. Livin’ on a Prayer once again gets the masses singing, whilst Raise Your Hands is probably the hardest-rocking song of the set. Drummer Tico Torres starts off I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead. Jon is down at the front of the crowd communing with his people. Someone in the crowd has a sign reading “there’s no denyin’ David Bryan”. Jon takes it and hands it to the keyboard player.
Bassist Hugh McDonald is on a five-string bass for set closer Keep the Faith, which features some nice wah-wah guitar from Phil X. There’s some nice tom-tom work from Everett Bradley too. The band are offstage just long enough for Jon to change outfits. He’s wearing a “Bon Jovi Forever” denim jacket. Similar jackets are available from the Bon Jovi website should you wish to invest. The band go into I’ll Be There for You from New Jersey, which to me has always sounded an awful lot like a John Lennon song (it isn’t one). Then the classics Wanted Dead or Alive and Bad Medicine are fed to the faithful, before proceedings close with the piano-led ballad Always.
Despite their softer moments, Bon Jovi seem to be much more of a dirty rock ’n’ roll band than they used to be, which I think is very good news! They’ve also managed to make Wembley Stadium feel more like a club. The band have played for the best part of two and three-quarter hours, which, it has to be said, has flown by. If they played for another couple of hours, I’m sure nobody here would complain, although the local residents might! This has been a masterclass in how to play a stadium gig. Any bands about to play their first stadium show could do a lot worse than go to a Bon Jovi gig to see how it’s done.
WORDS: MARK KELLY PHOTOS: AS CREDITED
