May 7, 2007 — Next month, Bon Jovi unveils Lost Highway, the album the New Jersey rock band wrote and partially recorded in Nashville. Jon Bon Jovi has been coming to Nashville since 1991 and he tells The Tennessean that he thrives in the creative community of songwriters and musicians here.
"Everybody seemingly in this town is involved in the music business," he says. "I love that. I am not the freak like I am at home when you are the only guy who does what you do."
After the success of "Who Says You Can't Go Home," the No. 1 country duet with Jennifer Nettles, Jon thought the band should try more country collaborations. He and bandmate Richie Sambora stayed at the Hermitage Hotel in Nashville and immersed themselves in songwriting.
"We recorded and wrote and hung out in the bar," he says. "I need room service and I need a gym. When you walk into a hotel that leaves a legal notebook sitting on your desk and has writable CDs in the gift shop, you know you are in the right place."
Dann Huff and John Shanks produced album, due for release on June 19. "It's not a country album, but "a Bon Jovi record influenced by Nashville." Jon says, "It's not our trying to fool anybody into thinking we've gone country."
Sourced: Great American Country, www.gactv.com
