Chad Taylor is with Patrick Dahlheimer and Chad Gracey.
July 11, 2026

With Bon Jovi returning to the stage, I’ve been thinking about one of the more unexpected moments of my career.

Around 1999, Jon Bon Jovi reached out to Patrick Dahlheimer, Chad Gracey and me with an unexpected question: would we be interested in serving as his studio band for a solo session?

I have to admit, the idea excited me. As musicians, we spend so much of our lives building our own identity that it’s easy to forget how rewarding it can be to step into someone else’s world and simply serve the songs. I would have loved the challenge.

Ed’s response: “No way. These are my guys.”

By then, the politics inside LIVE had already become too fractured. I don’t think he could have handled me producing outside projects, let alone working with Jon.
Our connection with Bon Jovi actually started years earlier. When “Keep the Faith” was released, every one of us looked at each other. We all heard echoes of “Pain Lies on the Riverside.” It felt less like coincidence and more like a tip of the hat from one band to another. We took it as a genuine compliment.

Life has a funny way of coming full circle.
Instead of making a record together, LIVE ended up joining Bon Jovi on a massive European stadium tour. Night after night we played to more than 80,000 people before finishing with an unforgettable finale in London’s Hyde Park.

What I’ll remember most wasn’t the size of the crowds.
Richie Sambora personally walked us to the stage almost every night to wish us well. Jon, Tico and Bryan were every bit as gracious and supportive. There was a genuine band-of-brothers feeling between a band from Pennsylvania and one from New Jersey.
As a kid, I never imagined we’d have anything in common beyond a love of music. Funny how music does that.

Welcome back, Bon Jovi.
And whether you’re a lifelong fan or not, you owe yourself the experience of hearing “Livin’ on a Prayer” in a packed stadium at least once. I promise you… it’s one of those songs that doesn’t just fill the air.
It rains down joy.

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