Bon Jovi, fresh off the release of its eighth album “Bounce” (Island), has set its first run of North American tour dates in support of the album. The trek begins with a Feb. 8 gig in State College, Pa., and will run through March 9 in Washington, D.C.; Goo Goo Dolls will support. Beforehand, Bon Jovi will hit Australia and Japan. A large slate of European stadium dates will follow in May and June.
Fans who purchased “Bounce” were rewarded with the opportunity to purchase tickets for the North American shows before the general public. Tickets go on sale through traditional outlets beginning Friday (Nov. 8).
The proprietary software enabling the ticket presale was the subject of a lawsuit last month. DownloadCard — which claims its has collected $235,000 in fees from Island parent Universal Music Group in the last year for promotions for Rusted Root, Musiq, Shelby Lynne, and others — said it owned the technology and generated the idea for the Bon Jovi promotion. The company attempted to block the release of “Bounce” but was denied an injunction in New York district court.
“Bounce” was released as planned last month and debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200, the highest debut in Bon Jovi’s 18-year chart career. The album’s first single, “Everyday,” peaked at No. 31 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Here are Bon Jovi’s North American dates:
Feb. 8: State College, Pa. (Bryce Jordan Center)
Feb. 10-11: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
Feb. 13: Atlanta (Philips Arena)
Feb. 14: Nashville (Gaylord Entertainment Center)
Feb. 16: Columbus, Ohio (Nationwide Arena)
Feb. 18: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace Of Auburn Hills)
Feb. 20: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Feb. 21: Montreal (Bell Centre)
Feb. 25: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
Feb. 27: Milwaukee (Bradley Center)
March 1: Chicago (United Center)
March 3: Albany, N.Y. (Pepsi Arena)
March 4: Boston (FleetCenter)
March 7: Philadelphia (First Union Center)
March 9: Washington, D.C. (MCI Center)
