Does anybody really fall for that?
 

Hey guys I ve been searching through thw forum for some sort of discussion about that but found nothing:

"Does anybody really fall in love anymore"

Why include such a bad (or incomplete, if you prefer) take of this song in the official Jersey Demos release?

especially since anyone with a little interest already has heard the awesome, passionate version that has been in circulation many years now.

It is a bit as if they are making a joke. I can speculate two cases:

1) They lost the original tape of the nice version of the song. Not very likely since other songs that had been leaked with that are indeed (same takes also) on the official release.

2) Jon didn't want this to become a sort of new underground hit, cause it is obvious he cannot sing it anymore.

What do you think? I was quite pissed when I heard this version on the official release.

There was a lot of discussion about it when the song was released.

To be honest, we don't know. I think it was Obie that said something got lost and that was the only version we had. Option 2 is too naive too look at it. We may love the song, it doesn't mean it'd become a hit if released in it's original formation. The whole re-release didn't sell all that well.

Personally i think we just got an alternate take.

The second theory is bullocks. There's a good dozen on that NJ deluxe edition that Jon cannot sing anymore; yet they're still there. Plus, there's no such a thing as "underground hit". If we're talking fan favorites, there are still at least 20 songs that fans are going to request to hear during concerts before they request any outtake.

Obie had confirmed that the leaked version didn't stem from the same take as many others and that it most likely had been recorded at some later point. And those master tapes don't seem to be available anymore.

Didn't Obie tell someone there had been a flood and some of the master tapes of some of their recording were destroyed?

I wrote to Obie back in 2014 on Facebook and he was kind of enough to answer me about this very matter.

"Good question. Here's the deal: I went back to the original 2" analog session tapes to listen to everything after the tapes were baked and transferred to digital format. Those vocals are not on the original demo session tapes so they were added at some point to the original demo mixes. I looked at all the tape from those demo sessions and could not find them. It was cool hearing those rough demos again. Thanks, Obie"

Mystery solved.

Fair. Thank you for your answers.

It still is a bit tragic though: someone who really digs this song knows that the proper recording on good quality simply does not exist. So we can hear how great the song is, but can't enjoy it fully.

Like watching a theater play with binoculars and walkie talkie. :-D

If you listen to the leaked version, it clearly has a more finished sound then the other songs... I think it was given to Cher because her version is a carbon copy and my conspiracy theory thinks that some of that version / tracks were even used in her final version. And that's why Obie doesn't have it and can use it, even if he did get his hands on it.

Ask him some other questions like "what happened to In America & Rosie" and "Does he have a soundboard of Cadillac Man"

There is an archive soundboard live recording of Cadillac Man from Hammersmith at least but he's stated more than once that there is no studio version sadly.

I like the rougher version to be honest, it's something different. The existing bootleg is adequate enough. It's a shame we couldn't have both but it's nice to hear something different with the song.

Rolo did a nice job completing the song by filling in the blanks with other verses... He used the Cher 'I Knows' and I took in one step further and mixed in Jon's 'I Knows' faintly...

Cher keeps the key but you could still hear Jon in the mix...

The entire thing came out better then I ever thought it would....

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A soundboard live recording would be awesome as well!

I think with enough pressure to Obie, we could eventually get it

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So, to conclude, you guys are generally between two different theories about why we don't have the nice version of the song. You agree that the song wasn't intentionally "hidden", but you give contradicting opinions about why the recording is missing.


1) Because the tape got destroyed by some flood or sth like that.

2) Because the tape was never there at the first place, since this song was an upgrading of the previous version, meant as a guide for Cher's recording, and Obie never had hold of the original tape for that.


And I add also that yes, it is nice to hear many different versions of a song, but the one which is cool and complete, is good to have in a descent sound quality, so it can be played in a more social context also, amongst other songs, and not only for personal listening.

No. One is a direct quote from Obie and the other is my conspiracy theory (as noted in my op)...

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Ok, still two theories that compete with each other.


Not so related but thought to put it here instead of the "anything thread":


Do we all agree that the lyrics of Backdoor to Heaven are hilarious??

That ****ing songtitle alone. It sounds like something Brian Johnson-era AC/DC would do.

Absolutely :D

What are you guys talking about? Backdoor to Heaven is my favorite BJ song of alltime, along with Bitter Wine :). I never get tired of these 2 songs.

Hmm.. The fact that the lyrics are ridiculusly funny (moreso when sung in this manner) doesn't mean the song is not nice. I like the orchestration and the performance a lot. And I do appreciate songs with a bit of sarcasm, that can be read at a second (deeper) level.

However since you put it side by side with Bitter Wine, which is a straightforward love/nostalgia ballad, I am not sure if you have understood the lyrics of Backdoor To Heaven.

Btw Bitter Wine is definetely on my top 5 bon jovi list. And it does have a clear sexual reference also, which is censored in many editions of the lyrics: "giving me head in that creeky old bed.." Also quite hilarious, but does not break the general serious melancholy of the song. Very nice :-)