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that’s disgusting!” I just keep blowing the snot out. The wardrobe girl’s underneath the stage holding up a Sudafed and I’m motioning for her to put the tablets on my tongue during the show.
    The show finally ramped up ‘cause the Sudafed kicked in.

     
Lost Highway tour, backstage pre-show, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
     

     
One Wild Night tour, Richie during pre-show warm-ups, San Jose Arena, San Jose, CA, April 23, 2001.
Cynthia Levine
     

     
One Wild Night tour, Jon during pre-show warm-ups, San Jose Arena, San Jose, CA, April 23, 2001.
Cynthia Levine
     
    JON: When you walk offstage, you’re a loon. You’re wired. You’re shaking and pouring things on yourself. You’ve got that “momma strength” that could flip a car if it fell on your kid. It’s an amazing amount of adrenaline surging through you.
    I like the arena aspect of touring in America. You stay after, warm down, take a shower, have a glass of wine and a bite to eat. The band talks. Everybody gets their moment to say what went right, what went wrong. You see your guests and you leave an hour later.
    In Europe, you do a runner. You race into the car. You’re stinky and sweaty. You don’t see the other guys and you speed away with police escorts. I hate the car trips. Some of the drives are so long. But you can’t do it any other way at a stadium. You’d be stuck on-site for hours.
    RICHIE: After the show, it’s a natural wind down. Normally, we gather for a little food and just kind of bring each other down that way. Then you sit in your hotel room until your ears stop ringing. After all these years, I’m half deaf. It’s an occupational hazard. I think I’m probably deafer than anybody in the band.
    JON: You give everything and then some. You sacrifice. I miss out on some of the self-indulgence. I don’t have as many personal days.
    In London, Richie hung with Jimmy Page, spent the whole day and night with his hero. Tico realized the dream of launching Rock Star Baby at Harrods with his son and wife by his side. Dave attended Wimbledon with his girlfriend and sat center court. I sat in my hotel room working on football business.

     
Cool-down, post-radio station promo performance, San Francisco, CA, April 22, 2001.
Cynthia Levine
     

     
One Wild Night tour, load in and stage build, March 2001.
Cynthia Levine
     

     
Lost Highway tour, post-show return to dressing room, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
     

     
Soundcheck, San Jose Arena, San Jose, CA, April 23, 2001.
Cynthia Levine
     

     
Lost Highway tour, Richie Sambora’s guitar rack under the stage, 2008.
Phil Griffin
     

     
Lost Highway tour, backstage image, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
     

     
Lost Highway tour, backstage image, XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, March 2008.
Phil Griffin
     
    JON: We gave out the first batch of medallions in 1987 in the Madison Square Garden backstage hallway during the Slippery When Wet tour. I’d had a dozen made for the band and management. I thought, at that time, if it all ended then and there, I’d give everybody a little something to remember just how big the Slippery tour was.
    The pendant was in the shape of the Superman logo, like my little tattoo, with the Slippery When Wet road sign inside. It’s gold and diamonds. They’re not inscribed. The original model is what it is and has never been improved upon. They’re made by a little secret guy in New York. You really can’t get one.
    People would ask me about it and I’d explain it was similar to Elvis’s TCB [Taking Care of Business]. People want them. They’d ask, “Can I have one?” No! We earned the right to wear one of these. This is something that we shared together. The man who taught me to play the guitar—I put mine in his coffin. I never got a replacement. Mine’s gone.
    You have to do at least two world tours start to finish before you get one. And each tour, ten,