Las Vegas Weekly

April 27, 2009 · 1:28 PM

Photo Galleries: The Joint hosts Bon Jovi and Kenny Chesney

By Robin Leach

Kenny Chesney at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel on April 25.

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

Country superstar Kenny Chesney must be a secret rocker at heart because he came to town to catch Bon Jovi rocking in the new Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel the day before he was set to play there!

Kenny hung out with the New Jersey boys in the green room and even asked if he could have his photo taken with them! TV host and model Leann Tweeden was another backstage fan and visitor.

Bon Jovi kicked off the night with their big hits “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “You Give Love a Bad Name." The rock legends are well into their second decade of hits, having sold more than 120 million copies of their albums, and they still show no sign of slowing down even after 2,500 concerts in front of 32 million fans. Throughout the night, they kept the crowd on their feet with favorites including “Who Says You Can’t Go Home,” “Wanted Dead or Alive” and “It’s My Life.”

Our contributing photographers Tom Donoghue and Erik Kabik were on hand to capture this extraordinary photo gallery for Vegas DeLuxe readers. Click HERE for our Las Vegas Sun colleague Melissa Arseniuk’s review of the concert.

Following the high-energy concert, band mates Richie Sambora and David Bryan somehow managed to play blackjack among a crowd of adoring female fans as they sipped on water. A smart Hard Rock staffer played the group’s song “Bad Medicine” on the overhead speakers!

The Joint goes country

The next night, country king Kenny Chesney headlined his own Sun City Carnival 2009 Tour with Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum. Total up the three stars’ performances, and fans got a five-hour feast of the best of country music. No wonder Kenny was voted Entertainer of the Year by the Academy of Country Music for four consecutive years starting in 2005.

Click HERE for our Editor Don Chareunsy’s review of Kenny’s show. Contributing photographer Erik Kabik was back at The Joint for this gallery of Kenny singing for his supper!

Despite the long show, Kenny still found time to hit Ghostbar in the Palms with friends at a VIP table. Next stop was The Playboy Club to use his new key he was given during the ACM Awards visit. I’ve rarely seen Kenny ever photographed without that trademark black Stetson, but I do know he took it off at The Playboy Club once to reveal a neatly shorn head of no hair.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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