The lead single from Bon Jovi's upcoming 'What About Now' album is as pop-friendly as anything the group has released. Bright production and a message of inspiration turn 'Because We Can' into a song mainstream radio may embrace like the latest 'American Idol' contestant. Fans of more authentic, grit-songs will need to keep digging. 

Three paragraphs of critic-speak may fully illustrate the problems 'Because We Can' never overcomes, but a summary would be more efficient: it's just too damn cheery. Idioms like "moving mountains" turn the song into every high school graduation speech you look forward to ending. One waits for the frontman to encourage us to "Fly like an eagle" because after all and never forget, "You can do anything you set your mind to."

"I don't wanna be another wave in the ocean / I am a rock not just another grain of sand (That's what I am) / Wanna be the one you run to when you need a shoulder / I ain't a soldier but I'm here to take a stand / Because we can," Jon Bon Jovi sings -- with help from the band -- during a hackneyed chorus.

The story told with each verse is more creative and relatable. Sure, this idea of two lovers working through troubles to find pleasure in life's simple moments isn't exactly new. But Bon Jovi's everyman vocal quality has a way of carving a unique diamond out of familiar stone.

"She's in the kitchen staring out the window / So tired of living life in black in white / Right now she's missing those technicolor kisses / When he turns down the lights," the singer shares during the first verse. Unfortunately it's the chorus and bridge that dominate.

"Our love can move a mountain / We can / If you believe in wings / We can / Just wrap your arms around me / We can / We can."

The song provides the title for Bon Jovi's 2013 world tour, set to begin in Quebec on Feb. 13. It should still be an exciting show as long as one remembers when the first chorus begins you "can" go get a beer.

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Listen to Bon Jovi's 'Because We Can'

 

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