"Dry County" is a song by Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi is an American rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi , guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald...

 from their 1992 album Keep the Faith

Keep the Faith

Keep the Faith is the fifth studio album by American rock band Bon Jovi, released on November 3, 1992 by Mercury Records. Keep the Faith represents the beginning of a new chapter in the history of Bon Jovi, which turned away from glam metal in favor of a more mature hard rock...

. It was written by Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...

. Dry County stands as the band's longest song released so far, with a length of 9 minutes 52 seconds. A shorter 6-minute version reached #9 in the UK Charts

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 and #1 in Latin America

Latin America

Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages  – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...

.

Lyrical interpretation

Dry County is about the decline of the US domestic oil industry and its effect on those whose income relied on it. In live versions of the song, during the build up to the second guitar solo, Jon Bon Jovi often includes a monologue about the struggles of life generally.

Song structure

Dry County is an epic ballad that contains several rises, climaxes, and instrumental solos, in the vein of such long rock epics as "Free Bird

Free Bird

"Free Bird" is a song by the American southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd...

", "Child in Time

Child in Time

"Child in Time" is a song by British hard rock band Deep Purple. Featured on their 1970 album Deep Purple in Rock, the song is 10 minutes and 18 seconds long.-History and characteristics:...

", "Stairway to Heaven

Stairway to Heaven

"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in late 1971. It was composed by guitarist Jimmy Page and vocalist Robert Plant for the band's untitled fourth studio album . The song, running eight minutes and two seconds, is composed of several sections, which...

", "I Want You (She's So Heavy)

I Want You (She's So Heavy)

"I Want You " is a song by The Beatles, from their album Abbey Road. It was written by John Lennon, although credited to Lennon–McCartney....

", "November Rain

November Rain

"November Rain" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, written by lead singer Axl Rose and released as a single in June 1992. It appears on the album Use Your Illusion I. The music video for this song was also released in 1992, and won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Cinematography...

" and "Jungleland

Jungleland

"Jungleland" is an almost ten-minute long closing song on Bruce Springsteen's 1975 album Born to Run, and tells a tale of love amid a backdrop of gang violence. It contains one of E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons' most recognizable solos...

".

Live Performances

Although Dry County is considered a fan favorite, it was played regularly only on the Keep the Faith and These Days tours. In fact, on May 13, 2006, when Bon Jovi played Dry County live on the first concert of the summer leg of their Have A Nice Day Tour

Have a Nice Day Tour

The Have a Nice Day Tour was a worldwide concert tour by American rock band Bon Jovi. It took place between November 2005 and July 2006 and commenced two months after the release of their ninth studio album Have a Nice Day....

 in Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...

, it was the first time it had been played live in 10 years, and went on to be performed on further occasions on that tour and on the band's more recent Lost Highway Tour

Lost Highway Tour

The Lost Highway Tour was a worldwide concert tour by American rock band Bon Jovi, that took place from October 2007 to July 2008 in support of their tenth studio album Lost Highway...

. The band's followers often display signs requesting the song. It was also included in the set list on the The Circle Tour

The Circle Tour

The Circle Tour is a worldwide concert tour by American rock band Bon Jovi. The arena leg of the tour has finished and the stadium run has begun, starting off in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and then heading to East Rutherford, New Jersey for the grand opening of New Meadowlands Stadium...

, at the opening of the New Meadowlands Stadium

New Meadowlands Stadium

MetLife Stadium is a stadium in the New York City Metropolitan Area, part of the MetLife Sports Complex, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It is the home of the New York Giants and New York Jets of the National Football League and is adjacent to the site of the former Giants Stadium, which was home...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

 on May 26, 2010, as well as the encore set list at Soldier Field

Soldier Field

Soldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in the Near South Side. It is home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...

, Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 on July 31, 2010 and Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

on October 3, 2010. Dry County was included in the first encore of Bon Jovi's sets in Old Trafford Cricket Ground, Manchester on June 24, 2011; Hyde Park, London on June 25, 2011; the RDS Arena, Dublin on June 29, 2011; Piata Constitutiei, Bucharest on July 10th, 2011 and Stadio Friuli (UD), Italy on July 17th, 2011.

UK release

CD 1:

1. "Dry County"
2. "Stranger In This Town (Live)"
3. "Blood Money (Live)"

CD 2:

1. Dry County [Live]
2. It's Only Rock n Roll [Live]
3. Waltzing Matilda [Live]