Watch Jon Bon Jovi Cover the Beatles’ ‘Here Comes the Sun’ for Biden Inauguration
Jon Bon Jovi contributed a pre-taped performance of the Beatles' George Harrison-penned Abbey Road classic "Here Comes the Sun" to Wednesday's (Jan. 20) Celebrating America primetime TV special. The show honored incoming President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Bon Jovi frontman's cover version was perfectly serviceable, and it sat nicely alongside appearances from Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen and others. But there's just something about the Jon Bon Jovi performance that gave some viewers a chuckle, as was evident on social media.
Watch the video down toward the bottom of this post.
The Tom Hanks-hosted Celebrating America aired across multiple television networks on Wednesday night, following Donald Trump's departure from the White House and Biden's subsequent inauguration as the 46th president of the United States. Additional performers included Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Demi Lovato, John Legend, Tim McGraw, a reunited New Radicals and more.
Bon Jovi's appearance was perhaps the most stylized of the bunch, save for Perry's grandiose fireworks display during her 2010 hit "Firework." Staged on a Miami pier, the footage of the Slippery When Wet rocker's Beatles cover begins at dawn, just before sunrise. As his "Here Comes the Sun" progresses, sunbeams slowly light up the sky before fully illuminating the singer and his four-piece band.
For all its cinematic beauty, however, the performance still engendered some snark in viewers tickled by its production, as The Wrap noted. Reactions ranged from comments about the performance's overall air — it "look[ed] like an ad for medication that helps lower cholesterol," said one Twitter observer — to remarks on the veteran rock singer's appearance: "Jon Bon Jovi putting out strong Bea Arthur vibes," offered another.
That's not to mention the juxtaposition of the overcast sky that draped Bon Jovi's jovial "Here Comes the Sun" rendition. See a handful of those silly Twitter comments right after the video.
Jon Bon Jovi - "Here Comes the Sun" (Celebrating America Performance)