The Bert Show (Pionaire Podcasting)

Episode: Vault: Full Show PT 1: Friday, December 26 [Vault]

Date: December 26, 2025

Overview

This episode of The Bert Show (original airdate: December 26, 2025) offers a fun, lively, and candid ride through classic morning show topics—celebrity interviews, relationship stories, and relatable listener drama. The episode’s first part stands out for its extended interview with Jon Bon Jovi, where the rock legend talks legacy, humility, and longevity, and for an uproarious segment about a friend's catastrophic snoring problem, which blends humor and genuine empathy with listener call-ins.

Key Discussion Points

1. Reflecting on an Interview with Jon Bon Jovi (01:00–13:56)

• The hosts respond to emails suggesting Jon Bon Jovi came off as aloof in his previous appearance and debate whether he was tired or just a “cool rock star.” (01:00–01:24)
• The show replays a highlight interview with Jon Bon Jovi, including playful banter, career reflections, and personal insights.

Notable Insights:

• Bon Jovi on humility and imposter syndrome:
  • “Every day… you wrote songs that people liked and you continue to try to do that. And even at this point, you call radio and you talk to friends and you do what you gotta do. You tour, you pack up the suitcase, and you get out there and that's what it’s all about, really.” (03:00–03:26)
  • “There are days you guys are still insecure about your success?”
    “Every single day.” (03:26–03:28)
  • “I sat up there on that stage... and went, ‘Wow, why me? And is anybody gonna care?’... You sort of look over your shoulder and expect them to want to have given it to Bono, not Bon Jovi.” (03:31–03:52)
• Discussion on longevity in the music industry:
  • Bon Jovi expresses skepticism about the potential for any current bands to match their decades-long, 100-million-record career, citing changes in music consumption (e.g., downloads, streaming, and changing formats). (05:21–05:48)
• Band dynamics and surviving success:
  • “We were tired, but we never did [break up]. There was never a reason to break up... It was just, let’s clear our heads and do other things and then refocus on a new direction for the band. And fortunately for us, that new direction was Keep the Faith.” (05:56–06:46)
• Lighthearted banter about Jon’s “sex symbol” status and his relationship history:
  • “How do you answer while you say things like that? I’m gagging. So that can be interpreted as being bulimic, I guess.” (06:55–07:02)
  • “I’m Dorian Gray. I’ve got the painting in my attic.” (07:06–07:11)
  • On getting back together with his wife: “I knew a good deal when I had one. This was a lot better than playing that Hollyweird game. It wasn’t for me. I didn’t feel comfortable in that setting.” (08:19–08:28)
• Jeff Dollar, co-host and self-proclaimed megafan, nervously invites Jon out for dinner, resulting in playful teasing and a humorous agreement to share a beer when Jon’s in Atlanta. (08:53–10:57)
• Bon Jovi discusses their new retrospective album release with 50 tracks—many previously unreleased—and details how songs get selected for each project, noting the importance of capturing specific moments and themes in an album’s “story.” (11:01–13:40)
  • “Every album needs a beginning, a middle and an end… and then there’s periods in your life where you wrote a song that you said, well, this would have been great for the last record, but I’m past this now.” (11:58–12:25)

2. Hilarious Listener Drama: The Epic Snoring Story (16:03–28:04)

• Bert shares an extended and laugh-out-loud tale about his old college roommate and best friend, John, who is infamous for his thunderous snoring—a problem so severe his wife recorded it as evidence.
• Discussion blends audio of the snoring (met with gasps and jokes from the hosts) with listener calls sharing similar woes and remediation strategies.

Notable Moments:

• “It felt like I was gonna get phone calls from all the neighbors because the sound was so bad. And drunk snoring is always, I thought, worse than sober snoring.” (18:56–19:06)
• “Oh my God. That sounds like a sick cat.” (21:02, E)
• “If I heard that in my house, I would get a bat. I would get a bat. I would tell Jessica to call 911 and get in the closet and I would go looking.” (21:49, D)
• Listeners call in with their own war stories of snoring spouses, including a woman who retaliates by replaying snoring audio in her husband’s ear (23:03–23:26).
• Advice emerges: try Breathe Right strips (with mixed results) or see a doctor for assessment of sleep apnea, with one caller sharing their ex-husband’s successful transition to a CPAP machine (24:24–25:27).
• A medical professional clarifies that CPAP machines require a doctor’s order, and that severe snoring can be a sign of genuine medical issues (25:43–26:21).
• The group continues to riff with jokes while reiterating that persistent, severe snoring should be checked by a doctor, not simply endured (27:01–28:04).

Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps and Attribution)

• Jon Bon Jovi on humility:
  “The truth of the matter is you wrote songs that people liked and you continue to try to do that. And even at this point, you call radio and you talk to friends and you do what you gotta do.”
  — Jon Bon Jovi (03:00–03:26)

• On imposter syndrome in front of music peers:
  “You sort of look over your shoulder and expect them to want to have given it to Bono, not Bon Jovi.”
  — Jon Bon Jovi (03:46–03:52)

• On enduring success:
  “We were tired, but we never did [break up]. There was never a reason to break up... It was just, let’s clear our heads and do other things and then refocus on a new direction for the band.”
  — Jon Bon Jovi (05:56–06:46)

• Self-deprecating charm:
  “I’m Dorian Gray. I’ve got the painting in my attic.”
  — Jon Bon Jovi (07:06–07:11)

• On not being able to sleep with a snoring spouse:
  “I think I’ve told you guys this before. Like, the first year that they were married, they spent the night in separate rooms because she didn’t know how to handle the snoring.”
  — Bert (19:32–19:42)

• Listener on retaliation:
  “Every time he snores and wakes me up, I have to get up out of bed and I go push play and put it right in his ear and wake him up.”
  — Joy, caller (23:16–23:18)

• Medical caller on CPAP:
  “You can’t order a CPAP machine through the mail. It has to come through—be ordered by your doctor.”
  — Theresa, medical professional (25:43–25:51)

• On what it’s like hearing snoring that extreme:
  “Oh my God. That is unreal. I can’t believe that’s a human. Oh my God. That is gross. It’s gross. That is bizarre. No way.”
  — E (26:09–26:28)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Jon Bon Jovi Interview and Reflections: 01:00–13:56
• Snoring Story and Listener Call-ins: 16:03–28:04

Tone & Style

The episode blends humor, humility, and heartfelt conversation. The Bert Show’s signature is its authenticity, as hosts candidly share stories, rib one another, and invite honest listener engagement. Jon Bon Jovi’s appearance is marked by self-deprecating wit and openness about the pressures and routines of stardom, while the snoring segment pairs real marital issues with relatable laughs and earnest advice.

Summary for New Listeners

If you love a dynamic morning show that mixes celebrity interviews with genuine, laugh-out-loud personal stories, this episode of The Bert Show is classic. Hear Jon Bon Jovi open up about fame, self-doubt, and what keeps a rock band together through the decades before the team dives into a riotous segment about catastrophic snoring—a story that will make you grateful for ear plugs and understanding partners. It’s vintage Bert Show: real, funny, and just a little bit wild.