The initial eastern leg of the arena tour launches November 3 at Independence Arena inCharlotte, N.C., with 14 cities lined up so far. Tour organizers say additional dates will beannounced soon.

Playing larger arenas may seem like a bit of a risk for a rock band that hasn’t been heardfrom since 1995 and whose glory days are identified more with the1980s than the newmillennium.

But Bon Jovi’s reps must be heartened by the band’s reception overseas – which boastedsold-out stadium shows across Europe including one at the 40,000-seat RDS Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, onAugust 25.

The band’s sixth studio album, Crush, was released in June and has been certifiedplatinum with much help from their European push.

Produced by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and newcomer Luke Ebbin, Crush has soldmore than 5 million copies worldwide. The album features the single “It’s My Life,” which hasfound a place on MTV and VH-1 as well as radio.

The band will be featured on VH-1’s Storytellers September 22, and will be the subject ofFan Club, a new program on the video channel focusing on die-hard fans.