I had the same opinion of Michael Bolton, until Rhiannon8404 got free tickets to one of his shows (she was working in local radio at the time; she got lots of free tickets). We figured that we should at least get our money’s worth. I have to admit, he put on one *hell *of a show. I’m still not a particularly big fan, but I’d go see him on stage again.
Per the OP, I’ve always been a big fan of Bob Seger. We finally saw him in concert a few years ago; he was everything you’d expect (for good or bad, depending on your opinion of his music, I suppose), and I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone who seemed to be having as much fun on stage as he did.
I don’t care much for most of Seger’s material, but I really like “Night Moves”.
A friend of mine who’s a big Seger fan pointed out some interesting lyrics (which I usually don’t pay much attention to). E.g., “felt the lightning, waiting on the thunder” refers supposedly to the excitement of the youthful affair, followed by the lack of anything deeper. But years later, the coming of summer brings back the experience vividly.
I remember an article on Seger in one of those rock magazines (“Creem”? “Circus”?) around the time the song came out. He spoke very candidly about the song being “about the girl with big breasts who everyone flips out over at puberty”. She was way out of his league, but his being a musician raised his status, but only superficially. Hence the mismatch, and lack of “thunder”.
Rather than a brag of a sexual conquest, the song is humble, and nuanced.
A couple of years ago he put out a new album and did the talk show rounds. He came off as a genuinely nice person who genuinely loves playing music and loves his fans. My opinion of him went way up. He seemed like a guy I would like to hang out with.
Been nice knowing you, then. 
I’ve heard similar good things about Seger. He appeared on the Voice and sang one of his songs with a Finalist.
I keep hoping he comes back as a Guest advisor
I sure hate to hear he’s retiring. I always wanted to see him live…
This. (Although I have to part ways with you about Joni Mitchell, but that really needs another thread.)
“Night Moves” still resonates with me, though on the whole I’m a lot less fond of Seger than I was 30-40 years ago. “Old Time Rock N’ Roll” used to be fun, now it’s a rocker of one generation saying “get off my lawn” to the kids of the next, and the next, and the one after that. “Hollywood Nights” never made sense in the first place, but that fact got more annoying over time. “Turn the Page” (“All the same old cliches, ‘Is that a woman or a man?’”) didn’t resonate anymore as that era receded. Some songs ran out of listens* as classic rock stations played them into the ground, with some, the times changed, with some songs, I changed.
*A personal metric: the number of listens a song has in it is the number of times I can hear it before I get thoroughly tired of it. Sometimes I can see that number approaching from a ways off, and other times hitting that number surprises me, like the time I heard The Police’s “Synchronicity #2 (Many Miles Away)” on the radio, and hit the button to change the station almost before I realized I was doing it. I’d liked that song a lot, until right then. And suddenly it was out of listens.
[quote=“bobot, post:22, topic:829149”]
My favorite Bob Seger song is Motorhead’s cover of Thin Lizzy’s cover of Seger’s “Rosalie”
[/QUOTE]Dayum I like the cut of that takedown’s jib.
I’ll probably get pelted with tomatoes, but there’s a tune of his I don’t mind too much. I didn’t know the title, so I masochistically waded through the Youtube morass before finally alighting on what I guess is one of his ‘lesser’ hits:
“We’ve Got Tonight”
(surpised no supporters mentioned this one.)
Back in the day I remember (“I remember I remember I remember I remember”) a radio dj saying that Bob Seger had announced that if Elton John’s “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” does well on the charts, he (BS) will run around naked during the next Silverdome gig.
Too lazy now to bother to check, but I’ve been told that his early career material was quality stuff.
I wondered if anyone was going to watch that. 
IMO, “Night Moves” (the album and the song) were the pinnacle of Seger’s career. After that he seemed content to repeat the same strategy with diminishing results.
I went to college in Michigan in the mid-80s and knew several people who considered Seger as great as (if not greater than) Springsteen, Lennon, Browne, etc. One of them used to claim Seger was so authentic that he would never, ever allow one of his songs to be used in a commercial. I lost touch with him but always meant to needle him about “Like a Rock.” (But say this for Bob – if you’re gonna sell-out, selling one song to one company who uses it to death over 5-10 years is the way to do it.)
One more anecdote – there were a few Seger albums (Back in ‘72, Smokin’ OPs, maybe more) that were out of print at the time and impossible to find in Michigan. I’d pick them up in Chicago used record stores for $4 and flip them to Michigan fans for $20.
It did? I can still guarantee to hear it on certain stations, if the radio’s on for more than a few hours. :rolleyes:
:o
You’re going to hate me, but I didn’t click on the Mororhead link - I just simply liked the mention of a further-changed-around cover of yet another cover.
I’ve often thought Seger was underrated. I mean, I can remember a time when he wasn’t, but his reputation has dwindled in recent years. A lot of that comes from the fading popularity of “roots rock”, which I think is temporary. Eventually, he’ll become popular for a handful of his songs. “Night Moves”. “Old Time Rock n’ Roll”. “Turn the Page”. “Against the Wind”. A couple others.
so, today I went to the used record store to see if they had a copy of the album. As I get out of my car, I hear someone in the parking lot cranking Night Moves.
Later, at dinner, the restaurant radio is playing classic rock, and Night Moves comes on.
My friend says it was the Baader-Meinhof Effect, but I think it was just plain synchronicity.
Roll Me Away is my favorite from Seger. YouTube: Roll Me Away - YouTube
Especially so, because I ride. Also, it was the closing song in the movie, Reckless (1984). Wiki: Reckless (1984 film) - Wikipedia
Classic song.
In “Hollywood Nights” the sixteenth notes on the hihat (while the snare peppers in a flam or two every bar) is kinda neat.
And when he goes “OH!”, “AAA!” and “Oooooooooooo!” (that last one kicking off the “break” part) in that “Strut” number. 
I would place Bob Seger among other artists such as Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Billy Joel, the Eagles, and the Doobie Brothers, in the category that I’d loosely refer to as “dad rock”, i.e. if you are in your 30s, as I am, this is music that your dad probably listened to a lot. All of these artists have serious musical credentials and have earned their keep by tirelessly touring their asses off for decades, so I do not intend any snark at all by classifying them this way. It’s just a shorthand for placing them within the continuum of rock music as looked at from a contemporary standpoint.
Of that list, Seger IMO fits most closely with the Doobie Brothers, as Michael McDonald has a similar vocal delivery of “baritone voice singing above its natural register,” which results in a unique sound. I don’t view either of them as being poseurs or “phony blue-eyed soul”, I do think that their style is genuinely heartfelt, so they deserve props.
I don’t get the hate for “Turn the Page”. It has a semi-haunting melody that mimics the loneliness of the road, vocals that are perfect for the song, and a sweet sax intro and solo.
And, as pointed out upthread, it is not at all ‘rich rocker complaining about a life most of us would love to live’. It’s about a band struggling, touring from small town to small town (east of Omaha), riding 16 hours and wondering if it’s all worth it.
mmm
Two great blue collar rockers came out of the Detroit area.
Mitch Ryder and Bob Seger.
Interesting that they were born in the same year, 1945.
What, you don’t count Iggy Pop? (1947)
I forgot him.
My bad