“Be
original. That's my best advice. You're going to find that there's something
that you do well, and try to do it with as much originality as you can, and
don't skimp on the words. Work on the words.”
– Bob Seger
Turning 70 today, Robert Clark “Bob” Seger continues to perform and record into his 6th decade, the
quintecential guitarist, pianist and singer-songwriter. The son
of a Ford autoworker, Seger reflects the American story, self-teaching himself the music that would ultimately lead to his
success, and enduring many years of ups and downs before settling in as one of
music’s icons.
His also is the story of
perserverance, just “knowing” that the songs he was writing eventually would catch
on. That finally happened in 1973 when his Silver Bullet Band – made up of other Detroit-area
musicians who jelled together with their hit
song “Night Moves.”
Seger also wrote
songs recorded by many other artists, but perhaps the most important was for
his friend Glenn Frey of the Eagles when he wrote their number one hit “Heartache
Tonight” from the award-winning album The
Long Run. That collaboration grew
out of the pair’s friendship dating back to the 1960s when both were literally
starving and struggling musicians on the Detroit scene.
That successful song with The Eagles
led to another massive hit for Seger and his own band, “Against the Wind,” the
anchor song on their number one album by the same name.
To hear some of Seger’s all-time
best songs, check out his 2011 double disc "Greatest Hits," which not
only includes those mentioned above but “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man” the terrific
“Like A Rock.” Seger has written hundreds of
songs over the years and has lyrics for dozens more. “I write a lot of songs people don’t hear,” he said. “I finish ‘em all. I don’t think there’s a whole lot of
difference between the bad ones and the good ones. I really just enjoy the writing process.”
Bob Seger
If you have a spare five minutes,
here’s a link to “Against the Wind.” Enjoy!
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