- Seger Live!
- A special section of The Seger File.
- Updated December 18, 2006
- Written and edited by Scott Sparling
- sparling@segerfile.com
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Seger delivers the memories that make us all wealthy souls. Oh man, oh man, oh man, oh man, oh man! My head's still swirling. Just what is it, anway, what's the deal here -- what's the crazy secret behind that voice and smile....I mean, what does he do, exactly, when he does what he does, that makes me feel so damn alive? Because after all the words I've written, after all the hours I've spent listening to his music, all the years spent working on this site, I still don't understand how Seger makes me feel so...so freaking here. So happy and so absolutely alive. So ready to hug people I don't even know. And guess what? I don't want to know. I don't really care how he does it. I just want more, and more, and more. Now, finally, that's
exactly what we're getting.
It's possible to get so excited, so tight, so buzzed with excitement that you almost need someone to slap you before you can enjoy yourself. And that was me at 8:40 in the Van Andel. It started with the trucks. The beautiful and huge Face the Promise trucks. Not tucked away in the loading dock but parked out where people couldn't miss 'em, like twin sentinals that said This Is Seger Country. Man, was it ever. We wandered into the box office around 4:00 as vendors were setting up the merch booth. As we were checking out the t-shirts, Alto Reed's muffled saxophone sounded the first plaintive notes of "Turn the Page." By the time Seger began his vocal, I was stunned. We were hearing Seger live! Albeit, very muffled. But the band was in the building, doing the sound check. The excitement just built at the Segernet party across the street. People whose posts I've been reading for years were gathered there. It was like a mini Seger Convention, with two of the three biggest Seger websites represented in one room (Kevin: We missed you!). Segernet founder Eric Verona was celebrating his birthday, and he bought me something that tasted like a beer, and for the first time, we all traded stories without having to hit "Post" or "Send." It was a blast...and then it was time. And what happens is you sit there, waiting for the moment. Waiting for the lights to dim. The PA system played a song that seemed to have "Heavy Music" sampled into it in places, and then Dylan's "Things Have Changed" rang out and it felt like we were getting close. And then Thin Lizzy burst out, and the crowd just took its feet. Someone turned the PA up and Phil Lynott's terrific vocal filled the arena with the absolute perfect intro: "Guess who just got back today? Them wild-eyed boys that been away!" and then Seger was on the stage and the crowd was shouting and shouting and shouting, and from that moment on we never sat down, and we never stopped moving and we never stopped smiling. It was here. Seger! "Roll Me Away" I expected. "Tryin' to Live My Life Without You" surprised me. "Wreck this Heart" may have done damage to my shoulder ligaments because my fist wouldn't stay out of the air. "Mainstreet" slowed it down. And the next song caught me totally by surprise and right between the eyes.
Those songs were good, but now they're done. In fact, before the show, I had a short phone conversation with journalist Rick Coates whose interview with Seger was published last week in the Northern Express. Rick said The Who were playing mainly their new album in concert, and that it wasn't working. He felt Seger should take heed and be sure to play the hits. I wasn't completely convinced. I mean, I love Face the Promise. But then came the Van Andel show and I realized how wrong I was. When "Mainstreet" was over, Seger said, "God, I hope you remember this one, I really do." And then -- knock me down and slap me senseless -- he hit us with "Old Time Rock & Roll." And it never sounded so good, or so fresh, or so joyous. So help me, I couldn't get enough. That song does something to an arena that is simply out of this world. After that, for me, it was like the valves were open and pure Seger was pouring in. When "Old Time" was done, Seger said, "That's only 20 percent of the show!" and joked, "We've been practicing for five and half weeks, and my wife said, 'When are you going to do a whole show?' And I said, 'Grand Rapids!'"
"No Matter Who You Are" was a delight. I remember "Betty Lou's Getting Out Tonight" working great in the 86-87 tour and in the '96 tour and it worked great here too. "We've Got Tonight" was my beer break. Sorry, I know it's a wonderful song. Maybe for you it's the best song Seger's ever written. I probably should have stayed and listened because the beer cost $7.75. And then "Turn the Page," and then, for me, the highlight. If you had told me, before the show, that something off Live Bullet would be the highlight, I would have smiled politely and mentally reclassified you as insane. Turns out, I'm the crazy one. Because "Travellin' Man/Beautiful Loser" was just plain otherworldly. It was amazing. It wasn't a highlight of the concert, it was a highlight of life. At the end, you've got 12,000 people singing along to Beautiful Loser and sorry for the big word but it's absolutely transcendent. Only in Michigan. Only in Paradise. Only with Bob Seger. And then after that, when you're already reeling, the night's monster groove just slams you. I wrote in my review of Face the Promise that "Between" was a beast that only comes out at night...meaning it seemed to be a song that sounds best after sundown. True dat. But after sundown, live, in an arena full of people. It's freaking unstopable. My friend TL said it was the best song of the night. "C'est La Vie (You Never Can Tell)" was a Chuck Berry treat. When it was done, Seger did just what I had been hoping he'd do. They brought out some stools and the band members lined up next to him as he sat in a chair for a soulful version of "Answer's in the Question" featuring Laura Creamer. It wasn't quite Seger Unplugged, but it was as intimate as you can get in a 12,000 seat arena. I loved it. And I loved his next choice even more. In the same casual setting, Seger did "Sightseeing" describing it as "a song I wrote for my wife 17 years ago." He told about seeing a painting and weaving in some politics in an intro that was totally unrehearsed and real. (In contrast to Steve Azar, the opening act. Azar was good, but you just know his song intros are word for word the same in every show. The intros are part of the performance, whereas with Seger, he's simply talking to you, and it feels so much more personal.) "Sunspot Baby" was great and actually featured a kind of light show. (It reminded me, however, that Seger never really answered the only question I've put to him in the last 20 years, which is "Why 'Sunspot?'" Why not SunBurnt or SunDown or Sunday or whatever? So I was distracted for a moment.) The final five songs, I'm surprised to see now, were exactly the same as the final five songs from his 1996 show in Portland, Oregon. Nevertheless, "Katmandu" caught me completely off guard and practically sent me into the stratosphere. It was brilliant. What can I say about the encores? You're already in a frenzy at that point. There was no "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man." No Kid Rock and "Real Mean Bottle." No "2 + 2 = ?" No "Lucifer" and no "Like A Rock." But there was no disapointment either. The band was great, the night was rocking. This was Seger at his most joyous, at his best. There's more I could say. But it's my last day in Northern Michigan for another year and the sunlight's fading. And anyway, you know what I mean. If you're reading this, chances are you're seeing some shows. Let me know what you think. And prepare to be stunned. November 11,
2006
'It's great to be back!' Seger says Seger Nation reconvened -- it only took 11 years, but it's as if 1975 at Cobo Hall was just yesterday. People scarfed down too many beers, slow-danced at inappropriate times, and you even saw grandmotherly types try to scoot past security. It was all for the man of the moment, Bob Seger, who kicked off his first tour in 11 years here at Van Andel Arena. It was a warm, nostalgic set but most important, Seger seemed at ease and loose, even dancing more than we remember him doing back in the day. There was an appropriate musical introduction -- Thin Lizzy's "The Boys are Back in Town" burst from the loudspeakers -- then at 8:45 p.m. Seger and the Silver Bullet Band took the stage, opening with "Roll Me Away." Seger's voice and wind were a worry; at 61 he practiced all summer to make sure he could last for two-plus hours. The good news is, his voice sounded rich, deep and burnished, but without the signs of wear he's shown at times in the last few years. Whatever he's doing -- Throat Coat tea? -- he had the old Cobo Hall roar back. He did complain more than a few times about being out of breath. During "Rock and Roll Never Forgets," he sang the lyric as "Now sweet 16's turned SIXTY-ONE!" shaking his head and laughing as the crowd roared. At one point he said he'd been practicing for five weeks, and his wife asked, "When are you going to do a whole show?" "Grand Rapids?" he said, laughing. The crowd cheered. "It's great to be back!" Seger said right before launching into the old Memphis tune, Otis Clay's "Trying to Live My Life Without You," which the Motor City Horns augmented perfectly. Many of us were hoping to hear "Rambling, Gambling Man" -- we don't often get to hear any '60s vintage Seger -- but instead he reached back to Chuck Berry's "You Never Can Tell" and encored on "Katmandu," "Night Moves," Hollywood Nights" and "Against the Wind."
Seger's tour kickoff is a welcome return It's not always simple finding the magic in rock and roll these days. Sometimes you have to look hard, digging through a swamp of soundalike newcomers, fashionable phonies and retread oldies acts. Once in a while, though, the moments still come easy. Bob Seger made it that way on an emotionally charged evening at Van Andel Arena, sounding strong and looking upbeat as he underlined his iconic home state status for more than 12,000 high-spirited fans. On the opening night of a tour that will take him across the country, the 61-year-old Detroit native tapped deep wells of nostalgia without lapsing into schmaltz in a 2-hour, 15-minute show that ended with a two-encore bang. It was an evening that felt easygoing but purposeful, a comeback that felt triumphant. Michigan hadn't seen him like this in a while. A decade ago, Seger stepped off the Pine Knob stage and walked into full-time family life. For the next several years, he was absent from the rock world he'd inhabited since the mid-'60s, bunkering down to raise a son and daughter. Seger traditionally has opened his tours in out-of-the-way markets, and with Grand Rapids he had a cozy corner -- a friendly audience on familiar turf. At Van Andel, where tickets had sold out in six minutes, it was the sort of night destined to be special no matter how Seger sounded, as fans arrived with their ragged old concert shirts and untattered loyalty. Casual in blue jeans and a black T-shirt, silver hair gleaming under the spotlight, Seger opened with a soaring "Roll Me Away." If there were nerves, they didn't show; he looked loose and assured on the no-frills stage, pumping his fists and grinning as he shot thumbs-up at his audience. With a polished Silver Bullet Band he delivered an eclectic set list -- classic hits laced with offbeat selections ("You Never Can Tell") and party faves ("Old Time Rock and Roll," "Betty Lou's Getting Out Tonight"). The show sagged only during a stretch of new material -- he could ditch the plodding "Simplicity" and help the cause. Soaked in sweat by the set's third song, the pumping "Wreck This Heart," he joked about his stamina during frequent loose, amiable banter between songs. Seger is a heavy smoker who just two months ago confessed genuine anxiety about the state of his voice. But although he'll never again sound like the 30-year-old whose raw roar could propel him to the edge of rock abandon on "Live Bullet," he was rugged and robust Wednesday night, revealing a voice that sounded burnished by the years rather than corroded by them. It's a lengthy tour road ahead for Seger, whose real test will come as he moves into the guts of the tour, with shows every other night. But Wednesday night was a firm push off the starting ramp, a solid blast of momentum as he heads to Saginaw on Friday and back to Grand Rapids on Sunday. It was also a big reminder why, in Michigan at least, Seger is far more than just another old rocker hitting the road.
SAGINAW -- There's a line in "Old Time Rock & Roll," Bob Seger's ubiquitous jukebox staple, that goes: "Call me a relic, call me what you will/Say I'm old fashioned, say I'm over the hill." You can call him all of those things. He's never been one to follow trends or add commercially expedient elements to his soulful mix of blues- and R&B-flavored rock 'n' roll. Just don't call him irrelevant or past his prime. The Detroit rock legend may be long in the tooth, but he still knows how to get the job done, or as one sign in Friday's Dow Event Center Arena crowd proclaimed simply, "Still damn good." Judging from the almost spiritual connection he made with a sell-out crowd of 6,600 singing, clapping, roaring, chanting fans, he's still very relevant to folks around in his backyard. He's still vital to folks all over the country, too, even though he disappeared for 10 years. New album "Face the Promise" has sold nearly half a million copies. The tour, which launched to a full house Wednesday in Grand Rapids (where it returns Sunday night), is expected to play to big crowds around the country through the winter. And you've got a love a guy who doesn't try hide his age. With his gray hair and beard, glasses, headbands, floppy black t-shirt (the better to hide his paunch) and jeans, Seger looked more like an incognito Santa than a heartland rock icon. But his earthy honesty has always been a big part of his everyman appeal. At this stage of his life, with a loving wife and two kids, Seger has found the love, freedom and happiness he sought when he wrote all those great soul-searching anthems in his '70s and '80s heyday, songs like "Turn the Page" and "Against the Wind" that sound just as fresh today as they did then. Looking more animated, sounding more confident and not as winded as he was Wednesday, Seger was like a kid in a candy store in Saginaw, one of the many cities on this side of the state that watched him grow up on stage. He hasn't performed here in over two decades, but it was obvious from Friday's show that he has not lost that personal connection. The crowd -- which quickly warmed to opener Steve Azar's appealing mix of country, rock and blues -- sang loudly and with great conviction on many of the songs they came to hear, songs that have been part of their personal soundtracks -- "Mainstreet" (about his days on Ann Street in Ann Arbor), "Turn the Page" (the essential road anthem where the former autoworker admits, "here I go/Playin' star again"), "Night Moves" (about awkward teens' sexual awakenings), "Hollywood Nights" (the tale of a misplaced Midwesterner feeling out of his element) and "Rock and Roll Never Forgets" (a celebration of music as social connective tissue and a fitting show closer). The fans, a mix of young and old, sang so loudly, in fact, that they nearly drowned out their hero. That's all right. Seger's lost none of the grit of his voice, but he has lost the high-end of it, something he seems to be negotiating nightly. Letting the crowd sing the hard parts was a big part of the fun of the show Friday. The audience served as an unofficial member of Seger's Silver Bullet Band, which packed plenty of wallop on its own Friday. With opening night distractions out of the way, the Bullets were more comfortable and played harder Friday. They've also gotten bigger, with core members Chris Campbell (bass), crowd-pleasing showman saxman Alto Reed and former Flintite Craig Frost, the ex-Grand Funk Railroad keyboardist, joined by 11 other musicians. They include an underutilized four-man horn section, three female backup singers (longtimer Laura Creamer dueted with Seger on the new country-tinged ballad "The Answer's in the Question"), the snarling guitar tandem of Seger vet Mark Chatfield and Nashville newcomer Jim "Moose" Brown and the welcome return of Grand Funk drummer and former Flintite Don Brewer. His muscular style is a perfect fit for Seger's escapist blue collar blowouts, like "Travelin' Man" and "Katmandu," and he seemed especially pumped to play so close to home. Friday's performance -- the second of the tour -- was hampered by occasional technical problems and mistakes. Seger flubbed a few lines here and there. His vocals and the band's various instruments seemed at times to disappear and reappear in the mix. But he shrugged it off with a laugh. When his guitar tech brought out the wrong instrument not once, but twice, Seger joked that the techie was going to commit suicide because "he never makes a mistake." When the song got off to a disjointed start, Seger cracked: "This one's cursed tonight." There was also a curiously short 10-minute intermission at the halfway point, something he didn't do Wednesday. Seger admitted with some embarrassment that he sweated so profusely in Grand Rapids that he unsuccessfully tried to change his shirt during a song. The break was added Friday to give him time to make a quick change, but it was disruptive. It might make more sense to either extend the intermission -- so fans can scramble back to their seats on time -- or let the band extend the instrumental section of "Travelin' Man" long enough for him to throw on a dry shirt. The set list is a work in progress. Seger has built in two segments where he can sit and sing, both of which are musically rewarding, especially his ominous vocal on "Turn the Page," accompanying himself on grand piano. A two-song acoustic section is a nice touch, but might work better if another songs was added (perhaps the lovely "The Long Goodbye" or "You'll Accomp'ny Me"?) and the whole thing exchanged places with the piano songs at the middle of the set. Seger wisely trimmed a grouping of four new songs to three, moving the overly repetitious "Simplicity" back in the set (newbie "Are You" would work better and show off Shaun Murphy's soulful vocal gifts). He also traded out the environmentally conscious "Between" for the anti-war "No More," which would be a nice addition to the acoustic segment.
One reporter's journey with Bob Seger Off to Saginaw for Seger's second tour stop in the Dow Event Center, half the size of Van Andel. Clearly, Seger doesn't have to play the 6,600-seat ice arena, but I figure this whole blue-collar approach is a reward to diehard fans in corners of the state where he first rattled the rafters nearly 40 years ago. And boy, are these 40- and 50-somethings grateful their hero in, yes, the black T-shirt, faded jeans and headband, is back. They raise beer cups and scream their lungs out for more than two hours. Seger has changed things since opening night: He's dropped two songs from the new album, added one, the anti-war "No More," and tossed in a smokin' rendition of "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man." Oh, there are still a few missteps, mismixes and vocal stumbles, but it's a better-paced show, and the Silver Bullet Band is livelier and more relaxed. "Turn the Page," "Horizontal Bop" and "Hollywood Nights" have become emotionally charged highlights. Seger also takes an eight-minute intermission, explaining apologetically that he discovered in Grand Rapids he didn't have time to change his shirt. "It's kind of embarrassing. I got so wet. I was so sweaty," he confesses. So what's he wearing when he re-emerges? A black T-shirt.
Okay. It's been 40 years since Bob Seger, Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame inductee and one of the last icons still standing from the 'Golden Age' of Michigan Rock 'n Roll, paired those poetic opening lyrics to a perfect fuzz-toned riff on his first Cameo-Parkway single back in January, 1966. Needless to say, a lot of Hollywood Nights (not to mention those spent on Main Street) have come and gone over four decades. But as I stand at the Dow Event Center and watch a 61-year old Seger take to the stage for a record-breaking sell-out show, I can't help but think about the litany of great songs that he penned from 1966 - '76, and how many of the best (Heavy Music, Ivory, Down Home, Lucifer) are conspicuously absent from the set. Perhaps its because they were written at a time when Seger, for all ostensible purposes, was neither rich nor that famous. Though he had a breakout national hit with Ramblin' Gamblin Man in February, 1968, his great follow-up albums (Noah, Mongrel, Smokin' O.P's) pretty much failed to crack out of the regional market. Indeed, it wasn't until Beautiful Loser that Seger started gaining national attention again; and it took Live Bullet (which ironically followed the same formula that Peter Frampton did in terms of releasing his strongest overlooked studio gems in the context of a 'Live Concert Album!') that Seger truly started riding that silver bullet to riches & stardom. So (he probably figures) why perform anything edgy from the days of the Seger System, when he has such bankable hits as Old Time Rock 'n Roll, Turn the Page, and We've Got the Night to pay the heating bill and pay for the renovations on that home up at Harbor Springs. Not to say this material isn't good, but to me it epitomizes a period where Seger, tired of floundering in regional esteem and paying his dues in countless obscure club dates, decided to follow the model of the fast food industry. After all, true art may be incendiary, inspiring, and life defining; but you don't sell a lot of Chevrolets with it. While I am not one to criticize anybody for appealing and reaching out to a larger demographic; in essence, witnessing Bob Seger back in energetic form after an almost 20-year absence from live performance focused my thoughts on this issue: the distinction between artistic and commercial success, whether or not they are mutually exclusive, or could they be balanced without suffering the dullness of compromise. Actually, I wanted to ask Seger these very questions, however our much-requested interview was not to materialize. "We're waiting for the okay from Punch Andrews (Seger's manager) as to when he can start talking to the press again," I was told. Personally, I think it has something to do with that article I did on Kid Rock four years ago, when his ex-guitarist informed me that Kid would put apple juice into an empty bottle of Southern Comfort before going on stage, that clinched the deal. (Kid Rock and Seger share the same management, you see). In a recent interview with Rick Coates in the Northern Express Seger revealed that he presently has "700 songs in the 'vault' with 300 recorded." " One of these days I'm going to have to take the time and play all these tapes and hope they don't fall apart. I have had this vision of creating an album called 'Everything' and release 60 songs at once," Seger reveals. Obviously, Seger has not been whiling away all his hours sailing the Port Huron to Mackinac race and attending Pistons games over the past decade. As for the concert itself, I'll leave it to Bo White to describe, as he did quite insightfully in his recent blog on whitesbar.com "Like the zombies in the Night of the living Dead flick, people were voraciously devouring memories - mindlessly gnawing on the bloody corpse of the Seger catalog. Singing each lyric at the top of their ragged lungs in honor to the high priest of working class rock' n roll. Bob Seger - who finally got off his yacht, squeezed on a pair of over-sized black denims, did a coupla sit-ups, gargled with warm salt water, and prepared to rock the house down." "No matter that Seger's range had narrowed considerably through the years, he STILL rocked. Hell, the old fart had more energy than any one of the old used-up boomers wearing Seger tee's from '78 and drinking $9 beer. Yep, we were quite a sight. And Seger·.well, he leaped, hopped and ran across the stage like a mongoose chasin' a snake." "Seger opened with Roll Me Away and then proceeded to dust off one classic after another·Turn the Page, Mainstreet, We've Got Tonight, Beautiful Loser·almost hitting the notes and goin' flat when you cold hear him. But it was with his new songs from Face the Promise where he really hit his mark. Wreck My Heart, Wait for Me, Simplicity, No More - that's who he is now and that's how he sounds today." "It took guts to lay so many new songs to an audience that worships the past and yearns for its lost youth, but Seger pulled it off - with humility and charm." "He also performed crowd pleasers such as Hollywood Nights and Against the Wind, bonafide top-ten hits that signaled Seger's artistic decline. Don't get me wrong, I love Bob Seger and I was grateful to see him one more time. And I'm glad I got it out of my system."
Barbara Payton is a musical force of nature, and hence possesses all the elements essential to go places in Rock 'n Roll. A fiery, lean, lanky redhead with a powerful and nuanced laden voice reminiscent of Janis Joplin genetically spliced to Bette Midler, the first time I became aware of Payton was six years ago through her work with Stewart Francke. Payton was performing as a back-up singer in Stewart's band, and opened his CD release party at The Magic Bag in Detroit with a set of her own hard-rocking brand of Roadhouse R&B. Needless to say, I was blown away, as few artists command a stage with such an unabashed display of timing, energy, and release. Attired in jeans and a designer sheepskin coat, Payton wielded the microphone around like Rod Stewart back in his Faces days, yet could reach into soul stirring depths on quieter ballads in a cabaret style reminiscent of the poignant, breathless delivery of Midler, and even Liza Minnelli (if the Pet Shop Boys were at the helm). A definitive force on the Detroit music scene for close to two decades, Payton has two original cd's already under her belt, Walk on Water and Enjoy the View, that fully showcase the tapestry and textures of her music - deeply honest, immensely heartfelt, and brimming with raw energy. So it should not be surprising that when Bob Seger began making plans for his first major tour in well over a decade, he would tap upon Barb Payton to join the backing vocal line-up of Laura Creamer and Shaun Murphy in the 2006 incarnation of Seger's Silver Bullet Band. Recently I caught up with Payton for a brief interview, as she was caught in an ice storm in Chicago in-between gigs on Seger's current sold-out comeback tour. Review: Please discuss your background in music, so readers have a sense of who you are. When did you first get interested in music and what type of projects have you focused upon? Payton: Music was always a pivotal part of my upbringing due to the fact that my parents are both retired music teachers. I started singing very early on in the church choir and then I began playing an instrument as well. As far as my becoming focused upon projects in the vein of music, that didn't happen until much later. I simply enjoyed singing and only seemed to fantasize about taking my craft seriously, however once I let go of the fantasy and decided to form my own band (talk about bringing you down to reality) the rewards of doing so greatly outweighed living in a fantasy. All that being said, the next project I will focus on will be to release another cd. Review: How did you manage to get the gig with the Silver Bullet Band? Payton: I know several people that work for Bob and they encouraged his manager Punch Andrews to come out and hear me sing. We became friends and since then he has been instrumental in opening several doors for me to some of my most memorable musical experiences. Review: Had you been a big fan of Bob Seger prior to auditioning? Payton: Absolutely! Review: What is it like embarking upon a tour of this magnitude and caliber? Is it daunting to perform in front of so many sold-out audiences and what does such an experience feel like? Payton: I'm not sure that I can even describe it accurately. Surreal would be one word that comes to mind. I'd also say that it has been life changing in the most amazing way. To answer your question "is it daunting to perform to so many sold out audiences" hell yes! Review: Personally and professionally, what are the most challenging components about touring with Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band? Payton: Professionally I'd have to say that it was learning all my parts and trying my best every time to nail them. I have a newfound respect for anyone who has ever sang backups. Laura Creamer & Shaun Murphy are two of the most gifted singers that I have ever had the pleasure and honor of working with. Personally I'd have to say that it's adjusting to the road and being away from my family and friends. Review: Do you notice, or have you been able to assess, any differences in working with Bob as opposed to other artists or musicians you have worked with in the past? Ancillary question: What are you learning from this? Payton: I can't make a comparison because I've never worked with someone of this magnitude before. I will say that I am learning more than I ever could have imagined I would, personally and professionally. Review: What are your favorite Bob Seger songs? Payton: How do you pick just a few from such a vast and amazing catalog? Okay, if I have to then it would be Ramblin Gamblin Man, Beautiful Loser, "We've Got Tonight" and Travelin Man. Review: Are you involved much, as part of the band, with selection of songs for the set list and do the shows vary much? Seger has such a huge catalog of great material that I'm curious as to how these decisions are derived? Payton: No. He has all the artistic control over the song choices at every rehearsal, as he should. Review: Are there any experiences from the tour thus far that truly stand out in your mind? Payton: Yes·and I can't share them with you. Okay, I can tell you that I will never forget the first time I stepped out onto that stage and heard the roar of the crowd! When the lights came up and I saw how many people were there, I thought I might faint. Review: How long will you be touring and what are your plans after the tour? Payton: It looks as though the tour may end sometime in March, but don't hold me to that. After the tour I plan on
going back to my music and writing some new songs with some
of my band members for the next cd. Of course I'll play out
live as well, because I just love singing, especially with
the great groups of guys that I work with!
Photos by David Boyle. Click on the thumbnails for a larger image.
Only an earthy guy like Bob Seger can make the rock star in "Turn the Page" a real mensch, a sympathetic character for millions of fans who've never stood in the spotlight or felt the roar of an adoring audience. And only Seger -- a decade removed from his last tour with gray hair and ubiquitous spectacles to prove it -- could make lyrics from that 1973 song seem more powerful and more fitting now than ever: "Here I am, on the road again; there I am, up on the stage; here I go, playin' star again; there I go, turn the page." With Van Andel Arena's exuberant sell-out crowd of 12,500 singing every word of that classic on Sunday night, Seger turned another page in his much-hyped return, unleashing the first bona fide spinetingler of his five-day-old tour. Recovering from early microphone glitches, Seger and his lovable Silver Bullet Band let loose their strongest performance yet of the three concerts they've delivered since opening in Grand Rapids on Wednesday. They did it by streamlining their set list and injecting boundless energy -- thanks mostly to guitarist Mark Chatfield and sax whiz Alto Reed -- into rollicking Seger favorites such as "Horizontal Bop" and "Travelin' Man." Seger, 61, did his part by displaying his most robust vocals to date and exhibiting sheer glee, hugging bandmates and grinning broadly at the raucous crowd. "Now, we're settling into the show," Chatfield explained after the concert, which came two days after the band played Saginaw's Dow Events Center and five days after the tour-opener in Van Andel Arena. "The comfort level is growing." Not that there weren't some harrowing moments after opening act Steve Azar and band completed their bracing 40-minute set of rock- and blues-tinged country songs. Seger's cordless microphone cut out on his first song, "Roll Me Away." It forced a sound technician to race on stage with a replacement, only to have the mike problems return during the intro to the third tune, "Wreck This Heart," from the recently released "Face the Promise" CD. But if the technical difficulties rattled Seger, he didn't show it. By the time he exploded into "Old Time Rock and Roll" 18 minutes in, drummer Don Brewer and bassist Chris Campbell were deftly propelling Seger and the 13-piece band into their best rendition of the throwback rocker yet, further enhanced by Reed's sizzling sax solo. With few exceptions, Seger's voice sounded stronger and more confident than during the two previous shows, from the heartland rock of "Face the Promise" to the get-up-and-boogie romp of "Betty Lou's Getting Out Tonight" to the tender balladry of "We've Got Tonight." "It's so great to be back. It really is, I can't tell you," gushed Seger, who played guitar and piano on several songs, though he spent the bulk of the evening with only a microphone in hand. Proving less is more, the band cut two songs from the second set -- a slow ballad, "The Answer's in the Question" from his new album, and a country-honk number, "Sightseeing" -- replacing them with a single blues tune, "Satisfied," that's well-suited to Seger's rasp. Not surprisingly, Seger got the warmest response for cherished faves such as "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man," "Night Moves," "Hollywood Nights" and "Rock and Roll Never Forgets," which closed out the second encore. During solo riffs by Chatfield and Reed, Seger -- in what's become his familiar, simple stage wardrobe of black T-shirt and blue jeans -- happily pumped his fists and swayed back and forth like the father at a Polish wedding, beaming during the bridal dance. Hey, few rock stars utter phrases like, "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh" between songs; few are as lacking in the pretentiousness department. Because more so than even Bruce Springsteen, Seger gives a voice to the common man, the plain-speaking fellow on the assembly line. And his native Michigan heart beats strong and true, making him a beloved hero in places like Detroit, Saginaw and Grand Rapids, where one fan at the back of the arena proudly waved a sign near the end of Sunday's show. "Still Damn Good," the sign proclaimed. Hard to argue with that.
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band rocked the Charleston Civic Center Tuesday night on the third stop on their first tour in a decade. Seger is on a 16-city, 35-day tour in support of his first album in just as long, the recently released "Face the Promise." The '70s and '80s Detroit rocker still has enough devoted fans to make it his best release ever, peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. A near-capacity crowd braved the chilly temps and a brazen ticket scalper to turn back the clock and get down with a rock 'n' roll icon. The show started with Steve Azar, a 42-year-old singer/songwriter hailing from the Mississippi Delta, touring in support of his forthcoming album, "Indianaola." Azar and his five-man band plowed through a road-tested set of thunderous country-fried blues and rock. The songs sounded radio-friendly enough, but the bass-heavy PA removed any chance of him connecting with potential fans on a personal level. But the band just killed time to allow Seger fans to trickle in after buying high-priced merchandise. Around 8:40 p.m., the aging rocker and his crew took the blue-lit stage to raucous applause. Sporting faded blue jeans, a black T-shirt and a sweatband, Seger and crew rolled through the new "Wreck This Heart" and the classic "Roll Me Away." "I'm 61, and still feeling it," Seger said as he greeted the crowd and launched into "Old Time Rock & Roll" far too early in the show. As selections off the new album were played, one fan was overheard to say, "I don't like the new stuff. I don't know it, so I don't want to hear it." Seger eventually broke out the big guns. Manning the piano, he crafted a lighter-worthy version of "We've Got Tonight" and that famous ode to life on the road "Turn the Page" -- giving fans a chance to sing along. For the encore, the Silver Bullet Band played "Simplicity" off their new album, then went back 38 years to play "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" to much applause and "C'est La Vie," their interpretation of a Chuck Berry tune. Seger continued through favorites such as "Katmandu," "Night Moves," "Hollywood Nights" and "Against the Wind" with the Silver Bullet Band's lead guitarist and saxophonist stealing the show. Unfortunately, the Civic Center's sound system sometimes muffled Seger's throaty vocals. As he closed what is likely his last show in Charleston with "Rock and Roll Never Forgets," Seger tweaked the lyrics to spite his age: "Well now sweet 16's turned 61."
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