As many will know on here I love travel. Since retiring and pre-covid there weren’t many months when me and Mrs. DLBH weren’t away somewhere. Long weekends are popular here and abroad but a few times we went on reasonably long road trips.
We have driven to and toured Northumberland, the Cotswolds, Scotland and further afield all over France and the Cote D’Azur for a month and Italy for two weeks.
Modern car technology means I can hook up my Spotify playlists to the car stereo to provide a soundtrack for our drives.
Matt Monro was the choice for the moyenne corniche, James was a continual presence years ago but for as long as I can remember there is one album and one artist that fits the bill for us perfectly when we don’t want to be challenged, we don’t want to concentrate, we just want to enjoy bloody good lyrics, well sung, that we can belt out to our hearts content as we roll along the autoroutes a peage, the autostrades and the motorways.
It gives me great pleasure to offer up this week’s contribution, a choice that I know is going leave at least one contributor purple with rage, I offer you…
Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band’s Greatest Hits.
14 tracks of good melodic rock and roll with some sublime lyrics it was released in 1994 and sold in the millions.
It is just up my street. No electronic droning sending you to sleep, no heavy improvisation, no noodling and doodling solos, no challenging intellectual compositions. Just honest, catchy lyrical rock music mostly written and composed by a master of his craft encapsulating his life and sharing it with us.
Track listing
1. Roll Me Away
Musically, it's driven by piano and drums a song about freedom without responsibility and a whole lot of not much else. But who has not at some point yearned to say stuff it, get on his bike/car and just go…?
2. Night Moves
One of Bob Seger's biggest hits of all time, this is a great song from beginning to end. Starting with an acoustic guitar riff, Bob Seger then sings some great lyrics that make you remember the past, especially those crazy early days of sexual awakening. “I used her, she used me, but neither one cared. We were getting our share…” It's also quite long for an acoustic song so it really has an epic feel to it. This is just another classic song.
3. Turn the Page
Coming right after "Night Moves" is another successful hit song. A slow song with some good saxophone this song lays bare the hardships of the life of the travelling musician on the road. There’s a great YouTube documentary video of the early days of the Kursaal Flyers driving up and down the A1 in a battered old Bedford van following their life on the road. That video and this song complement each other beautifully capturing the hardships of being on the road and all the pressures of the rock and roll lifestyle.
4. You'll Accomp'ny Me
A schmaltzy love ballad but with an arrangement and singing Seger gets away with it.
5. Hollywood Nights
This song is another popular radio tune by Bob Seger. A running bass line is a good hook and wonderful lyrics. This is a great song for a long drive.
6. Still the Same
Starting with a nice piano riff, Seger seems to get a bit serious in this song with his lyrics. He is catching up with a long time friend who seems to gamble to the edge and gets away every time. Has Seger tried to help him quit? Was he rebuffed? Whatever, he ends up walking away from his friend.
7. Old Time Rock and Roll
Back to the rock and rollin' with an old rock cover. A song for FOCs like me who can’t stand most modern music. Maybe I’m just jaundiced, like Mark Radcliffe who no longer listens to new music because he says all he hears are poor versions of past greats. So just leave me alone to play through my fifty year old vinyl collection, that’s good enough for me.
8. We've Got Tonight
A ballad like song apparently inspired by the scene from The Sting where Robert Redford tries to hit on the waitress who’s really a hit woman preparing to plug Redford. It’s about a hoped for one night stand. Redolent of Loudon Wainwright IIIs “Motel Blues”.
9. Against the Wind
An upbeat yet serious rocker I love driving along listening to this one. Again and again, Seger writes some lyrics that fit the music perfectly. The first verse ends with the ominous line, “Wish I didn’t know now what I didn’t know then,” one of the great rock and roll lines of all time to a maudlin FOC like me. The piano is really well done again in this song and combined with everything else that's great in this song, make for a classic.
10. Mainstreet
A lovely opening electric guitar riff that you'll hear throughout the entire song Bob does a fantastic job singing and this song is a really sad song. A young teenage Bob becomes obsessed by the local club window dancer, whose looks and moves enchant him.
11. The Fire Inside
The longest song on the album, that is drums driven with a catchy piano riff. Seger could knock out songs like this about the human spirit’s indefatigability throughout his career. This is one of his best.
12. Like a Rock
This timeless nostalgic song was actually written by Seger at the end of an 11 year relationship. However its poignancy applies to all phases of life as I look back at my youth and consider arthritic, stooped old age I like to think, or maybe fool myself, that was me back then.
13. C'est La Vie
I don’t know why Seger chose to put a Chuck Berry cover on this album and not Ship of Fools but it lets the album down in my opinion.
14. In Your Time
Written for his son when he was born this song beautifully captures the joys and pitfalls that await us all as we travel through life.
Enjoy.
