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Post by unomusette on Jan 25, 2015 21:23:43 GMT
Thought you'd gotten away with it? Afraid not, here I am to delight you with a total classic. I try to post albums here that I've played to death and still love despite all that. And here's a prime example, Bob Seger and his Silver Bullet Band with the impeccable Stranger in Town. Now I know it's not as cutting edge as maybe some of the CD's we've had recently, but this is for when you just want to kick back with something reliably comfy like your favourite jumper. The one with the fluffy sheep on the front. Or is that just me? Well, you get the idea. Post pics of your favourite jumper. I'm guessing everyone will recognise at least one of the songs on this album, and I can confirm that deep satisfaction can be had from singing along as loud as you can. Don't forget, Jeff himself has stated his wish to work with Bob and this is probably the best endorsement I can offer. So with no further ado, please give a warm HWEF welcome to... 1. Hollywood Nights 00:00 (the full version,not the annoying radio edit, great album opener) 2. Still The Same 04:57 (made for joining in, don't hold back) 3. Old Time Rock & Roll 08:16 (probably why Jeff loves him, he has the same outlook I think) 4. Till It Shines 11:28 (perfection, I dare you to find fault but you probably still will ) 5. Feel Like A Number 15:18 (don't we all these days? Try working for Cardiff Council) 6. Ain't Got No Money 18:58 (classic rocker, play this in any bar and it'll go down a storm) 7. We've Got Tonite 23:08 (Overacting whilst singing along will make this even better, yay!) 8. Brave Strangers 27:44 (Bouncy little number, but oh dear! Trouble's brewing..) 9. The Famous Final Scene 33:59 (..did I say trouble? Angst aplenty here, one of my most favourite backing tracks. Hurray for Bob!) Now it's your turn...
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Post by Helmut83 on Jan 25, 2015 21:40:08 GMT
Bob Seger is one guy I wanted to get to listen since a good while already, so it's great that you have chosen this one. I'm already sharpening my axe. PS: so much chat about singing aloud and then we shy all up, don't we?
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Post by unomusette on Jan 25, 2015 22:57:21 GMT
I know, but if you were to lurk behind the curtains on housework day you'd see I really mean it about singing along.
You won't need your axe for Bobsey, he'll win you over I reckon *crosses everything*
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Post by jrmugz on Jan 26, 2015 0:56:22 GMT
Oh by uno, oh boy. This CD is in my blood, I was totally into it when it came out, and have always liked it over the years. Pretty much every song was always on the radio here in the Detroit area where I live and where Bob Seger is from. I can honestly say every song except "Ain't Got No Money" was familiar radio material over here.
It will be fun to play the songs fresh again and review them. "Till It Shines" has always been one of my all-time favorite songs. "Feel Like a Number" has to be the ultimate working-class hero song.
Jim
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Post by Helmut83 on Jan 26, 2015 3:05:53 GMT
You won't need your axe for Bobsey, he'll win you over I reckon *crosses everything* Just know that for me there are no sacred cows.
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Post by Chippa on Jan 26, 2015 7:46:38 GMT
Growing up in Ohio, Bob Seger was pretty much required listening. I'm pretty sure every house on my block owned at at least one Seger album.
On to my review....
Hollywood Nights – Great opener. Love the rhythm, and the imagery of the lyrics. This song always reminds me of driving around during the first warm night of Spring, for some reason.
Still The Same – Seger once said that this song was partially about his father, who was a compulsive gambler. Great lyrics and a memorable, catchy melody.
Old Time Rock & Roll – Overplayed! I really dislike this song with a passion.
Till It Shines – Almost has an Eagles-like vibe to it. A great “deep cut”.
Feel Like A Number – I think we can all relate to this song! If you think about it, this could be Seger’s version of “Another Brick in the Wall”.
Ain't Got No Money – One of those R&B, Motown inspired stompers that Seger seemed to love.
We've Got Tonite – Amanda McBroom, who wrote Bette Midler’s hit song “The Rose”, said that particular song was her attempt to write a “Bob Seger ballad”, like “We’ve Got Tonight”.
Brave Strangers – A bit long, but not bad. I think I used to skip over this one a lot.
The Famous Final Scene –“Think in terms of bridges burned”…what a great opening line! Very emotional singing from Bob Seger, here. One of his finest ballads, in my opinion.
Overall, I give this album a solid 8/10. A real classic.
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Post by queenofthehours on Jan 26, 2015 14:07:49 GMT
I know Bob's name and I did hear one of his tracks on the radio the other day - I liked it a lot. Other than that I've never heard anything by him.
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Post by jrmugz on Jan 26, 2015 21:19:13 GMT
OK, Uno, here is my review of Bob Seger "Stranger in Town". Overall, definitely a true classic, as Chippa said. 01) "Hollywood Nights" – Great unique opening cut, about a guy who immediate falls for a gorgeous gal only to get his heart crushed to pieces not too long later. 02) "Still The Same" – Another one that is a unique song with a unique topic for its genre. Very hooky melody, great stuff. 03) "Old Time Rock & Roll" – I love its shameless plug for nostalgia, and not being ashamed to sound like an old man. Classic sax solo to a classic song. The sax guy Alto Reed would really bring down the house at the concerts with his sax parts on songs like these. 04) "Till It Shines" – I agree with Chippa that its a great “deep cut”. In fact when I think about good deep cuts its usually the first on that comes to my mind. Always been a favorite of mine. I don't know what guitar effect is used, but its unique and I like it, almost want to say steel guitar, but its probably not. 05) "Feel Like A Number" – This is the anthem for everyone in the world who wants to feel loved and appreciated, and we all do, so I'm sure everyone can relate to some degree. 06) "Ain't Got No Money" – Hate to say a throwaway cover song, but well, guess I just said it. 07) "We've Got Tonite" – Look pal, spending the night is for marriage. Ain't nothing romantic about this lyric. Killer pop song with a heckuva a lot of soul, yes it does have that; but way too cheesy on the why not spend the night, theme. 08) "Brave Strangers" – "Night Moves" with a face-lift from acoustic guitar to piano. Spirited performance, too white-trash on the lyrics for this cat, like the last one. Admittedly, used to love to crank this one, back in the days where I didn't think about lyrics. But now, having evolved from animal to human being, ... Nice job by the sax guy on the middle change of gears part in the song. 09) "The Famous Final Scene" – Like Chippa says, great ballad. Star Rating: 4.2 out of 5 Prime Cuts: "Till it Shines", "Still the Same", "Feel Like a Number" Bottom Line: Required album for any fan of great classic rock songs. Thanks for allowing me to re-visit and further contemplate this great classic album, Uno! Jim
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Post by unomusette on Jan 26, 2015 22:52:13 GMT
Huge thanks to Chippa and jrmugz for your speedy and very detailed reviews, I'm really pleased you mostly liked it and even have some history with it. I found some of your thoughts chimed with mine, especially Chippa's tendancy to skip Brave Strangers and Jim's thoughts on the guitar sound on Till it Shines. Mostly I'm glad it didn't seem to be a chore to listen to, this proves what a classic this album is Hope queenofthehours and Helmut83 enjoy themselves just as much, even if Helmut has to use his chainsaw to get full satisfaction....
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Post by BSJ on Jan 27, 2015 0:21:22 GMT
Did the wind just shift? No, just Ms Uno rousing the better half of the Monster!* Sweet pick of the week. I know you choose this just for me! queenofthehours and Helmut83, etc. go here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Seger
I’ve seen Seger in concert many, many, many times in the ‘70’s. In those years Seger made the rounds at least twice a year. He still lives in his home state Michigan. Saw him 2 years ago! Voice in fine form, still running around the stage, great backup band. He’s here next month, I think, on his “last tour”. J. Geils is the opening act. Anywho. Like Jim and Chippa, I live in the same area and he’s in my blood too.
Kick ass rock and roll!
I am rating how my teenage self would - it’s a 10! And you can still call me any time Mr Seger.
My adult self doesn’t like two songs that have been played, over and over and over. Like Chippa, I HATE “…Rock and Roll” with a passion. Enough already! We get it! We've Got Tonite: Good, so let’s make this “a night to remember” and move on already!
Now this is a musician, in my part of the world, were all I need do is say Seger and fans crawl out of the woodwork.
*I’ve been on hiatus from reviewing - still check in.
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Post by jrmugz on Jan 27, 2015 1:29:49 GMT
You won't need your axe for Bobsey, he'll win you over I reckon *crosses everything* Just know that for me there are no sacred cows. I think there are enough album-corpses littered over the CD of the Week Archives, to vouch for that. Jim
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Post by Helmut83 on Jan 27, 2015 3:01:57 GMT
Just know that for me there are no sacred cows. I think there are enough album-corpses littered over the CD of the Week Archives, to vouch for that. Jim No! It's never enough!
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Post by Helmut83 on Jan 27, 2015 5:54:41 GMT
- Hollywood nights: not a great album opener. I don’t find it to be anything special. Not a fan of that drum pattern with those 3 quick beats on the snare, makes it sound a bit like galloping but it doesn’t fit well IMO. I found it to be a bureaucratic, indolent, emotionless song.
- Still the same: if the album opener was not promising, this song makes up for it. Swift, relaxed, somewhat melancholic melody which in my opinion transmits a feeling of calm resignation. Good verse, great chorus, those female backing singers, all in this song is effective and takes you where it intends to. A really good song IMO.
- Old time Rock & Roll: you know Uno I always have a soft spot for some good ole rock & Roll, and this one is fantastic. I’m not sure when or how many times I’ve heard it before, but in any case, listening to it again I loved it to pieces. Nothing strange, classic recipe: simple chords, a couple of electric guitars, piano and get it rocking. It works fantastic.
- Till it shines: hell of a song. When a song flows like this, so naturally, so wonderfully that everything seems to be in it’s place, you know the guy got a huge wave of inspiration when he wrote it. The melody is quite original, with that great touching middle eight. The instrumentation is exactly what the song required, and the piano enhances it tons. Masterpiece.
- Feel like a number: another rocker, this one faster and a bit less classic, but with a similar instrumental formula than “Old time Rock & Roll”. I like how the chord change in the verse 3rd line gives the verse a good shot of energy. The leit motiv gets a bit repetitive. Not as good as OTR&R, but still decent.
- Ain’t got no money: yet another rocker, but I won’t complain. Great opening riff (we were lacking a bit of that on the album). The first part of the verse is a bit too linear all over the same chord IMO but then he resolves it well because when it comes out of it the song gets good. Great guitar solo, the best of the album. Only the outro is unnecessarily long IMO.
- We’ve got tonight: nice simple romantic ballad. The piano and the strings are a very good combination. The vocals are quite decent too. I didn’t find it amazing but it is true that at this point of the album a slow song was needed and well received.
- Brave strangers: nice rhythm but the melody is too weak IMO. Doesn’t provoke any feeling, at least on me. During that interlude when it turns to ballad it has nice gospell feel to it on some parts. That’s the only good part of the song. And it’s waaaay too long.
- The famous final scene: maybe the ballads should have been more sparse through the album. One is OK, but 2½ out of the last 3 is too much, more still when it’s basically the same stuff as “We’ve got tonight”. I mean, I can recognize this one is a good ballad, but I get bored with this kind of romantic stuff. Better leave them for musicals, for “The Beauty and the Beast” or “The Lion King” when she meets the young lionaisse.
I really liked this album. The opener wasn’t promissory but then it quickly got seriously good to a point that I was loving it. It’s a pity that those last 3 songs couldn’t keep the level of the rest of the album and dragged it down a bit for me, otherwise it would have been really great.
What I liked is how the guy kept it simple but did it right. He didn’t get into very complex directions but opted instead for simple chord structures and songs which tried to (and most times succeeded) be based on strong, recognizable melodies. He also kept it simple with the instrumentation: guitars, bass (another good bass work, like the previous CD of the Week), drums, piano and not much more than that, but it worked wonderfully for the kind of music this album has. The piano particularly enhanced many songs, although I would have liked to hear it play a couple of solos in the rockers. The vocals were nothing extraordinary IMO but good enough and fitted the songs very well.
On the cons side, like I said, the two romantic ballads (which, BTW, are pretty much the same). That kind of music is not of my taste, even when including one in the middle of the album to cut out the rocking a bit would be OK. Also, “Brave strangers”, the song that gets sandwiched between the ballads, is quite insipid for these ears. But like I said before, I really liked the album, and it's good that I've listened to it or else who knows when I would have gotten started on Bob Seger. Now I'm sure I'll search for more material of his soon.
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Post by Helmut83 on Jan 27, 2015 16:20:56 GMT
Admittedly, used to love to crank this one, back in the days where I didn't think about lyrics. But now, having evolved from animal to human being, ... Oink, oink???
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Post by BSJ on Jan 27, 2015 20:39:36 GMT
But like I said before, I really liked the album, and it's good that I've listened to it or else who knows when I would have gotten started on Bob Seger. Now I'm sure I'll search for more material of his soon. Seek out his Live Bullet album. Wonderful representation of his live shows and more great songs. His studio work doesn’t do justice to many of his songs.
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