After Bob Seger launched his tour in late March, I heard from fans across the country – unsolicited e-mails raving about the on-stage vigor exhibited by this Michigan singer in his mid-60s.
“His voice was 'like a rock' for better than two hours on stage,” gushed James Cooley, who drove more than 160 miles from Austin to Houston to see Seger & the Silver Bullet Band. “He had the energy of someone 30 years younger … and the crowd was on their feet for most of the show.”
Plainly, it's not just a Michigan thing.
Even if the years manifest clearly in his raspy voice and weathered appearance, Seger's celebratory demeanor and enduring, rootsy rock songs have captivated audiences everywhere, so much so that he's laying plans for more far-flung concerts in the fall.
Still, there's something about a “hometown” crowd on the final stop on a lengthy tour, especially when the governor of the state has officially proclaimed it “Bob Seger Day” in Michigan.
So, Seger and his bandmates – brandishing the sort of tight musicianship, polish and intensity that comes from playing several times a week – made sure on Saturday night at Grand Rapids' Van Andel Arena that his Michigan fan base went home deliriously happy.
Those adoring fans even included a former high school classmate of Seger who lovingly unfurled a gigantic placard that read, “Ann Arbor High School, 1963.”
Shaking up the set slightly from the band's first tour visit in early April, Seger and his Silver Bullet camrades also upped the verve quotient on songs such as “Old Time Rock and Roll,” “Horizontal Bop” and “Her Strut,” which sizzled with more zip than they did early on in the two-month tour.
Seger told me last week “it took a long time” practicing and playing “Her Strut” and other songs the band hadn't tackled in years to “get it right.”
Well, they got most of it plenty right Saturday night.
Saxophonist Alto Reed likens it to winning the Super Bowl, World Series and Stanley Cup every night on tour. “We take 'em home every night and that's an extraordinary place to be. It's the major leagues.”
More impressively, a Silver Bullet Band show is as straight-up as it gets: There are no fireworks, no lasers, no giant video screens to distract from the music itself.
“This is a real rock 'n' roll show,” Reed insisted. “No smoke bombs, no video screen. It's all about the songs.”
So while Seger's voice may have sounded even more hoarse than usual at times, those songs ruled the day and he ruled the roost with his gleeful attitude.
And with early-tour glitches mostly in the rearview mirror, the 13-piece (on some songs, even 14-piece) band – driven by some impeccable, full-throttle drumming by Don Brewer – seemed to define the term “in stride.”
To add some spice, Seger and crew played three songs they didn't perform on their last Grand Rapids visit, unleashing a powerful, sort-of-nasty “The Fire Down Below,” along with rousing, muscular renditions of “Katmandu” and “Long Twin Silver Line.”
Another change from April: The night began with a set by The Rockets, who whisked fans back to the '70s with their Detroit-styled, old-school classic rock, led by talented guitarist Jim McCarty and drummer Johnny “Bee” Badanjek – a fine segue into the Silver Bullet Band.
While Seger's show may have missed the electricity that Kid Rock provided in April when he made a guest appearance on “Real Mean Bottle,” it boasted the same ultra-affectionate audience response from the near-capacity crowd on Seger classics such as “Travelin' Man,” “Turn the Page” and “Hollywood Nights.”
And it boasted some of the same memorable moments: couples dancing, with cellphones and lighters waving, on “We've Got Tonight”; Seger grinning broadly at Reed after a dynamite solo on “Shining Brightly.”
(Here's another example of Seger's enduring quality: Thursday's arena concert by two of history's most popular boy bands –- New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys – drew about 7,000 fans. Seger's Saturday show attracted 11,000-plus, less than two months after a 12,000-plus sellout at the same venue. Take that, NKOTBSB.)
Certainly, Brewer, of Grand Funk Railroad fame, has supplied much of the tour's tenacity, giving the likes of Reed, guitarist Mark Chatfield and keyboard player Craig Frost the foundation from which they've shined on riffs and solos.
As always, the trio of backing vocalists and four-piece Motor City Horns were in top form Saturday (uncorking those scintillating, descending horn riffs on “Katmandu”).
For eons, that veteran Silver Bullet Band has been Seger's perfect partner, providing the rock 'n' roll wallop, soulfulness and vocal support his 66-year-old vocal cords need.
So, that Texas fan who e-mailed me a couple weeks ago may have hit the nail on the drumhead when he claimed Seger may have “the best touring band in rock. If he hits Texas again, I'm going.”
Judging by Saturday night's tour-ending, feel-good spectacle, there's little doubt plenty of Seger fans will follow suit, wherever – and whenever – he chooses to play again.
source : http://www.mlive.com/
