Bob Seger Retires
After 50 years on the road, Bob Seger retires. In a recent interview, an emotional Bob Seger said the he couldn’t imagine touring again following the loss of his close friend and saxophonist, Alto Reed.
He said this while a guest on a new SiriusXM program which marked the 45th anniversary of his “Live Bullet” and “Night Moves” albums.
Seger was noticeably choked up as he spoke about the phone call from the longtime Silver Bullet Band player wherein it was revealed that he had colon cancer. Reed died Dec. 30 at age 72.
It has been said that Bob Seger’s most recent tour was his last. We’ve all heard artists say this and then somehow, the creative spirit doesn’t allow them to sit back and fade away but after a recent Sirius XM interview, it seems like Bob is serious about stepping away from the microphone.
From the Detroit Press
“I listened really hard to him,” Seger said. “And he said ‘how grateful I am for my wonderful life.’ … I thought that was so beautiful, and I thought he was so brave. I don’t think I could go out (on tour) without him.”
Seger and the Silver Bullet Band played extensively in 2019 as part of the Roll Me Away Tour, which was billed at the time as “a final tour” but with no firm end date ever announced. The last show on that 2019 leg was Nov. 1 in Philadelphia. The outing did nearly $100 million in box-office revenue that year, making it the third most successful tour of 2019.
“You know, I’ve had a great life, oh my goodness,” Seger said as he elaborated on the end of his touring career. “I loved what I did. Never worked a day in my life, really. The hard parts were in sleeping in hotels, having rotten food.”
Seger, who turned 76 in May of 2021, went on to add: “I’m a lucky guy. What can I say? I got to do what I wanted to do.”
It was a poignant grace note to an otherwise upbeat, freewheeling conversation, as Seger looked back on the pair of 1976 albums that broke him into the big time — the moment when “we went from station wagons to jets overnight.”
According to Groovy History:
Bob Seger is one of those musicians that has stood the test of time. He has been entertaining audiences with a rich and soulful style of music for over 40 years now. Seger has always been capable of seamlessly blending different genres of music with great success.
Bob Seger is known for his “Motor City rock ‘n roll” style.
It probably comes as no surprise that Bob Seger is known for “marrying” different musical styles including country, soul and blues. The end result of this marriage of music is Seger’s trademark brand; that brand being Motor City rock ‘n roll. No wonder, since he came from Detroit.
Grammy Winner
Musicians are well known for having a passion for their art. Seger definitely falls into that category. His passion has served him well throughout his long career. He never strayed from his true passion and mission, which was to be the best of the best. Bob Seger was determined to bring the world rock and roll, just the way he saw it. Ultimately, he was nominated 7 times for a Grammy Award and actually won one of those nominations which is a highly distinctive designation.
What was your favorite Bob Seger song or album?
It was my pleasure to work with Bob for so many years. The consummate professional, he took every performance seriously and demanded the best effort of himself and everyone around him.
So as Bob Seger retires, fans around the globe can console themselves with any of the tracks or albums he and the Silver Bullet Band have produced over so many decades. He will be missed, but his music will live on forever.
Check out some of our favorite collabs with Bob on our videos page.
