Rock-tober 07, 2015

Ask most folks what their favorite Seger song is and "Old Time Rock and Roll" usually percolates to the top. Originally released in 1979 off Stranger in Town, it climbed to a very respectable #28 on the American Top 100. Released again in 1983 as a backdrop for a lip syncing, skivvy clad Tom Cruise in Risky Business, it became seared into American culture.

One of my own memories of the song is tied to senior trip as a freshly minted high school graduate somewhere on the Florida panhandle in 1987. It was near the end of our time there, but we wanted one more blow out before heading home. The crew I was with got word that everyone was converging at some club downtown. Funds were running low and the cover charge was going to cut into our refreshments. That's when my buddy, Mike, had a flash of brilliance. He noticed the club's handstamp that let you come and go degenerated into an unrecognizable black smudge in the Florida heat and humidity. We went out to the parking lot, rubbed some brake dust from a random car's rims onto the backs of our hands, and suddenly we were legit. We walked up to the clubhouse door, flashed the back of our hands with all the swagger we could muster, and strode in as boldly as we pleased. The place was jumping, and playing in the background, like the soundtrack to our own teen shenanigans, was "Old Time Rock and Roll".

This, however, is not my "go to" Seger song. "Like a Rock" holds that slot and was showcased in the now critically acclaimed Rock-tober Year 1, Day 3.

A close second is "Hollywood Nights".

"Hollywood Nights" was released back in '78, and it peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100. If "Like a Rock" was the mellow, introspective ballad, "Hollywood Nights" was the extroverted speed demon. Something about its very nature demanded acceleration and velocity, and sitting still was not an option. Everything about it - the tempo, instrumentation, and lyrics - raged adrenaline.

When "Hollywood Nights" was still being recorded, one of the studio musicians asked for a demo tape of it to listen to on the way home. He was on the road, the song was playing, and he's really getting wrapped up in it. When he looked down, he saw he was doing over 100 mph.

Exactly.