Bob Seger took the stage just after 8:30 p.m. Thursday for the first of a six-night residency at DTE Energy Music Theatre, part of his "Roll Me Away: The Final Tour" sojourn.
He kicked things off with “Shakedown” and stuck close to the set list of the past few months, with the band, brass and singers achieving liftoff almost immediately.
It’s hard to imagine a better backing ensemble than the Silver Bullet Band, their easy chemistry honed from years together.
Because this is a greatest hits tour, a few old favorites were dusted off.
“Since this is the last tour, I’ve been bringing out some of the oldies I haven’t done in a long time,” Seger said, before launching into his mellow cover of Rodney Crowell’s “Shame On the Moon.”
“Well I was born in Detroit. You hear soul music, you hear R&B, you hear blues,” Seger said, introducing “Come to Poppa,” his redo of a Willie Mitchell song.
“We’ve Got Tonight” sparked a flood of cell phone lights, enough to light up an airport runway.
One tweak to the set was the addition of “The Famous Final Scene” to the second encore. No reason, as far as band members knew. Seger just added it, and it went over well.
It was a nice touch to run photos on the big screen of friends and inspirations who had died in recent years such as Aretha Franklin, Glenn Frey, Prince, Gregg Allman, Chuck Berry and B.B. King, while Seger sang Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young.”
With Seger, 74, in such good trim, his voice deeper but still strong, why say it's the last tour? Since he's the bard of Michigan summer (certainly more than Eddie Money), he should do a residency at DTE every year, and have the world come to him. Or he could play smaller dates. It would be nice to see him meander a bit in his catalog for a show at the Fox, say.
Seger has a particular knack for expressing the melancholy within joy, and the joy within melancholy. Maybe it's an Irish thing, but he smells fall in the air on the sunniest summer day, and sings wistfully about things going on "out past the cornfields where the woods get heavy,” things we know, here in Michigan.
We can hope. Meanwhile, we’ve got tonight — and Saturday, and Wednesday and ...
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band “Roll Me Away Tour”
- Thursday, June 6 at 7:30 p.m. - Addison Agen
- Saturday, June 8 at 8 p.m. - Addison Agen
- Wednesday, June 12 at 7:30 p.m. - Addison Agen
- Friday, June 14 at 8 p.m. - Addison Agen
- Wednesday, June 19 at 7:30 p.m. - Michigan Rattlers
- Friday, June 21 at 8 p.m. - Michigan Rattlers
Set list:
Shakedown
Still the Same
The Fire Down Below
Main Street
Old Time Rock & Roll
The Fire Inside
Shame on the Moon
Roll Me Away
Come to Poppa
Her Strut
Like a Rock
You'll Accomp'ny Me
We've Got Tonight
Travelin' Man
Beautiful Loser
Turn the Page
Forever Young
Ramblin' Gamblin' Man
Encore 1:
In Your Time
Against the Wind
Hollywood Nights
Encore 2:
The Famous Final Scene
Night Moves
Rock & Roll Never Forgets
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