999,905: The Bob Seger System — Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man

My first response to finding out that “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man” is a Bob Seger song continues to be my response to knowing that it’s a Bob Seger song: “Fuck you, that’s not Bob Seger.”

Bob Seger, the unfortunate punchline of Midwest rock? Bob Seger, the Cleveland of the music world? Bob Seger, of “Night Moves,” “Old Time Rock & Roll,” and Chevy commercial fame? Impossible. Unpossible, even.

The internet, not to mention several very patient friends, continues to insist that I’m wrong, so I’ve got to suck it up and give Seger the props he deserves for growling fiercely, over a loping mammoth of a backbeat, that “you can have your funky world, see ya round.”

All current evidence to the contrary, Seger was born hungry on the streets of Ann Anbor; a leather-cloaked tough with a knife and a penchant for back alley dice games; an ugly son of a bitch, with a peacock strut, landing ladies and splitting on the sly.

Swagger oozes from every note, every beat, of this song. Christ, I bet it would put chest hair on a toddler, were one exposed.

Even the toughest hood is no match for a recording industry suit, cartoon wolves that they are. Failure after failure and, one imagines, one too many bad spins of those fortune wheels, makes the sting of defeat hard to ignore.

Eventually, those suits’ suggestions of recording “You'll Accomp'ny Me” began to sound a little more reasonable.

From what I understand, Seger doesn’t play his pre-Silver Bullet Band work live, and is loathe to have it re-released and in print. I would think that it only serves as a reminder of how badass he once was, and can no longer be.

Maybe the truth is that this is Bob Seger. The guy playing “Fire Lake?” I don’t know who that is, and I bet Bob doesn’t either.