Roll Me Away Album: The Distance (1983)<br />Like A Rock Album: Like a Rock (1986)<br />by Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band<br /><br />Bob Seger always seemed more like a regular guy than a Rock Star, and Like A Rock is a moving song about pride and consistency which struck a chord with working class Americans who could relate to him. Seger grew up in Michigan, paid his dues with constant touring, and stayed true to his roots.<br /><br />Seger was 40 years old when Like A Rock was released, and there was a wisdom to his words that appealed to his audience. In a 1986 interview with Creem magazine, he said: "It's a matter of growing up. From the time I was 20 until I was 30, I didn't sell a whole lot of records, but I was doing a lot of rock 'n' roll. That's the way I felt at the time. Maybe during the period when I was 30 to 40, I was getting more mature, writing about older themes. I'm sure 'Like A Rock' doesn't mean much to someone who's 20, but I gotta write what I know about."<br /><br />Talking about writing Like A Rock in a 1994 interview with Music Connection, Seger said, "There have been times where I've written a bunch of verses before I even know what the title is. That's what happened with 'Like A Rock.' I wrote the first three verses of that song before I even knew where I was going. Then, one day, I just fell into the 'like a rock' thing, and I thought it worked."<br /><br />Guitarist/singer Rick Vito played the guitar on Like A Rock. Vito was in Fleetwood Mac from 1987-1991.<br /><br />The album version of Like A Rock is 5:56 long. The single version was cut down to 4:36.<br /><br />Like A Rock was used in an advertising campaign for Chevrolet trucks that ran from 1991 - 2004, making it indelibly associated with the vehicles. The song helped sell a lot of Silverados, and is considered one of the best choices for an ad campaign in the history of music. With a sturdy tempo, a singer who fits the demographic, and lyrics about reliability, this was the perfect song. The title provided a tag line better than anyone in Madison Avenue could have dreamed up, and the song got a new life, becoming much better known than it was on initial release.<br /><br />The Like A Rock video was shot in the Mojave Desert. They went for cinematography over effects, with a blue tint and no lip synching. It was artistic but slow, and failed to make an impact on MTV. Some guys were never meant to be video stars.<br />This song was used in the soundtrack for the film The Weather Man (2005), which starred Nicolas Cage.<br /><br />"Roll Me Away" is a song on the album The Distance. The song was used as Seger's opening song on his Face the Promise tour in 2006–2007, his first tour in a decade.<br /><br />According to Seger the song was inspired by a motorcycle trip he took to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He stated:<br /><br />"I wanted to do that for a long time. It was fascinating being out. The first night it was 42 degrees in northern Minnesota; the second it was 106 in South Dakota and all I had on was my shorts, and my feet were up on the handlebars to keep them from boiling on the engine. It was just silence and feeling nature."<br /><br />Bob Seger – lead vocals<br />The Silver Bullet Band<br /><br />Chris Campbell – bass<br />Craig Frost – organ<br />Additional musicians<br /><br />Roy Bittan – piano<br />Michael Boddicker – synthesizer<br />Bobbye Hall – percussion<br />Russ Kunkel – drums<br />Waddy Wachtel – guitar