INTRAMONTABILE BOB SEGER

In his 20s, Bob Seger had the foresight to write lyrics that would age well: “It seems like yesterday, but it was so long ago….Wish I didn’t know now what I didn’t know then.” “I’m older now…those drifter’s days are past me now.” “He wants to dream like a young man, with the wisdom of an old man.”

When he sang those lines Tuesday night at the New Orleans Arena, Seger, who turns 66 on Friday, looked the part. His shaggy dark hair of yesteryear is now gray and short, held in check by a headband. He squinted through glasses. He sported a succession of sleeveless shirts that would be a dubious choice even for someone far more toned than he. He called to mind nothing so much as a genial grandpa biker, with a smoker’s rasp to boot.
But Seger’s enthusiasm for his deep catalog of often lascivious hits remains undiminished. With a voice grown slightly more craggy and gravelly with age, he and his veteran Silver Bullet Band served up hits and obscurities in an unadorned, unselfconscious presentation in keeping with the music.
Some 34 years have elapsed since Seger last graced a local stage. South Louisiana, it seems, is not his strongest market; most of the arena’s upper balcony was empty on Tuesday. Overpriced tickets were not to blame; the best seats were $67, roughly half of what his contemporaries charge.
He can keep prices down because his production costs were relatively low. His show was a decidedly no-frills affair. Not only were there no video screens, but not even a stage curtain.
The musicians simply ambled onstage in full view of the audience, Seger acknowledging their cheers with a casual wave. They then got down to business, dispensing with “Tryin’ to Live My Life Without You,” “Fire Down Below” and “Old Time Rock ‘n’ Roll” early on.
The Silver Bullet Band is less iconic than the E Street Band, but formidable nonetheless. Drummer Don Brewer, formerly of Grand Funk Railroad, hit hard, pushing the various guitars, keyboards, backing vocalists and horns. Bassist Chris Campbell has stood alongside Seger since 1969; his disco groove pumped up the chorus of “Hollywood Nights.” Lead guitarist Mark Chatfield fired up “Travelin’ Man” and traced “Strut” with angular lines.
Saxophonist Alto Reed, Clarence Clemons to Seger’s Springsteen, has been on board since 1971. Reed was, and is, key to the Seger sound. He lit up “Mainstreet.” Later, seated at the piano, Seger noted that the next song was recorded in Leon Russell’s studio in rural Oklahoma. “Then Alto added his saxophone part, and the rest is history.”
With that, Reed blew his intro to “Turn the Page,” one of the most instantly recognizable and evocative sax hooks in rock ‘n’ roll. A huge roar greeted each of Reed’s excursions, even as Seger reclaimed his enduring meditation of a lonely life on the road. The song still conjures shadows ringed by menace; Seger and company did it justice.
In his songwriting heyday, Seger was apparently perpetually horny; copulation is a recurring theme. He described “Horizontal Bop” as “my crappy attempt at a New Orleans song. This is the best I could do when I was 25.” The original recording, he recalled, featured Dr. John. A leering wah-wah guitar goosed “Come to Papa.” The desperation of “We’ve Got Tonight” still rang true. The “self-explanatory” “Gets Ya Pumpin’,” however, was best left in the ‘70s.
“Sunspot Baby,” too, was mediocre. Elsewhere, he exhumed obscure album cuts that were worthy of the spotlight. The dramatic swells of “Good for Me” and unabridged optimism of “Shining Brightly,” with its deft acoustic guitar, organ and tenor interplay, demonstrated just how deep the “Against the Wind” LP was.
After an hour, Seger and company excused themselves for an odd, brief intermission of seven minutes. Refreshed, they uncorked “Nutbush City Limits,” from the classic “Live Bullet” LP.
The title cuts “Against the Wind,” and “Night Moves” have aged remarkably well. The band’s presentation, and Seger’s delivery, communicated all of the inherent nostalgia for lost, misspent youth.

A final “Rock ‘n’ Roll Never Forgets” was a hoot. Gray hair aside, Seger has not forgotten how to rock ‘n’ roll.
Keith Spera can be reached at kspera@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3470.