Absolute Radio: Discover real music

If you only own one Bob Seger album, this should be the one. There is not a single duff track on the entire album and there are several real classic rock 'n' roll songs that are really brilliant stuff.

None of the other Seger albums reach this one. It's simply one of the finest albums of it's genre around. Still sounds great after all these years.

There is no real stand out track, they're all excellent. My particular favourites are Brave Strangers and Hollywood Nights. Stick it on in the car and dream about a long freeway...

Rating: 5 out of 5

I first heard Bob Seger way back in the 80's and I've loved him ever since. His voice and the way he delivers his music really moves me - sometimes to tears. I love this album it holds most of my favourite Seger songs especially `Famous Final Scene' that song has the ability to move me to tears every single time I hear it. Other Bob Seger albums worth purchasing are In the Distance, Night Moves and Against the Wind.

If you enjoy great soulful rock music you'll love anything from this man - once heard never ever forgotten.


Rating: 5 out of 5

If I were to compile my Top 100 all-time favourite albums, then this Bob Seger effort would definitely appear in the upper echelons of that chart. Sadly, Bob Seger never received the recognition he deserved for this, or any other album he released in the UK, so chances are most people don't know much about the man who was running head-to-head (Stateside) in the popularity stakes with Bruce Springsteen in his pre-"Born In The USA" days.If people compared Seger to Springsteen, "Stranger In Town" likened Seger to the Eagles. The music on this CD was maybe not as 'country rock' as the latter was better known for, but it's certainly similar in style and in mood - qualities that saw Seger guest appear with the Eagles on tour in the 70s. In other words, "Stranger In Town" typifies the musical genre known as 'middle of the road'.Quite remarkably for a studio album - and I don't normally say this except for a 'greatest hits' collection - there aren't any substandard tracks on this CD. It's a rather short album, but the nine songs featured have stood well against the test of time - and are all bona-fide 'classics' on your favourite 'easy listening' radio station.'Hollywood Nights' kicks off the CD - a track taken from the same musical mould that produced The Eagles' 'Life In The Fast Lane' - a tale of living the high life in 70s California. Other upbeat radio-friendly rock tracks follow with (the classic) 'Old Time Rock And Roll', 'Feels Like A Number' (another Eagles-like song) and 'Ain't Got No Money'. But it's the ballads that really make this album. 'Still The Same', 'Till It Shines' and 'Brave Strangers' were all destined to elevate Bob Seger into the mainstream. However, there's two tracks that should've elevated Seger into superstardom. 'We've Got Tonight' - probably the best known song on the CD - is, quite simply, one of the most beautiful ballads I've ever had the pleasure to listen to. With all it's heart-wrenching emotion, sung and performed to such perfection, it seems almost blasphemous to listen to any of the countless - and let me say, inferior cover versions that have been recorded over the years. My own personal favourite track on "Stranger In Town" is the one used to end the album. 'The Famous Final Scene' - a song about the end of a relationship - ranks alongside Meat Loaf's 'For Crying Out Loud' as one of the most thought-provoking ballads that will tug at the heart-strings of even the most cold-hearted person on the planet. And the last few seconds of the song are guaranteed to send a shiver down your spine!The Eagles had their "Hotel California", Springsteen had his "Born To Run". For Bob Seger, his definitive studio album was "Stranger In Town". Forget about his 'Greatest Hits' CD - a collection that didn't do the man justice - if you want to hear the real talent behind this criminally ignored artist, then this is the album you need to buy. I promise you won't regret it.Jon.

Rating: 5 out of 5

first heard this album in paris and it blew me away. from the rocking of hollywood nights to the tranquil we got tonight this is a superb cd

Rating: 5 out of 5

I have been a music fan for most of my life and it's to my eternal shame that I have never heard this album properly until quite recently. A chance hearing of 'We've got Tonite' on the radio led me to seek out this album which most surprisingly is only currently available on import. What a treat I discovered.

The album kicks off with the uptempo 'Hollywood Nights' and is a full blown start to proceedings. Some nice lyrical phrasing too. A measly number 42 this made in the singles charts over here in the punk-obsessed late 70s. Next up is a true gem which scaled the heights of number 4 in the US charts but didn't figure here at all. 'Still the same' is a marvellous ballad with verses that take that steady climax towards a soaring chorus with a great arrangement on the backing vocals. 'Old time rock n'roll' is one of only two non-originals on the album and is well suited to Bobs vocal style. Next comes ' Till it shines' which features the guitar of Glenn Frey from the Eagles and it's another mid-tempo type song with a classic chorus. This is followed by 'Feel like a number', a similar style track to 'Hollywood Nights' and then a cover of Frankie Miller's 'Ain't got no money' with slide guitar from Don 'Sharkey' Felder (again from the Eagles). The albums seminal moment is the aforementioned 'We've got Tonite'. Listening to this track in its remastered splendour with the 'phones turned up you can really appreciate the subtle arrangement with the gentle entry of the high hat followed by the full drums and then those gorgeous harmonies that echo Bobs moving lead vocal. It's a track that tugs at your emotions and features a soaring bridge section, again with backing echoes. This could hardly be bettered and words fail me at the pathetic number 41 chart placing this single achieved in early '79 (number 12 in the US doesn't do it justice either). The penultimate track 'Brave Strangers' is the longest track and features a mid song slow section with the distinctive "hand was shakin'" lyric. Great track and one I do recall being repeatedly played on Nick Horne's 'Mummies Chart' at the time. This just leaves the final track and it's a slow song entitled 'The famous final scene' which is a rousing and moving finale to just under 40 minutes of superb music. Every track a winner. Highly recommended.

Rating: 5 out of 5