In 2003, when "deluxe editions" and "definitive collections" were the name of the game in reissues, it was refreshing to see
Bob Seger
's defiantly retro
Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
hit the shelves. The title and the approach hark back to the days when a hits compilation was followed a few years later by a supplement, covering roughly the same territory and adding a few new singles.
Seger
's first
Greatest Hits
had all the big hits, from
"Night Moves"
to
"Old Time Rock & Roll,"
and while it was very effective at that level, many of his big hits were
ballads
, so by extension the hits collection downplayed his
rock & roll
, which is was kind of odd for a singer/songwriter known as a passionate rocker. And while there was no arguing with what was on
, it left off many songs that illustrated his depth as a songwriter -- and that's not even counting that it left his handful of non-LP singles and songs unaccounted for or the fact that it ignored his early
Cameo
/
Parkway
singles,
the Bob Seger System
, or his first seven albums.
solves a lot of these problems and is a stronger album than the first
because of it. While it's still frustrating that
ignores his early material (the
songs are owned by somebody else, but he certainly could dip into the first seven albums, at least for
"Ramblin' Gamblin' Man"
), it's also true that they're of a different aesthetic than the anthemic blue-collar
rock
that he first etched out on 1975's
Beautiful Loser
. That is the music that made him a star, and that's the music that fuels this collection, all the way through to the lesser-known latter-day sides
"Manhattan"
and
"New Coat of Paint,"
as well as the brand-new cuts
"Satisfied"
"Tomorrow,"
two hard-rocking songs that are some of his best music in years. These are good, but they are naturally overshadowed by the songs that form the heart of this collection: the terrific plea for compassion
"Understanding,"
previously only available on the
soundtrack
Teachers
; grinding hard rockers
"The Fire Down Below,"
"Her Strut,"
"Sunspot Baby"
; the delrious
Chuck Berry
homage
"Katmandu,"
one of his funniest and toughest songs; the
country
-tinged
"Shame on the Moon"
"Fire Lake"
; the aching elegy
"Beautiful Loser"
; the life-afirming
"Rock and Roll Never Forgets,"
one of the best songs about aging within
. In this context, even the too-produced heavily synthesized
"Shakedown"
-- his contribution to 1987's
Beverly Hills Cop II
and his only number one hit, never available on a
album until now -- turns into a good time. Sure, there are a few songs that probably should have made the cut -- most notably
"Feel Like a Number"
"Even Now"
-- but as it stands,
is an excellent supplement to the first collection and a hell of a lot more fun to listen to as well. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine