Old Time Rock and Roll

Bob Seger played the first ever concert at the Ford Center on November 9, and in his late 60′s, he’s still got it.  I got the chance to be the guy who shot the first concert at the new arena (so go make your bar bets now) and unlike other concerts I’ve shot, it was probably the best event coverage experience I’ve had.  Unlike most concerts where the event personnel are fairly rigid in the rules and restrictions and you feel extremely rushed in the experience, the Seger shoot was a breeze.  We were initially only allowed two songs, but I talked them into three.  I managed to get a pass to the after party where I met Silver Bullet Band saxophonist Alto Reed, who had a great story about how “Turn the Page” was written.

I give the Ford Center staff credit for really having their stuff together. For the first major event at the arena, everything from a media perspective, went off without a hitch.  I even got out of there with enough time to get the photos in the paper, and get back to catch the end of the show.  Seger went for almost 2.5 hours and sounded just as good at the end as he did at the beginning.

I came in to the tail end of Reed’s story on the writing of “Turn the Page” at the after party, but it seemed to go something like this: The band had been in the recording studio trying to get a vibe going, but nothing was coming out the way they wanted.  One of the producers decided to paint a picture for Reed to see where it took him.  He said to imagine he was walking out of a bar into a dark alleyway late at night, a single street light illuminating the area as a fog rolled in.  Off in the distance you can hear a sound, what does it sound like?

From there the infamous opening saxophone solo to “Turn the Page” was born as that’s exactly what Reed played to the surprise of those around him in the studio.  I wish I could remember the particulars, but it was definitely awesome to hear stories like that you only ever see on VH1 specials.  That is if they can fit those in between terrible countdown shows.

Gallery: Bob Seger opens the Ford Center

Bob Seger performs "The Fire Down Below," at the Ford Center in Downtown Evansville on Wednesday night, November 9, 2011. The concert was the first at the new arena.