Bob Seger’s Inspiration For ‘Night Moves’

It's always curious as to what inspires a hit song. For local hero, Bob Seger, it was a trip to the movies that inspired one of his biggest hits, "Night Moves". In 1976 Seger pushed his story about growing up in Michigan into a top five hit and established himself in music circles

across America. Up until this time Seger had been pretty much a regional star, selling out shows at Cobo Hall in Detroit, but not making much impact on the national music scene. "Night Moves" changed everything. What movie was it that inspired him?It was the George Lucas hit movie, "American Graffiti". "Graffiti" told a story of teenage nightlife in a small California town in the 50's and early 60's. Seger left the movie thinking, "Hey, I've got a story to tell, too! Nobody has ever told how it was to grow up in my neck of the woods." Of course, Seger was referring to the Midwest - Ann Arbor, Michigan- where things were a little different for teenagers. Seger wrote about his high school days and the parties they would have in the farmers fields, called "grassers", without being hassled by the cops. They would be drinking beer, playing 45's, and dancing in the field in front of their cars headlights. Seger sold over a million copies of his own personal "Graffiti" and it became the favorite tune of his career. "I don't know if I'll ever write one as good as that again," he said.