The Distance (Bob Seger album)
| The Distance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | December, 1982 | |||
| Recorded | Summer and Fall 1982 | |||
| Genre | Rock, country | |||
| Length | 41:05 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Producer | Jimmy Iovine | |||
| Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
The Distance is the twelfth studio album by US-American rock singer Bob Seger. It was released in the final week of 1982 (see 1982 in music). It peaked at #5 on Billboard's album chart and sold close to two million copies in the United States.
Seger, influenced by the Woody Allen film Annie Hall originally intended the album to be built around the theme of relationships but eventually that fell apart when Seger decided that sticking to the theme too strictly would make the album "maudlin."[2] Several songs based on the original theme made it on the album: the hit single "Even Now," "Love’s the Last to Know," "House Behind a House" and the album closer "Little Victories."[2]
The album's lead single, "Shame on the Moon", was one of Seger's biggest hits, holding at #2 for four weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. It also hit #1 Adult Contemporary and crossed over to #15 Country.
Capitol Records had stopped manufacturing albums in the 8 track tape cartridge format by the time this album was released. However, Seger asked the label to include that format for this album, knowing that many of his fans still used 8 track players.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Bob Seger, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Even Now" | 4:31 | |
| 2. | "Makin' Thunderbirds" | 2:58 | |
| 3. | "Boomtown Blues" | 3:38 | |
| 4. | "Shame on the Moon" | Rodney Crowell | 4:55 |
| 5. | "Love's the Last to Know" | 4:26 | |
| 6. | "Roll Me Away" | 4:39 | |
| 7. | "House Behind a House" | 4:00 | |
| 8. | "Comin' Home" | 6:06 | |
| 9. | "Little Victories" | 5:52 |
Personnel
- Bob Seger - guitar, vocals
- The Silver Bullet Band
- Chris Campbell - bass except on "Comin' Home"
- Craig Frost - keyboards except on "Comin' Home", and "House Behind a House"
- Alto Reed - saxophone on all tracks except on "Shame on the Moon", "Love's the Last to Know", "Roll Me Away", and "Little Victories"
- The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
- Barry Beckett - keyboards on "Comin' Home"
- Pete Carr - guitar on "Comin' Home"
- Roger Hawkins - drums on "Comin' Home"
- David Hood - bass on "Comin' Home"
- Randy McCormick - keyboards on "Comin' Home"
- Additional Musicians
- Drew Abbott - guitar on "Makin Thunderbirds" "Shame on the Moon"
- Roy Bittan - piano on "Even Now" & "Roll Me Away"
- Michael Boddicker - synthesizer on "Roll Me Away"
- Don Felder - guitar on "Even Now" & "Boomtown Blues"
- Glenn Frey - harmony vocals on "Shame on the Moon"
- Bobbye Hall - percussion on "Even Now", "Makin' Thunderbirds", "Boomtown Blues", "Shame on the Moon", and "Roll Me Away"
- Davey Johnstone - guitar on "Love is the Last to Know"
- Danny Kortchmar - guitar on "House Behind a House"
- Russ Kunkel - drums on all tracks except "Comin' Home"
- Bill Payne - synthesizer, keyboard on "Shame on the Moon", "Love's the Last to Know", and "Comin' Home"
- Waddy Wachtel - guitar on "Makin' Thunderbirds", "Shame on the Moon", "Roll Me Away", "House Behind a House", and "Little Victories"
- Additional vocals
- Ginger Blake - background vocals on "Comin' Home"
- Laura Creamer - background vocals on "Shame on the Moon" and "Comin' Home"
- Linda Dillard - background vocals on "Comin' Home"
- Shaun Murphy - background vocals on "Shame on the Moon" and "House Behind a House"
- Bonnie Raitt - harmony vocals on "Makin' Thunderbirds"
- Joan Sliwin - background vocals on "Shame on the Moon"
Production
- Producer: Jimmy Iovine
- Engineer: Shelly Yakus
Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | US Billboard 200 | 5 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "House Behind a House" | Mainstream Rock | 29 |
| 1983 | "Boomtown Blues" | 11 | |
| "Even Now" | 2 | ||
| Pop Singles | 12 | ||
| "Roll Me Away" | Mainstream Rock | 13 | |
| Pop Singles | 27 | ||
| "Shame on the Moon" | Adult Contemporary | 1 | |
| Country Singles | 15 | ||
| Pop Singles | 2 |
References
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band: The Distance > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
- ^ a b Pond, Steve (February 3, 1983). "Bob Seger: Nice Guy in the Nasty Lane". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-10-11.