Stranger in Town

Seger eclipsed the breakthrough success of Night Moves with this #4 LP in '78, one of the definitive rock 'n' roll records of its era. Old Time Rock & Roll (a hit in '79 and again in '83, thanks to Risky Business ) joins three other Seger essentials: the big hits Still the Same; Hollywood Nights , and We've Got Tonight !

A working-class hero is something to be. Just ask Michigan native Bob Seger, whose R&B-based rock and poetically uncomplicated lyrics made him a less cerebral alternative to Bruce Springsteen. For those who want the studio album that comes closest to a greatest-hits package, you can hardly do better than this 1978 LP. The follow-up to the previous year's smash, Night Moves, Stranger scored Seger a triple-platinum home run with can't-shake-'em-from-your-head hits like "Hollywood Nights," "Still the Same," "Till It Shines," and "We've Got Tonight." And even if the jukebox staple "Old Time Rock & Roll" has grown stale with time, Seger and company balance it out with the epic melancholy of the album's closer, "Famous Final Scene." Backed by incessant touring, Stranger in Town erased any lingering doubts about Seger's talent for crafting blue-collar rock anthems, cementing a reputation and a sound that's continued to hold up for decades. --Bill Forman