Bob Seger Wrote Most of This 1985 Hit Before He Knew What It Meant

In 1986, Bob Seger released “Like A Rock”. The song, written by Seger, is the title track of a record that also came out in 1986. 

“Like A Rock” says in part, “Like a rock / I was strong as I could be / Like a rock / Nothin’ ever got to me / Like a rock / I was something to see / Like a rock.” The song became a No. 1 hit for Seger, a success story that perhaps surprises him the most. 

 “There have been times where I’ve written a bunch of verses before I even know what the title is,” Seger says. “That’s what happened with ‘Like A Rock.’ I wrote the first three verses of that song before I even knew where I was going. Then, one day, I just fell into the ‘like a rock’ thing, and I thought it worked.”

Why “Like A Rock” Is Autobiographical to Bob Seger

By 1986, Seger had already written and released plenty of hit songs, including “Night Moves”, “Old Time Rock And Roll”, and more. But it’s “Like A Rock” that remains one of Seger’s most autobiographical tunes he has ever written.

“It’s a matter of growing up. From the time I was 20 until I was 30, I didn’t sell a whole lot of records, but I was doing a lot of rock ‘n’ roll. That’s the way I felt at the time,” Seger explains. “Maybe during the period when I was 30 to 40, I was getting more mature, writing about older themes. I’m sure ‘Like A Rock’ doesn’t mean much to someone who’s 20, but I gotta write what I know about.”

Seger also reveals that he drew inspiration for “Like A Rock” from a lengthy relationship that ultimately ended.

“‘Like A Rock’ was inspired partly by the end of a relationship I had that had lasted for 11 years,” Seger tells the New York Times. ”You wonder where all that time went. But beyond that, it expresses my feeling that the best years of your life are in your late teens when you have no special commitments and no career. It’s your last blast of fun before heading into the cruel world.”

From 1991 to 2004, “Like A Rock” was used in a commercial for Chevrolet trucks. Chevy reportedly wanted to use “Born In The U.S.A.” by Bruce Springsteen. When Springsteen refused to allow his song to be in the commercial, Chevy reached out to Seger instead.

Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images

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