13 million Bob Seger fans cannot get enough of the 69-year-old’s live vocals! The legendary rocker sang a heartfelt duet with younger country star Jason Aldean on “Against The Wind.” Jason might be half Bob’s age, but Bob had no problems delivering the thunder on the mic, setting a high bar for the young gun to keep up with. It seems that half a century on the road hadn’t dulled Bob’s genre-defining voice. His warm voice sounds so comfy to listen to, especially on his nostalgic lyrics here.
The coming-of-age song really hits hard when you have two stars from two different generations singing it together. Jason also added a lot here, delivering a country twang that gave a fresh feel to the 1980 classic. The Music Man has to say that “Against The Wind” is one of Bob’s finest hours as a songwriter, and this duet gave us a whole new appreciation for the song! Bob and Jason sang together on October 28, 2014, at The Factory at Franklin in Franklin, Tennessee, for an episode of CMT Crossroads.
Fan channel Country At Its Finest uploaded Bob and Jason’s live cut of “Against the Wind” to YouTube, where it hit 13 million views. Fans loved the genre crossover, and added comments such as “When you think that Bob is 69 in this performance, it’s stunning!! His voice is just as strong and distinctive as it always has been!” and “Seger’s voice sounds so good I had to double take this. But then I remembered he’s Bob Seger.”
Bob and Jason also recorded the latter’s song “Tattoos on This Town” during their CMT Crossroads collab. The band really kicks out the jams here, giving a hard-hitting vibe. It’s great to hear Bob stretch his legs and go to town on a song outside his usual wheelhouse. Naturally, he sounds just as good singing Jason’s material as he does his own!
Bob Seger released “Against the Wind” in April 1980, as the second single from his 11th studio album of the same name. Bob wrote the song himself, while Eagles producer Bill Szymczyk handled production. Bill must have called in a little favor during the recording of the song, as the tune features backing vocals from Eagles star Glenn Frey. The Music Man readers may recall that “Against the Wind” was a major hit for Bob. The song peaked at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100, and went Platinum in the US and New Zealand.