Ramblin' Gamblin' Man

• Artist: The Bob Seger System
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1968
• Total Time: 36:07
• Genre: Rock

Review

The Bob Seger System throw everything into Ramblin' Gamblin' Man, dabbling in folk, blues-rock, psychedelia, and piledriving rock & roll synonymous with Detroit. Typical of such a wide-ranging debut, not everything works. The System stumbles when they take psychedelic San Franciscan bands on their own turf. Trippy soundscapes like "Gone" drift into the ether, and the longer jams, "White Wall" and "Black Eyed Girl," meander. But the songs that do work are absolute monsters, highlighted by the title track, a thunderous bit of self-mythology driven by a relentless rhythm, wailing organ riff, and gospel chorus. It's a stunningly great record, and while nothing here quite equals it, the songs that come close (with the exception of "Train Man," the first inkling of Seger's knack for reflective, intimate ballads) are sterling examples of spare, bluesy, angry Michigan rock & roll. "Tales of Lucy Blue" has a spooky, menacing edge, "Ivory" is a great Motown-styled raver, and "Down Home" rides a manic riff and a simple blues harp to be one of the best rockers on the record. Then there's "2 +2 = ?," a ferocious antiwar song in the vein of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Fortunate Son," but here Seger can't imagine why the nice guy in high school is now buried in the mud. It's a frightening, visceral song that stands among the best anti-Vietnam protests. Finally, the album closes with "The Last Song (Love Needs to Be Loved)," an unabashed peace, love, 'n' understanding anthem styled in the manner of West Coast hippie pop, particularly Love. It's atypical of anything on the album or anything Seger would ever do again, but in many ways, it's the perfect way to close an exciting, flawed debut that winds up being a symbol of its times by its very diversity. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Ramblin' Gamblin' Man	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(2:21)
Tales of Lucy Blue	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(2:28)
Ivory	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(2:23)
Gone	Dan Honaker, Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(3:28)
Down Home	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(3:01)
Train Man	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(4:06)
White Wall	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(5:20)
Black Eyed Girl	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(6:33)
2 + 2 = ?	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(2:49)
Doctor Fine	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(1:05)
The Last Song (Love Needs to Be Loved)	Bob Seger	The Bob Seger System	(3:04)

Credits

Bob Seger (Piano), Dan Honaker (Vocals), Bob Seger (Organ), Bob Seger (Performer), Bob Seger (Liner Notes), Dan Honaker (Bass), Dan Honaker (Guitar), Bob Schultz (Organ), Pep Perrine (Vocals), Michael Erlewine (Harp), Pep Perrine (Drums), Bob Schultz (Saxophone), Bob Seger (Guitar), Jim Bruzzese (Engineer), Bob Seger (Vocals), Bob Schultz (Keyboards), Bob Schultz (Vocals), Michael Erlewine (Harmonica)

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