Fire Lake
1980 single by Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Fire Lake" is a song written and recorded by the American musical artist Bob Seger, from the 1980 album Against the Wind. The single reached number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.[2] A live version of the song appeared on the album Nine Tonight, released in 1981.
| "Fire Lake" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band | ||||
| from the album Against the Wind | ||||
| B-side | "Long Twin Silver Line" | |||
| Released | January 1980 | |||
| Studio | Muscle Shoals (Sheffield) | |||
| Genre | Heartland rock[1] | |||
| Length | 3:30 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Songwriter | Bob Seger | |||
| Producers | Bob Seger and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section | |||
| Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band singles chronology | ||||
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Background and writing
Seger and colleagues decided to make "Fire Lake" the first single from Against the Wind because it was "totally and unequivocally unlike anything I'd ever done before."[3]
Reception
Music critic Maury Dean described the song as an "ominous ballad" about "4th of July fireworks".[4] Dean praised the song's intensity, Seger's vocal, and the "nifty" minor chords.[4] Dean speculated that the title may not be entirely figurative, as there may be a hidden reference to a midwestern body of water which caught fire, the Cuyahoga River in Ohio.[4] Billboard described "Fire Lake" as an "excellent song [that] is paced by acoustic guitar which lends a folk flavor" and the lyrics as describing "the subversion of small-town life."[5] Cash Box said it has "full-bodied harmonies and an easy, country-tinged melody" and praised the production.[6] Record World called it "Dynamite!"[7] Classic Rock History critic Janey Roberts rated it as Seger's 14th best song.[8]
Production
Three of the Eagles provided the backing vocals for this track: Glenn Frey, Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit. Seger's recording engineer David Cole refers to the song on his website when he talks of his history with Seger: "I was there when the Eagles sang 'Who wants to go to Fire Lake?' and many other great moments during the Stranger in Town album".[9]
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Seger's 2003 Greatest Hits 2 compilation.[10]
- Bob Seger – lead vocals
- Barry Beckett – piano
- Pete Carr – lead guitar, acoustic guitar
- Roger Hawkins – drums, percussion
- David Hood – bass
- Jimmy Johnson – rhythm guitar
- Randy McCormick – organ
Additional musicians
- Glenn Frey – harmony vocals
- Don Henley – harmony vocals
- Timothy B. Schmit – harmony vocals
Chart performance
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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