The movie that made Bob Seger write his 1976 masterpiece: “I’ve got a story to tell”
Bob Seger said that George Lucas’s film *American Graffiti* inspired both his 1976 album *Night Moves* and its title track. The film prompted him to recognise that his own memories of adolescence and early adulthood in his part of the United States were worth turning into music, combining personal experience with a cinematic influence.
Seger recalled being very shy before music introduced him to a faster social scene, new relationships and his first major love affair. He said *Night Moves* drew on that intense period, particularly a teenage romance, while *American Graffiti* gave him the confidence to tell a story about growing up in “my neck of the woods”.
- *American Graffiti* inspired Seger’s *Night Moves* album and song.
- The track reflected Seger’s first significant love affair.
- The film encouraged him to tell his own coming-of-age story.