Seger Back In Spotlight After Decade Off

Rocker Is Back With A New Album And Tour After Hiatus To Raise Family

(CBS)  It was a 20-year ride fueled by a series of high-flying albums, with songs like "Against the Wind" that became rock 'n' roll standards.

Then, in 1996, a life of long drives and sharp turns took yet another twist. Seger decided to take paternity leave. He headed back to the Detroit area for good to help raise his son and daughter.

Actor Jeff Daniels, another celebrity who made his living in Hollywood but stayed home in Michigan, understands as both a father and a fan.

"It's the same thing with me," Daniels said. "Family came first. And with Bob, family came first. And everything else came second. He probably came to a point where the kids got a little older, when they become teenagers, they kinda go, 'We don't need you as much.' I think when Bob's kids said that he should go out and be Bob Seger, I think that gave Bob permission to go out and get back into that creative life again."

Seger said his children enjoy his career because they see their father as a rock star. In fact, he said they are his biggest supporters.

"They want to see me on stage so they're just getting it, you know, what I do," Seger said. "'Awesome, Dad.' That's what my son says."

"Face the Promise," filled with songs written during Seger's hiatus, has already gone platinum, adding to the 50 million albums he's sold over his career, but Seeger still cannot identify what inspires him.

"It's mysterious," Seger said. "You don't know what inspires you. You like to think you know what inspires you, but in the final analysis I don't think you really do. It's great to look at a blank sheet of paper, you know, and walk up to an instrument and not know what's gonna happen. It's the most challenging thing I do."

But taking a soon-to-be-senior-citizen's body back on the road for a 4-month tour is no picnic, either. Seger made sure he had his doctor's permission, and for now is keeping his plans decidedly short-term.

"I'm not looking past March, you know what I mean?" he said. "The tour is gonna run from November till March and we'll see how I feel after that. I just do everything as it comes. One day at a time."

Any day with Seger, is still enough to get fans to spend a night in line. One man said he drove 600 miles to see Seger. Even his teenage kids were excited about the show.

"I've been trying to see him for 30 years. This is the first chance I got and I took it," he said.

For the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, it's enough that he's still a good father, and his fans are still faithful. The rest, he says, will take care of itself. He hopes people will remember him as someone who told the truth about what he experienced.

"That I was out front and I didn't sugercoat things. I just try to write 'em and make 'em as deep as they can go, and that's all I do," he said.