Behind The Lyrics: “Feel Like A Number” by Bob Seger

Not too many artists have contributed as much to the soundtrack of working-class America as Bob Seger. Though others tapped into this around the same time, Seger catered perfectly to the average man of the Midwest. This rings true particularly for the working-class anthem “Feel Like A Number.” If you’re having doubts about your job, one quick listen to this rocker could easily seal the deal. Let’s take a look at why Bob Seger declared, “I feel like a number!”

“Feel Like A Number” was originally included on Bob Seger’s 1978 album, Stranger In Town. In 1981, a live version was released as a single on the live album Nine Tonight by Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band. This version peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 in 1981.

In 1978, Seger spoke to the Boston Globe, stating, “I got the idea for the song after watching a show about computer banks and how many names were in them. We’re all in computer banks. Lord knows how many data collections there are. Everybody is a number, and in the record industry, you’re also thought of a lot of times as a number — the amount you sell or whatever. Some of humanity gets lost, and the hype takes over. You have to watch out. That’s the whole idea of Stranger in Town as an album, actually. It’s about identity and trying to survive and keep your identity.”

The Song’s Lyrics Capture How It Feels To Feel Like “Just Another”

I work my back ’til it’s racked with pain
The boss can’t even recall my name
I show up late, and I’m docked; it never fails

I feel like just another
Spoke in a great big wheel
Like a tiny blade of grass
In a great big field

Anyone who has felt their hard work is being taken for granted, while getting nowhere, can easily relate to this track. Hard-working Americans easily tap into this working-class anthem and relate to Seger’s screeching declarations in this track. The majority of the lyrics contain the term “just another,” attached with words such as “drone,” “phone,” “statistic,” and so on.

In 2018, Bob Seger spoke to Louder Sound on the song’s origins. “I was real proud of that one. I was an auto worker for a brief time. I worked for six months making GM transmissions in Ypsilanti, Michigan, and lasted about six months there loading conveyors. Then I worked at another plant on an assembly line putting rubber around windshields. Which is not good for a guitar player, so I didn’t do that for very long. I think I only lasted a month there.”

Seger went on to say, “But I was there long enough to get it into my head that you can become just a number, you’re just a statistic; you’re not really a person, you’re just a cog in a very gigantic wheel. And it felt very uncomfortable to feel that way about myself. I tried to convey that in the song.”

Photo by Ebet Roberts/Redferns