He had been Michigan famous ever since his first album in 1969, which had the solid hit 'Ramblin' Gamblin' Man.' That song went to #17 on the Hot 100, but over the next few years, he struggled to make a national impact. 'Night Moves' was a breakthrough hit for Seger, introducing the heartland rocker to a much wider audience. It's also the only track on Night Moves with female backing vocals, which were provided by Laurel Ward, Rhonda Silver and Sharon Dee Williams, a trio from Montreal that happened to be in town. Seger's guitarist and sax player returned to Detroit, but the rest of the crew kept working on a very stubborn song Seger had been toiling over: 'Night Moves.' When it started to come together, Richardson brought in the local guitarist Joe Miquelon and organist Doug Riley to play on the track along with Seger and two members of his band: bass player Chris Campbell and drummer Charlie Allen Martin. They quickly recorded three songs that weren't that memorable.
They needed one more for the album, so Seger's manager booked three days at Nimbus Nine Studios in Toronto with producer Jack Richardson. Four songs on the Night Moves album were recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Alabama with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, and another four at Pampa Studios in Detroit with Seger's Silver Bullet Band.
