Motorcycles and 1980's Rock & Roll: How an Anthem Speaks to Wandering Souls

In this soul-searching episode of Peace Love Moto, we will explore the powerful connection between Bob Seger's 1982 anthem Roll Me Away and the spirit of motorcycling. More than just a classic 1980's rock ballad, this song has become a guiding light for some riders—and anyone at a crossroads—searching for meaning, direction, and freedom.

Whether you're facing uncertainty in life, standing at a metaphorical fork in the road, or just longing to ride toward something more, listen as we break down the emotional depth of Seger's lyrics and how they mirror the transformative journey of motorcycle riders just like you and me.

Motorcycles serve as more than machines—they become moving sanctuaries for clarity, healing, and growth. Discover why “rolling away” isn’t about running from life but about embracing the unknown to rediscover yourself.

Chapters

• 0:00 Motorcycles and the Open Road
• 1:10 Personal Connection to Roll Me Away
• 3:40 Meaning Behind Seger's Lyrics
• 4:40 Full Song Performance
• 7:00 Finding Your Own Path Forward

Transcript

Ron: 0:06

There are so many great songs about the open road, songs about being carried along to a new place, both physically and emotionally. Would you agree that when it comes to escaping to the open road, there's really no better way to do that than from the seat of a motorcycle? There's a song that's been riding with me for years. It's Bob Seger's Roll Me Away. Now you may know that one. It's more than just a song, really. It's about a ride, but it's about a journey and it's about a declaration. It's beautiful and it means a lot. Let's talk about it. Thank you so much for joining me today. Recorded in beautiful Loveland, colorado. Welcome to Peace, love Moto, the podcast for motorcyclists seeking that peaceful, easy feeling as we cruise through this life together. Are you ready? Let's go? I heard the song Roll Me Away when it first came out in 1982.

Ron: 1:36

I was just a couple of years out of high school, completely lost and confused about what to do. Academically, I was mediocre at best. I was number two on the tennis team and loved to play in the band. Unlike so many of my friends, though, who went straight to college with some sort of direction accounting, law, whatever I thought I wanted to play music On the trumpet. I was a big fish in, as I found out, a very small bowl. Specifically, my dream was to play trumpet with Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Orchestra that's Johnny Carson's band. He was a big deal back in the day, so I went to college on a very small music scholarship. That's where I met really good trumpet players, fantastic trumpet players who could play with speed and ranges I had never heard of before. No possibility I could do that. It was eye-opening and a bit crushing. So, yeah, for me, the early 80s with the song Roll Me Away. For me, the early 80s with the song Roll Me Away that when it hit the charts it hit my heart as well, because it was such a time of uncertainty for me, a need for direction.

Ron: 3:09

The song opens with the narrator talking about going west on his motorcycle, chasing clarity, maybe something more. He talks about the mountains he had never seen before, talks about conversations with strangers and the decision to keep going when others might just turn back. That hits home, doesn't it? For so many of us, the road becomes A therapist, a confession booth or an altar, maybe all at once, sometimes kind of depending on our mood and where we are at in our heads at the time. But Roll Me Away isn't just a travelogue. It's about truth. It's about realizing that you've got to leave behind what no longer serves you, even if you don't know exactly what lies ahead. And that's tough. That's some kind of bravery. That's the kind of bravery we find when the road humbles us sometimes.

Ron: 4:38

Took a look down a westbound road Right away I made my choice. Headed out on my big two-wheeler I was tired of my own voice, took a bead on the northern plains and just rolled that power on. Twelve hours out of Mackinac City met a girl. I told her what I decided to do. She looked out the window a long, long moment and then she looked into my eyes. She didn't have to say a thing. I knew what she was thinking Roll, roll me away, won't you roll me away?

Ron: 5:15

Tonight I too am lost and feel double-crossed and I'm sick of what's wrong and what's right. We never even said a word. We just walked out and got on that bike and we rolled away. We rolled clean out of sight. We rolled across the plains deep into the mountains, felt so good to me, finally feeling free Somewhere along a high road. The air began to turn cold and she said she missed her home.

Ron: 6:03

So I headed on alone, stood alone on the mountaintop staring at the great divide. I could go east, I could go west. It was up to me to decide. Just then I saw a young hawk flying, flying and my soul began to rise and pretty soon my heart was singing roll, roll me away. I'm going to roll me away. Tonight. Got to keep rolling, got to keep riding, just searching until I find what's right. And as the sunset faded and I spoke to the faintest first starlight and I said next time we'll get it right, roll me away, come on, roll me away.

Ron: 7:01

So what does it all mean? What does it all mean? What does it all mean? What's it mean to roll away, not to escape, but maybe to become, to become something different than we thought we would ever become, to head towards something that we're not even sure what it is. But we just trust the bike, we trust the road and we trust our gut. Wherever you are right now, whatever road you may be on in life, may you find clarity. May you find your own mountains, your own winds, your own voice whispering yeah, let's go, let's roll away, as always. Thank you so much for listening and I wish you peace, I wish you love.