If you grew up in Michigan, you know there was a time in the mid to late '70s when Bob Seger was everywhere. You couldn't get away from his music.

So why are all those albums from that era getting harder to find?

In a piece for NPR, music writer Tim Quirk points out that a lot of Bob's older albums seem to be getting harder and harder to find. Which left me scrambling to remember what albums of his I still have in my collection.

The value may be increasing for some albums because Bob hasn't licensed his music for play online. According to Quirk...

Seger is one of the few remaining digital holdouts — there's nothing beyond the odd Christmas tune available on subscription services, and even on iTunes his only studio album for sale is 2014's Ride Out, which sits beside two anthologies and two live albums.

And this is slowly causing some of his older albums to become worth more.

Out of 17 total (albums), his own website shows only six available for purchase: his '75 through '80 run of Beautiful Loser, Night Moves, Stranger in Town and Against the Wind, plus this century's Face The Promise and Ride Out...Copies of '80s and '90s albums The Distance, Like a Rock, The Fire Inside and It's a Mystery are a bit easier to locate, and accordingly more affordable, but also, officially, out of print.

He's right.

A quick scan of the internet shows that some of his older back catalogue is gaining in value. As of this writing, a copy of 'Back In '72' in decent condtion can fetch 60 bucks online, while older albums like 'Noah' can get as much $300.

Quirk's article is an interesting read, and takes a look at how Bob's legacy has been impacted by the lack of back catalogue availablity.

It also points out that Bob never was really terribly fond of his older work, and seems ambivilent to ever seek out a digital footprint, leaving that decision to his long time business manager Punch Andrews.

Which means, if you're holding onto some older Seger classics, you may see them going up in value over the next few years.

Either that, or Bob's legacy may fade into oblivion.

Outside of Michigan, that is.

More From 97.9 WGRD