Shakedown

Bob Seger is Hall of Fame singer and songwriter with tremendous appeal, but it took some help from Hollywood to earn him an elusive #1 hit. This song was written for the movie Beverly Hills Cop II, starring Eddie Murphy in his role as Axel Foley. The first Beverly Hills Cop had a #1 soundtrack that boosted the popular fortunes of The Pointer Sisters ("Neutron Dance") and Patti LaBelle ("New Attitude"). For the sequel, it was Seger's turn. Harold Faltermeyer, who wrote the score for the film, wrote the music for "Shakedown" along with Keith Forsey. Bob Seger wrote the lyrics, which relate to Murphy's character.

This was nominated for an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song, but lost out to Carly Simon's "Let The River Run" from Working Girl.

Glenn Frey, who had a #2 hit (#12 in the UK) with "The Heat Is On" from the original Beverly Hills Cop, was slated to record this song, which had different lyrics at the time. However, a week before it was to be recorded, he had to drop out with laryngitis, so Bob Seger was asked to replace him. However, Bob Seger didn't like the lyrics, and though he retained the same chorus, he rewrote the verses - which also gave him composer credit on the song. Seger recalls, "There were a lot of lyrics about working undercover, I didn't like them, so I threw them all out. I decided to write it my way and they trusted my judgment."