When Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band roll into Metro Detroit on Tuesday for three shows at the Palace of Auburn Hills, it will mark a homecoming of sorts for more than just Seger — who grew up in Ann Arbor and still lives in Michigan — and his band.

Peter Thompson of Ypsilanti is on his second tour with the band’s stage crew, and the Detroit stop will offer him an increasingly rare opportunity to sleep in his own bed.

During recent years, Thompson has emerged as an in-demand soundman for high-level touring acts. He’s done several tours around the world with Steely Dan and, earlier this year, toured Europe with Squeeze.

“From the Blind Pig to this,” he said during a recent phone call from an off day in Minneapolis. “Sometimes, it's just it’s hard to believe.”

Kurt Wolak, also of Ypsilanti, is also on the tour as the band’s keyboard technician and actually plays with the band during several tunes each night. Thompson and Wolak are old friends, who worked together in the popular local band Crowbar Hotel during the 1990s and 2000s.

“It nice that we’re still working together at this level, doing what we love,” Thompson said.

For Thompson — whose father is Tom Thompson of Tom Thompson Flowers in Ann Arbor — the Seger connection goes back to the singer’s tour rehearsals in 1996, when Thompson ran the stage sound during practice sessions. After taking on a similar task during rehearsals in 2006, Seger took him aside and offered him the job on tour.

“He kind of grabbed me and took me aside,” Thompson recalled. “He said since I know the guys and I know how things work, why don’t I take the job when they go out on the road.

“And so here I am.”

Here’s how a couple days on the road work. After a show, the crew spends two hours loading gear out of the arena and onto four semi trucks. The gear and the crew and the band then head out toward the next city.

The following day is usually an off day. Seger works three shows a week (a pretty luxurious schedule for a touring act), ensuring the crew a day off every other day, as well as two days off in a row each week.

The following day — show day — the crew “Dumps the trucks” into that night’s arena and, working with local stagehands, sets up that night’s show.

At about 4:30, Seger and the band arrive for a sound check.

“Usually, he’ll run through a couple of tunes that cover the full dynamic range of what happens during the show, so we can get the levels just right for that arena,” Thompson said. “Occasionally, they’ll work on some songs that they’re thinking of introducing into the setlist.

After sound check, the band and the crew eat and get ready for the show.

During the concert, Thompson is in the stage right wings, running a dozen different monitor and in-ear mixes for the guys on stage.

Even though he said things are “pretty well dialed in” at this point in the tour, he said he’s at high alert throughout the concert’s two-hour duration.

“I never take my eyes off of what’s happening,” he said. “You always have to be prepared for anything that might happen.

“Plus, we’re always making adjustments, pushing leads — basically making dynamic changes depending on the songs.”

And through it all, he said, he never stops smiling.

“Working for an icon like Bob Seger and the old Silver Bullet Band guys … just an amazing experience,” he said. “I’m singing along every night. I don’t get sick of it for a moment.”

Which is a good thing. As word of Thompson’s skills gets around, he’s become even more in demand. Six days after the Seger tour ends later this month, he’s off for a five-month Steely Dan U.S. tour. After that, there’s talk of an Australian and New Zeeland Steely Dan tour that would last through November.

“This is what you dream of doing,” he said. “So I intend to ride this wave for as long as it lasts and enjoy every minute of it.”