He grew up in New York to the rhythms of Otis Redding and the Beatles. Twenty years later, the table has turned for Eddie Money and it is his music that is influencing new generations of rock ‘n’ rollers.

“They all grew up on Eddie Money music,” Money said, referring to singers such as Bryan Adams and Vince Neil who have been influenced by the long-standing entertainer. “I meet these guys, they’re selling 10 million records, and they treat me like I’m Paul McCartney. It’s just great to be able to perform and to make records as long as I have and to stand for generations. I think that’s a real accomplishment and I think that says something about my music.”

The rock singer will be performing many of the hits that have kept him on the charts during the ’70s, ’80s and into the ’90s, such as “Two Tickets to Paradise” and “I Wanna Go Back,” tonight at The Metro Club in Bangor. The appearance is part of Money’s current tour in which he is introducing audiences to selections from his upcoming 11th album and giving a preview of a possible cable TV concert.

Tonight’s crowd, Money said during a phone interview from Long Island, N.Y., can expect a very animated show that they won’t soon forget. “Playing live is the icing on the cake,” he said.

This desire to step into the spotlight dates back to Money’s high school years. He explained that the seeds of his future career were planted when he jammed with the other teen-age members of the band “The Grapes of Wrath.”

Money’s success with music didn’t begin to grow immediately after high school. He instead followed in his father’s footsteps down a completely different career path — police work. He said he soon realized, though, that law enforcement wasn’t for him, and he decided to take his chances with his true passion.

“I just had rock ‘n’ roll in my blood. I’d rather dodge beer bottles on stage than bullets in the back alley,” Money said.

After taking off his badge, Money said, he decided to chase his dreams to California, where he met up with legendary rock concert promoter Bill Graham. Graham signed Money to Columbia Records and in 1977 the singer released his debut single, “Baby Hold On.”

Under Graham’s management, Money released a string of hits that extended from the late ’70s to the early ’90s. The Graham-Money collaboration came to a sudden end in 1991, however, when Graham died in a helicopter crash.

“Bill Graham was my manager up until the day he died. Boy, I really miss him, he was like a dad to me,” Money said.

Several years prior to Graham’s death, Money went through another period of rough times. The singer explained he had a “bad stint” with alcoholism.

“The toughest times in my career were fighting the hangovers,” Money said of the problems he faced during some of his earlier tours. “Even when I was doing a lot of drinking I always gave people 100 percent. I never got drunk during the shows. What got me in trouble was drinking after work, and then I’d be up playing cards all night and getting up in the morning and opening up a can of beer and having a Bloody Mary.”

Money said he eventually realized that the best thing he could do for himself, his wife and children, and his fans was to give up alcohol completely.

“I’ve always been a good businessman and what I really love to do is entertain and perform, and I always want my voice to sound good. That to me is more important than having a drink, smoking a joint, doing a line or taking a pill,” Money said.

He said people need to make their own decisions about alcohol and drugs, so he does not try to preach to others about substance abuse. He does, however, weave his own experiences into many of his songs, and he recalled how one song in particular, “The Big Crash,” had a major impact on one young person’s life.

“The song wasn’t a big hit because it was the kind of song that made people think too much. But I met a girl that came out of a rehab that listened to the song over and over, and she said, `Eddie, that song saved my life.’ To me that was worth all the money and the record sales in the world, because that’s why I wrote the song.”

Eddie Money will perform at 9:30 tonight at The Metro Club, 6 Central St. in Bangor.