Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper once sang that Elvis was everywhere—to hilarious effect. In the case of the most recent Collective Soul record, the two-CD Here to Eternity, the spirit of Presley was literally omnipresent.
Recorded on-site at Presley’s California estate in Palm Springs, the album project was a dream come true for Collective Soul founding member Ed Roland, who was a devout fan of the “King” while growing up in Atlanta. Collective Soul plays at Rohnert Park’s Graton Resort & Casino, Saturday, Jan. 31.
“The year before Elvis passed, he spent his last Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthday and did his last three gospel records there,” Roland explained in a recent interview. “RCA (Records) had set it up—soundproofing the Big Room, and Elvis was able to record live. That’s how we record.
“I had met the guys who bought it on the courthouse steps because (Presley’s wife) Priscilla and (daughter) Lisa Marie wanted nothing to do with it, so it was dormant. So we had to stage it by bringing furniture in and things like that. We set the control room up in Lisa Marie’s room. Our producer/engineer was in Priscilla’s room, and I got to sleep in Elvis’ bedroom. I’m the only man that can say that,” he continued.
After recording began in January 2023, Collective Soul banged out a dozen songs. With three weeks remaining on the lease, Roland decided to pursue his dream of recording a double album inspired by a number of influential albums from his youth, including Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main Street.
“I went in there with 12 songs, and the guys recorded them in four days,” Roland recalled. “We still had the place for a month, so I told them to take a four-day hiatus. Maybe go to Joshua Tree, hike, bike or golf. I sat in Elvis’ room by myself, in his party room, and I had my vinyl brought out and just listened to people I grew up listening to, and I wanted to see if I could write some more songs. Somehow, I got 10 done in four days. Then they (the band) came back in, and we recorded in five days. I told them that I was done and tapped out.”
The resulting 20 cuts range from the piano ballad “Be The One” and hearty Beatlesque earworm “La Dee Da” to the live gem “Bob Dylan (Where Are You Today),” which resonates with a delicate balance of solo acoustic guitar, mournful harmonica and some topical lyrics. Throughout this joyful recording experience, Roland insists Presley’s spirit could be felt the whole time the Georgia native and his crew were there.
“There was a place where Elvis would sing, so I would sing there,” Roland said. “And he’d usually sing out by the pool, so I would do my vocals out by the pool. And it’s just part of knowing that nobody had been there since he died. The night Lisa Marie passed, we had set the control up in her bedroom, and the ceiling fell down, so it was kind of a spooky vibe. We just absorbed it. We couldn’t believe we were there, to be honest with you. The excitement is definitely there.”
The son of a preacher, singer Roland and brother Dean (who plays guitar in Collective Soul) caught the rock and roll bug early due to the fact that their mom played piano in church while dad led the congregation in song. The latter was open-minded and influential when it came to secular music, taking his boys to see Johnny Cash in 1969 and subsequently Liberace and Elton John in later years. And while Ed Roland would grow to love the likes of The Cars, AC/DC, The Police and Peter Frampton, he admitted he would only go so far in terms of what albums he’d bring into the family home.
“I loved (AC/DC’s) Highway to Hell, but that was a record I really couldn’t bring into the house,” he said with a laugh. “As a young kid, I didn’t want to push it too much. I remember getting Queen’s Jazz album, opening it up and saw all the topless girls in there. I ran across the street to my neighbor and asked him to hold onto this album for me and told him I’d listen to it at his house.”
As he got older, Roland decided he wanted to join his rock and roll heroes by writing his own songs. He went on to form the original lineup of Collective Soul with his brother, Dean.
A recent documentary, Give Me A Word: The Collective Soul Story, tells the tale of the 30-year history of the band from Stockbridge, Georgia, which began with a bang when Atlantic Records signed the group. In 1993, they released what was essentially a demo of Ed Roland songs as Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid. Featuring the hit single “Shine,” the album went double platinum.
Collective Soul’s second album, a self-titled effort, was even more popular, going triple platinum and generating five hit singles, including the chart topping “December,” “Where the River Flows” and “The World I Know.” The band finished the decade with two more successful albums, Disciplined Breakdown and Dosage.
But as the new century arrived, Collective Soul’s fortunes began to gradually wane, as four more studio albums saw diminishing returns. The band, which still includes long-time bassist Will Turpin, also went through some personnel changes, cycling through a pair of drummers before drummer Johnny Rabb joined in 2012. In 2014, guitarist Jesse Triplett became the band’s third guitarist (following Ross Childress and Joel Kosche), completing a current lineup that Roland feels is the best version yet of Collective Soul.
As Collective Soul returns to the road, Roland insists the familial vibes of his band will be overflowing to those in attendance at their upcoming performance.
“Everyone is just enjoying this moment in time,” he said. “We’re just going out and playing our songs for the people.”
Collective Soul plays at 8pm, Saturday, Jan. 31 at The Event At Graton Resort & Casino, 288 Golf Course Dr. W., Rohnert Park. bit.ly/collective-soul-rp.
