By Dave Gil de Rubio
Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper once sang that Elvis was everywhere. In the case of the most recent Collective Soul record, the two-CD “Here to Eternity,” that’s literally the case.
The group, which will be appearing with Hootie & the Blowfish and Edwin McCain on Sept. 5 at Northwell at Jones Beach Theater, recorded on-site at Presley’s California estate in Palm Springs, Calif.. It 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.
“The year before Elvis passed, he spent his last Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthday and did his last three gospel records there,” Roland explained. “RCA 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 Priscilla and 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.”
Recording began in January 2023, and Collective Soul released a dozen songs. With three weeks remaining on the lease, Roland was inspired to pursue his dream of recording a double album inspired by several influential childhood albums, including “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” and “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 came back in, and we recorded it 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 Elvis’ 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, Roland and brother Dean (who plays guitar in Collective Soul), caught the rock and roll bug early due to the fact that 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, Roland admitted he would only go so far in terms of what albums he’d bring into the family home.
“I loved ‘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.”
Hitting the road with old friends/South Carolina natives Hootie & the Blowfish and Edwin McCain, Roland insists the familial vibes these three acts will be overflowing to those in attendance.
“They named it Summer Camp, which if feels like,” Roland said with a laugh. “You’re out on the road with your buddies and you hang out. Edwin has more stories than a 150-year-old sailor whose been at sea for 250 years. Then you’ve got the Hootie boys, who are just a riot to be around. Everyone is just enjoying this moment in time. It’s just great that 30 years later we can all just look at each other and hug each other. There are no egos. We’re just going out and playing our songs for the people.”
Northwell at ones Beach Theater is located at 1000 Ocean Parkway in Wantagh. For more information, visit www.jonesbeach.com or call 800-745-3000.
