Tent Revivals, Buckets of Chicken, Harmony Singing
Collective Soul
Cris Cohen: You and your brother, you had a father who was a minister, but also very into music.
Ed Roland of Collective Soul: Correct.
Cris Cohen: How did that upbringing maybe formulate your ideas of harmony?
Ed Roland: We talk about this a lot, because my dad, being a Southern Baptist minister, early on, he did tent revivals. We'd go to Kentucky Fried Chicken, get a bucket of chicken, eat it, clean it out, and that would be the offering plate that night. And Jesse's father (Jesse Triplett – lead guitarist) did the same thing, and his grandfather did the same thing.
I think what the church offered was inspiration. You had the inspiration of Christianity, which I believe in, but you could learn without being subject to -- what's the word -- like, thrown under the bus. You weren't criticized.
And the harmony thing, Jesse took on, because he's a great harmony singer. I was like, “I feel like I'm the preacher of the band, and you're the minister.” Because the preacher would sing, and then the song minister would have to come in and make sure he sounded good.
But it's all about the spirit. It was just a great way to learn. You know, there were no beer bottles thrown at us. It gave us a chance to learn… or try to learn.
The harmony part never hit me. You know… Lead Singer Syndrome. I can't harmonize. You follow me, bitches. (laughs)