Ravinia 2021 - Issue 3

JOHN FULTON The World They Know Collective Soul maintains an energetic bond BY TRICIA DESPRES THE TALENTED MEN OF COLLECTIVE SOUL have taken many a stage and sang many a thought-provoking song. But in 2021, as the band with the mystical ways came out from under their pandemic slumber, they found that things didn’t feel quite the same. “The first show back, I remember being backstage and I looked at my brother [frontman and chief songwriter E Roland] and I was like, ‘What is this funny feeling I’m feeling?’ ” Collective Soul guitarist Dean Roland remembers in a recent call with Ravinia Magazine. “And then, I realized it. For the first time in a long time, I was nervous. I hadn’t played in front of people in quite some time, and it was just a very, sort of interesting feeling.” Granted, for a rock band who has been doing it for as long as Collec- tive Soul has been doing it, they have come to expect live performances to shower them with a plethora of feelings, most notably a certain level of excitement and a surging readiness to get out there and play in front of their loyal fans. But nervousness? Nah. Roland and his band of talented brothers hadn’t felt that in a while. “There are moments on stage where I’m like, ‘Wow, there’s these five dudes up here making all this racket,’ and that’s pretty cool,” laughs Roland, who is currently joined in the band by not only his brother, but Georgia-bred rockers Johnny Rabb (drums), Jesse Triplett (lead guitar), and Will Turpin (bass). “There is this energy that isn’t easy to explain that comes from all of us up there leaning on each other and holding each other accountable to make that one moment in time.” RAVINIA MAGAZINE • AUGUST 18 – SEPTEMBER 6, 2021 28