Don’t try to pin down drummer Johnny Rabb to his favorite Collective Soul song to perform live.
It makes his head spin when he considers the volume of songs that the band he joined in 2012 has created in its 26 years together.
“I think some of the songs like ‘December,’ ‘World I Know,’ ‘Precious’ and … the list kind of goes on,” said Rabb, whose band will share the AVA at Casino del Sol stage on Tuesday, Sept. 18, with 3 Doors Down. “When I first started I was like ‘oh my God, I forgot that they have that many songs in their catalog that Ed (Roland, lead singer) has written and the guys have done.’ So I’m not kidding when I say that I get excited on a nightly basis.”
The Atlanta-based band is bringing its co-headlining “The Rock & Roll Express Tour” to Tucson. Eighties alternative rock band Soul Asylum opens the show at 7 p.m.
We caught up with Rabb in late August to chat about the tour and about being in a band that he admired years before he joined. Here are excerpts from that interview.
First a fan, then a member: “There’s a time in each night when I’m like, ‘Man, this song is huge. It’s a massive catchy song.’ … No joke, there’s not one favorite only. ‘December’ was one of my favorite songs when I heard it in Nashville and I was living there (before joining the band). I’ve always thought with the release of ‘Shine’ (a single off their 1993 debut album ‘Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid’) that they were a different band that was innovative and unique and had their own sound.”
Seriously, they are having a blast out there: “We live off of each other’s humor. I’m not one of those guys who use the term bro that much, but these guys are like brothers. We are having fun. The crew and band are tight. It’s a team out here.”
Rock and rolling night after night: “The amount of hits between both bands and Soul Asylum, it’s just a great set list. We are just going out there and sharing the same thing. We’re just going out there never taking it for granted, having every night be the best night we ever played. I think that’s why it’s so fun. Great human beings out here; it’s a blast.”
Coming soon: Rabb said Collective Soul has recorded 19 songs for an album they plan to release next year to mark their 25th anniversary.
