Turn on the radio in the mid- to late ’90s, and chances are you were going to hear Collective Soul. Be it “Shine,” “December,” “The World I Know,” or “Where the River Flows” … there they were.

Nearly 30 years later, they’re still here, having released Vibrating in 2022 with a new album on the horizon. They’ve also been touring extensively, visiting Honeywell Center last year and prepping for a show at The Clyde Theatre on Sunday, July 9, with opening act Jet Black Roses.

“We’re putting in about 80 shows this year and next year will be the 30-year anniversary tour,” bassist Will Turpin said in a phone interview with Whatzup. “So, we’ll probably get in 100 shows next year. There will also be a big documentary out next year and another brand-new record that we just recorded in Palm Springs (Florida).”

Catching a break

Oddly enough, the soundtrack to many people growing up in the ’90s almost didn’t happen. The story has been told numerous times but continues to be difficult to wrap your mind around.

In the 1980s, lead singer Ed Roland was eager to get his music career off the ground. After coming up short with a couple of projects, he created his own demo tape that he began shopping around. The tape found its way to the Georgia State University radio station WRAS. It was there that “Shine” found a footing, eventually catching on in Orlando, Florida.

That demo, Hints, Allegations & Things Left Unsaid, was recorded mainly by Roland on the independent label Rising Storm Records in 1993. Once “Shine” began getting serious traction, Atlantic Records stepped up and signed the group, which had picked up Ed’s brother, Dean Roland, Turpin, guitarist Ross Childress, and drummer Shane Evans.

“When ‘Shine’ was recorded, Ed pretty much did that one all on his own,” Turpin said. “He has Ross on there playing the guitar solo.

“Half of the songs on that first record weren’t even recorded as a band. They were just kind of Ed getting songs out there, because he was possibly ready to get a publishing deal because he wanted something to possibly fall back on. Some of those songs were written intended for a songwriter demo. It ended up on a Collective Soul record, and we sold 35,000 copies on an independent label before Atlantic Records came along.

“It just unfolded right in front of us,” he added. “Then the next thing you know, best friends are traveling around the world conquering stages at 23 years old.”

The group anticipated re-recording the album with Atlantic, but that was not in the cards.

“Once Atlantic Records signed us, they didn’t want to do anything else but put the Atlantic Records stamp on the album,” Turpin said. “That played out over our first five records with Atlantic Records. They always let us do what we thought was right. We were never that band they felt like they could tell what to do or try to influence us.”

With a full band on board, the group considers their second record their debut, hence it being self-titled.

“We were like, ‘OK, now we’re a band. Now we get to show people what we can do as a band.’ ” Turpin said. “We wanted to release multiple records as quick as we could. Sure enough, those next three records were released within four years. We were so focused on having people hear what we had to offer.”

Following the charts

“Shine” kicked off a busy decade for Collective Soul as the single stayed at No. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart for eight weeks in 1994. The band’s self-titled 1995 follow-up had three No. 1 hits with “December,” “The World I Know,” and “Where the River Flows,” while “Gel” reached No. 2. The hits continued on 1997’s Disciplined Breakdown that had No. 1 songs “Precious Declaration” and “Listen.” Their most recent No. 1 song was “Heavy” off their 1999 record Dosage.

Collective Soul released five more albums through 2009 with varying lineups in the band. Then, in 2015, they saw their names atop the Billboard charts again when See What You Started By Continuing hit No. 1 in the Alternative Album chart.

“You take it as it goes,” Turpin said about trying to figure out what will connect with people. “In the early days, we really had to follow charts because everything depended on your next single or your next record. Everything was dependent on charts. We felt like we didn’t want to fall off the map, so we were constantly following charts. By the time 2015 rolled around, we were just confident in our craft. We try to focus and make sure the business is lined up, but we don’t chase those stats and charts like we used to.”

They released Blood in 2019 and Vibrating in 2022 and don’t seem to be folding it in anytime soon with a steady lineup of the Roland brothers, Turpin, guitarist Jesse Triplett, and drummer Johnny Rabb since 2014.

“Next year for Collective Soul, there’s going to be a lot,” Turpin said.

Not resting on laurels

As they continue to forge ahead, Turpin is aware that it could be easy to fall into a groove and just phone in live shows. However, he continually reminds himself, and his mates, that that’s not an option.

“Honestly, I’m the one that has to remind my bandmates every now and then that, ‘Guys, I know we’ve been doing this for a long time, but there’s still going to be people in the audience that have never seen Collective Soul live.’

“Sometimes you have to remind yourself that yes, there are millions of humans out there that have never seen Collective Soul live. You have to remind yourself that they bought tickets and they want to see the goods.”