Cross Canadian Ragweed was the real deal, and will always be one of the greatest bands of all time.
A little too country for rock & roll, and a little too rock & roll for country, the genre defying band defined an era of Red Dirt music and blazed the trail for many bands after them to experience the national success that they have.
It’s hard to say exactly what the independent, non-mainstream music scene would look like had CCR never existed, particularly in terms of the music coming out of Texas and Oklahoma, but I can assure you it wouldn’t look the same.
The band formed in Yukon, Oklahoma in 1994 and quickly relocated to Stillwater, Oklahoma where they immersed themselves in the Red Dirt community. Frontman Cody Canada honed his songwriting skills alongside fellow Red Dirt contemporaries like Stoney LaRue and Jason Boland, and under the guidance of the scene’s pioneers like Tom Skinner and Bob Childers. As a band Cross Canadian Ragweed found their sound and built their fan base in Stillwater.
As their fan base grew, they went from a regional act to selling out venues all across the country with their high energy shows. Their debut album Carney was released in 1998, and by the band’s unfortunate disbandment in 2010, they had released seven studio albums and three live albums, including timeless classics such as “Alabama,” “Boys From Oklahoma,” and “17.”
Although CCR hasn’t been together for over a decade, their memory lives on within the hearts of their fans, and their music continues to reach new, younger audiences as they have solidified their place in Red Dirt lore. Now, Cody Canada still tours and releases new music with his band The Departed, which features former CCR bassist Jeremy Plato and Red Dirt vet Eric Hansen on drums. If you catch one of their shows, you can still hear quite a few Ragweed originals played live.
Today, The Departed released a revisited version of Soul Gravy, one of Ragweed’s most popular albums. Originally released in 2004, Canada was never completely satisfied with the final product, despite the collection of songs being some of his favorites.
“I never was satisfied with the recording of ‘Soul Gravy.’ The songs are still my favorite collection of songs, but the way we recorded it was with digital amps, I wanted to do it with tube amps and we just didn’t have time because we were so busy.
That was a busy year so we recorded fast. No amps. All pod. I didn’t like that idea and got out-voted. This time I did it the way I wanted. I can finally own recordings of these songs again and have them on vinyl.”
18 years later, the 2022 version of Soul Gravy contains all 14 songs, and includes features from amazing artists like Randy Rogers, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Lee Ann Womack, Kaitlin Butts, and students of Canada’s School of Rock.
In a post to Instagram following the album’s release, Canada has this to say:
“It’s live. Thank you to Randy Rogers Mason Morris, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Lee Ann Womack, Ryan Snipes, Elle Gorman, Eric Hansen, Dierks Canada, Willy Canada for adding your talents to this album.
To Brian Kinzie for learning a new process of studio recording. To Paige Spiers Gorman for the cover art. To Shannon Canada for all the hours put in. To Will Wright for the art inspo.
And of course to non-social media having Plato for always having my back through whatever musical project I throw at him.”
Soul Gravy 2022 Tracklist:
“Number”
“Again” ft. Randy Rogers
“Lonely Girl”
“Cold Hearted Woman”
“Sick and Tired”
“Hammer Down”
“Flowers”
“Leave Me Alone”
“Down”
“Wanna Rock and Roll” ft. Ray Wylie Hubbard (RWH Cover)
“Alabama”
“Pay”
“Too Far Gone”
“Stranglehold” (Ted Nugent Cover)
And if you’re looking at it on Spotify and wondering why some songs say “2022” and others say “2002”…
“We’re aware of the typos on the dates for some of the tunes and are working to get them corrected. Can’t win em all now can ya??”
Soul Gravy 2022 is a must listen for anyone and everyone, but especially if you are not familiar with Cross Canadian Ragweed. If you like what you hear, go and check out the rest of Ragweed’s catalog, as well as some of the more recent stuff Cody Canada and The Departed have been putting out.
Catch a show, too, if you want to hear these tunes live. They put on one of the best shows in the business.
“Lonely Girl”
“Sick & Tired”
“Alabama”
