If it were up to Conor Oberst, the world might have never heard Creed. The songwriter from Bright Eyes has revealed that, back when he was signed to the same label as Creed in the '90s, he unsuccessfully tried to talk the label owners out of signing the post-grunge band.
Speaking with the podcast Broken Record, Oberst recalled his early career in the emo band Commander Venus, at which time he had a friendly relationship with Alan and Diana Meltzer, owners of Wind-Up Records (originally known as Grass Records).
"They were sweet, but I remember them showing me Creed before it even came out," he said. "And I was like, 'You guys — it sounds like a really bad Pearl Jam.'"
The Meltzers weren't convinced, however. Oberst recalled, "The lady, Diana, she was like, 'He's like Jim Morrison. He's the new Jim Morrison.' I was like, 'Guys…' And then, sure enough, they put it out, and it's the biggest thing in the world. So [that's] another reason not to ever trust my judgement."
The album Oberst presumably heard was Creed's 1997 debut My Own Prison, which included the modestly successful singles "What's This Life For," "One," "Torn" and "My Own Prison." It wasn't until their next album, 1999's Human Clay — which also came out through Wind-Up Records — that they became a huge mainstream success with songs like "Higher" and "With Arms Wide Open."
Funnily enough, Creed singer Scott Stapp actually did end up filling Jim Morrison's shoes, as Stapp sang with the Doors as a guest vocalist on VH1 Storytellers in 2000.