Creed: Mark Tremonti (vocals, guitar); Scott Stapp (vocals); Brian Marshall (bass); Scott Phillips (drums).
"With Arms Wide Open" won the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Rock Song and was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Creed's second album continues in the vein of MY OWN PRISON, combining heavy guitar rock with lyrics that aspire to something beyond standard rock & roll hedonism. There's plenty of head-banging riffs for lead singer Scott Stapp's Vedder-esque wail to ride over (although the band is surprising nimble considering how heavy it plays) and this time out there's also some softer stuff --"Say I," "Wrong Way"--with more than a hint of Led Zeppelin in its Middle-Eastern experimental mode. Even more surprising, there's actually a ballad here--"With Arms Wide Open"--with a wistfully beautiful melody.
What the critics say...
Q (12/99, p.130) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...an intense and introspective affair....the band perform well, have a good solid sound and, in songs...sometimes reveal a talent for a good tune..."
CMJ (10/18/99, p.3) - "...HUMAN CLAY will grab you by the shoulders and shake you all night long."
