Cody Canada knew it was time. His band, Cross Canadian Ragweed, had been on hiatus for nearly 15 years, and he was starting to think reunion. He figured it might one day happen.
But, for a band with Oklahoma roots, he didn’t expect this revelation to take place in, of all places, New York City.
“I was in New York seeing a band with my kids, and I saw Madison Square Garden, and I was like, ‘I wonder if Ragweed could sell out the Garden; I bet we could,” Canada said on a recent phone call. “It felt like a pipe dream. But, a few of us went out later and started passing around the horn and talking goals for the next year.”
Canada, the frontman for CCR, teared up.
“I think I’m ready,” he told his wife and others.
A little over a year later, CCR did reunite in front of its hometown crowd of Stillwater, Oklahoma. Canada and his bandmates expected a welcome return, but they never could have expected this.
“I was amazed,” he said.
To put it mildly.
CCR announced an April 2025 show for T. Boone Pickens Stadium at Oklahoma State University. So well received was the announcement that a second show for the next night was added. More were soon added to that. In total, the reunion shows sold more than 180,000 tickets.
Reunion? More like a revival.
“I thought we might sell 10,000 tickets, maybe 20,000, for that first show,” Canada said. “Then my wife and booking agent come to me and they’re talking about nights three and four, and I’m like, ‘what about night 2?,’ and they’re like, ‘it’s sold out!.’ You’re out of your mind, what is happening right now? I’ll never get over it … It was 10,000 times what I expected.”
CCR has a slate of shows upcoming for 2026, including March 16 at Rodeo Houston, as well as a return date in Stillwater in April. From off the radar to the center of attention; the last couple of years have provided quite the swing in momentum for one of the pioneers of “red dirt” music.
Not only was CCR more influential than some might have at one point predicted; they were also quite missed. In fact, Koe Wetzel – a star in his own right, who plays the Rodeo on March 18 – even penned a song about the band. The track, “Ragweed,” includes the chorus line: “She misses Ragweed like I do.”
Apparently, she wasn’t the only one.
“We played a tribute for Robert Earl Keen about 20 years ago, and he was saying that he appreciated all the nice things everybody was saying, but that he wasn’t ready for all this,” Canada said. “He wasn’t ready for that kind of tribute, and we felt the same way once we returned. We weren’t ready for that kind of reaction.”
As for the reformation following a rather bitter breakup in 2010, it didn’t take long for Canada and his CCR bandmates to get back in the swing of things.
“The first practice we had in almost 20 years, we didn’t speak for probably five songs; just rolling through them and onto the next song,” Canada said. “Then we started bullshitting and talking again and were like, ‘we’ve been playing these songs for years but didn’t think we’d be this tight.’ It took maybe six songs to say, ‘we can still do this.’”
Now, times have changed a bit over the years. Some CCR members have gotten sober, and those who imbibe on occasion do just that, on occasion.
“We’re so in love with each other again, and everyone is so happy,” Canada said. “We’re not trying to be the cool kid on the block, outdrinking the opening band; that Guns N’ Roses shit is gone. It’s just us wanting to have fun again.”
Age and maturity do have a way of bringing about perspective. And, for Canada and CCR, appreciation as well.
“We have so much love between us and in front of us,” he said. “People are excited to be back together. We’re not going to get a third chance, so let’s treat this right.”
Cross Canadian Ragweed performs Monday, March 16 at Rodeo Houston, NRG Stadium, 1 NRG Parkway. For more information, visit rodeohouston.com. Tickets $13-$125.