The Wood Brothers at Webster Hall

Raised in Boulder, Colorado, guitarist Oliver Wood and his brother, bassist Chris Wood, listened to their father perform classic songs at camp fires and family gatherings. When it was time for the younger Woods to make music on their own, Oliver moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where he played guitar in cover bands, in Tinsley Ellis' band, and in his own band, King Johnson, while Chris studied jazz and moved to New York City, where he co-founded Medeski Martin & Wood (MMW). After 15 years apart, working on separate music careers, King Johnson one day wound up opening for MMW. Oliver sat in with MMW that night, sparking a collaboration within the brothers that shortly thereafter would become the Wood Brothers. They recruited percussionist Jano Rix, and eventually relocated to Nashville, Tennessee. The trio released its eighth studio album, Kingdom in My Mind, on January 24, 2020.

On the first of two headlining dates at Webster Hall, the Wood Brothers introduced four new songs and played songs from each of the earlier albums, with an emphasis on the earlier work. The music was a composite of many American roots music. Recurrently, for instance, the vocal melodies sounded country while the music underneath was blues-influenced. Especially for a three-piece unit, the arrangements varied significantly from song to song, peppered with multi-part harmonies, complex bass showcases, and the ultimate killer, Rix playing keyboards with his right hand while hitting percussion with his left hand and two feet. Oliver Wood did most of the lead vocals, with Chris Wood singing "Jitterbug Love." Towards the end of the performance, the three musicians gathered around one old-time microphone for a mini-set of acoustic instruments and triple-harmony. Throughout the finely honed set, the Wood Brothers' brand of Americana felt richly authentic and compellingly homespun.

Setlist:

1. Pray Enough
2. Postcards from Hell
3. American Heartache
4. Jitterbug Love
5. Shoofly Pie
6. The One I Love
7. When I Was Young
8. Lovin' Arms
9. Little Bit Broken
10. Chocolate on My Tongue
11. Big Road Blues (Tommy Johnson cover)
12. One Drop of Truth
13. Atlas
14. I Got Loaded (Little Bob & The Lollipops cover)
15. One More Day
16. Cry Over Nothing
17. Keep Me Around
18. Happiness Jones / Express Yourself
19. Snake Eyes

Encore:

1. Luckiest Man
2. Get Out of My Life, Woman (Allen Toussaint cover)