It was a frigid Atlanta night, with more-often-than-not traffic snarls, and the city preparing for another winter storm to chill weekend plans. What better place to be than in one of Atlanta’s best music venues to enjoy The Wood Brothers, a fabulous roots music trio whose sound and lyrics warm the soul, kicking off their 2026 winter tour.
On the strength of nine albums and a tendency to cover songs outside of playlist algorithms, you don’t know what you’re going to get night to night – the setlist changes. Roots, Americana, Traditional, Folk – there’s an abundance of labels these days for music that shares a heritage, but the Wood Brothers stand out on their own. There’s no affectations to lean heavily into a particular genre. It’s just great music.
With brothers Oliver and Chris on guitar/vocals and bass respectively, their work benefits from multi-instrumentalist Jano Rix, who manages percussion along with keyboards, occasionally at the same time, as well as guitar and vocals. When used, the keyboards particularly lift an “old sound” to something more modern without betraying the essence of the music.
It’s difficult to call out highlights, because any song may mean more to one person than another as they often touch on the human experience and connection. It helps that their songs are crafted to let the lyrics be heard, which The Eastern’s sound system delivered beautifully. A favorite was from “Little Bit Broken,” with:
the more I live the more I know
I should wear my scars like medals of gold
every beat up heart’s got more soul and
everybody is a little bit broken
“It May be Thursday, but we’ve got Friday night music, too.” Yes, the band excels at varying the pacing of their set. The band then played “I Got Loaded,” a cover of a 1965 drinking song from Little Bob & the Lollipops, reinterpreted in the Woods’ style. That’s kind of a “feel-good” song, but this band can rock, also. “The Trick” and “Honey Pot,” are good examples where they extended the vibe musically, but probably the best was “Postcards from Hell” featuring Chris Wood’s extended upright bass solo and harmonica.
For many, a likely highlight was when they gathered around a central mic, itself not uncommon these days for an “acoustic” piece, but very well done. The organic presentation and the band’s harmonies were phenomenal on “Pray God Listens” and “Rock Island Line,” the latter a traditional song brought to attention by Lead Belly and later covered by Johnny Cash and others.
Maybe a third into the set, after a song where the audience sang along with a chorus, Oliver Wood recounted a media interview on why they love touring, approximated: “The best thing is being together singing (along with the audience) regardless of religion or politics. Shaking your ass doesn’t hurt either.”
With all the tensions in cities and between nations, an evening of The Wood Brothers does the world good.
Setlist and additional photos follow.
Setlist:
Encore:
Ric Robertson opened the evening, solo on piano. His nuanced delivery, interspersed with humor, connected with the audience, really sounding quite different than the four albums he has released since 2018, those recorded with full band backing and production values. Often working as a session musician for a variety of instruments, he joined The Wood Brothers on mandolin for “”Rock Island Line.”
He also mentioned The Flow, a new alternative to other streaming services that does not allow AI music and, importantly, pays the artists. It will have different benefits available between a free and subscription service as it’s moved into full production.
