Bill Wood & The Woodies, Jonathan Byrd

Bill Wood and the Woodies is what happens when the songs are the main event. When 30 years of songwriting, honed over decades of hard life experiences, meets the craftsmanship of career musicians who don’t know what it means to compromise.

Listening to the Woodies, you get the sense that they believe in the power of a really good song, regardless of genre. Few others could produce an album with so many solid tunes. The songs come from the soul of Bill Wood, who has lived a lifetime and more since he was a minor Canadian success story with an 80s’ pop band—all the while writing songs. When asked about his inspirations and direction of the album, Bill had this to say: “The biggest inspiration for the direction of the record was trying to capture the live feel of the Woodies. This is the first “band” album I've been involved with in a long time. We’ve been honing our sound over 7 years and really wanted to try and capture what we've been achieving live.”

An industry veteran singer-songwriter, and former lead vocalist for Juno-nominees EyeEye, Wood has perfected his craft over more than three decades. Disillusioned with the music industry’s “star maker machinery,” Wood stepped away from recording and performing in the early 90s to focus on raising his family and making a living. His experiences as a home renovator, woodworker and, most recently, as a support worker for the community shelter and housing industry have infiltrated his songs. Wood has also had his struggles with addiction, which provide crucial insights and empathy to his volunteer work as coordinator of a drop-in and food bank for marginalized youth. Throughout all these real-world experiences, he’s been writing songs, performing and recording, including three gospel discs and his first solo CD, Take It.

We asked Bill, what are some of the recurring themes behind his songs? This is what he said: “I would say the recurring theme of this disc is life experience. I’ve been kicking around a long time. I'm a survivor. Life is hard but also great. I titled it “oh look” in reference to life in general. There is always something new.”

Jonathan Byrd is “one of the top 50 songwriters of the last 50 years,” says Rich Warren of WFMT in the Chicago Tribune. Scott Alarik of the Boston Globe says, “This rootsy North Carolinian may be the most buzzed-about new songwriter in folkdom. He displays John Prine’s gift for stark little songs that tell big, complex stories, Guy Clark’s lean melodicism, Lyle Lovett’s wry mischief, and Bill Morrissey’s knack for the revealing image.” After 10 years as a full-time touring songwriter and 7 acclaimed albums, it seems this native of Cackalacky is getting the attention he deserves.