Review: Oliver Wood ‘Fat Cat Silhouette’

Review: Oliver Wood ‘Fat Cat Silhouette’

By Hal Horowitz

Back in 2021, Oliver Wood introduced his first solo album apart from the Wood Brothers. At the time it seemed like a one-off, created during the downtime of the pandemic when the music business, touring, and almost everything else, came to a sudden halt.

But three years later, we have its surprise follow-up.

Released June 14, Fat Cat Silhouette continues in the manner of Wood’s debut by bringing in a smattering of like-minded players to fill out the sound, providing more twists and turns to his already idiosyncratic indie/folk/blues. Since fellow Wood Brothers’ member Jano Rix both plays (percussion and keyboards) and produces the nine song set, the result isn’t far from what Oliver contributes to his full-time outfit.

This won’t surprise Wood Brothers’ fans since that held true to his previous collection. Oliver’s distinctively scratchy voice is so uniquely suited for his quirky songs and lyrics that even when he navigates a few side roads, they reference a similar atypical ambiance that has gradually made the Wood Brothers unlikely arena headliners since their first album, nearly 20 years ago.

While bass playing brother Chris’s jazzy, occasionally experimental, four-string bottom is MIA, Ted Pecchio (Tinsley Ellis, Derek Trucks, Wood’s first solo album) fills in admirably.

As usual, Oliver’s frisky, relaxed charm abounds, specifically in the opening “Light and Sweet.” This whimsical story of a sparrow talking on the phone to his lawyers about his soon to be ex-wife (“He said he never tried, but he tried his best”) is accompanied with staccato guitar strums and subtle slide work. Those familiar with Paul Simon’s earlier sides will notice parallels to his dry wit and low-key humor. The lively folksy African touches, enhanced by Rix’s jumpy percussion, of “Little Worries” also tilt towards Simon’s influences.

Guests Marcus Henderson (Marshall Tucker Band) on flute, Brook Sutton along with Steve Berlin (Los Lobos) blowing regular and baritone saxes and Rob Crawford handling “marching bass drum” bring joyous spirit to the New Orleans’ vibe of “Whom I Adore.” According to the pre-release notes, time ran out to add horns for the bouncy, gospel-inflected “Star in the Corner” so the parts were sung instead. That brings further uniqueness to music which thrives on that quality.

The mood turns bluesier than on most Wood Brothers’ material for “Grab Ahold” (a co-write with Seth Walker), bringing a deep Mississippi Delta thump and some of Oliver’s natural gospel tendencies to a song about saving a friend who is losing hope (“we’ll all go down together if you grab ahold of me”) with dusky humor. The folksy “Somebody Blues” strips the instrumentation to just skeletal drums, bass and guitar for this set’s most melancholy moment as Oliver sings about the trauma of losing a longtime lover. “It’s hard to lose someone,” he moans with offhand sincerity as a person who knows what that’s like.

The album’s most spellbinding performance comes with “Have You No Shame,” a moving cover of a song penned by the late Donny McCormick, a friend and mentor from the days when Oliver fronted Atlanta’s King Johnson. Katie Pruitt trades lead vocals on the searing, bluesy tune about romantic infidelity which finds both singers baring their souls for a duet that will leave listeners mesmerized. It’s as powerful as anything Wood has recorded.

That’s just one highlight of this superb release. It bides time until the next Wood Brothers’ offering and is further proof, if any is needed, that Oliver Wood is one of contemporary roots music’s most creative, inventive and charismatic musicians.

“Yo I Surrender”