Oliver Wood Announces Debut Solo Album ‘Always Smilin’ & Shares Single

The Wood Brothers frontman Oliver Wood will release his debut solo album, Always Smilin’, via Honey Jar/Thirty Tigers on May 21. Oliver previewed the 11-track LP by unveiling the new single “Fine Line.”

Guests featured on Always Smilin’ include Susan Tedeschi, John Medeski, Phil Cook, Phil Madeira and Tyler Greenwell. “The year before the pandemic, people would come through Nashville where I live and I’d set up a co-write or a jam in our studio, just to do some stuff outside of my own band,” Oliver stated. “There wasn’t an album in mind. I just wanted to be creative. But when the pandemic happened, the songs started building up.”

Oliver used the time off the road in 2020 due to the pandemic to complete the album. While Wood finished the LP during a year of struggle for most, he feels Always Smilin’ lives up to its title and is more of a celebratory affair. “You’d be surprised at the music you write and the chances you take when there’s nothing at stake,” Oliver explained. “The best art is an accident. You wind up accessing a different part of your brain and trusting your instincts, rather than relying on control. I’ve learned it would serve you well to be like that in everyday life, especially when you’re dealing with stresses and crises.”

“Fine Line” dates back to Oliver’s days in King Johnson, an Atlanta-based band Wood co-founded with Chris Long, who contributed to Always Smilin’. “It was especially satisfying to make a connection between my past and present,” Wood added. “Bringing it back and recording it again was my way of paying tribute to that band and the music we made together.”

Stream Oliver Wood’s “Fine Line” below:

Always Smilin’ Tracklist

1. Kindness
2. Roots
3. Get The Blues
4. Came From Nothing
5. Molasses
6. Fine Line
7. The Battle Is Over (But The War Goes On)
8. Face Of Reason
9. Soul Of This Town
10. Unbearable Heart
11. Climbing High Mountains (Tryin’ To Get Home)