Home » Jazz Musicians » Charlie Wood

Charlie Wood

Charlie Wood is a singer/songwriter and keyboardist whose work incorporates elements of jazz, blues, traditional r&b and popular music.

Born and raised in Memphis, TN, Charlie headed down the Mississippi to New Orleans at seventeen, spending a few formative years soaking up the music and culture of the Big Easy and playing keys with local favourites like Charmaine Neville. He returned to Memphis in his early twenties to join the band of legendary blues guitarist Albert King, with whom he toured the US and Europe.

Having established a musical reputation for himself, Charlie took up a long-standing residency with his Hammond organ trio at King's Palace on Beale Street. The gig became known to touring musicians and locals alike, attracting impromptu sit-ins from B.B. King, Georgie Fame, Joey DeFrancesco, George Coleman, Mulgrew Miller, Alvin Batiste, and many others.

In October 2014, Wood became the 136th recipient of a Brass Note on Beale Street, the Memphis equivalent of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Other recipients include such musical luminaries as Elvis Presley, Al Green, and Isaac Hayes. Wood is an accomplished and prolific singer/songwriter with numerous original releases under his belt, including "Southbound" and "Who I Am" on Ben Sidran's GoJazz label and "Flutter and Wow" on Memphis-based Archer Records. His original song “Promised Land” won the 2016 U.S.A Songwriting Competition, Jazz category.

Now living in the UK with his wife, celebrated UK vocalist Jacqui Dankworth, Charlie continues touring and recording regularly. Notable performances have included the London Jazz Festival's "Jazz Voice" at the Royal Festival Hall, BBC Radio 2's "Friday Night Is Music Night" at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival, Radio 2's "Jools Holland Show," and numerous other concerts throughout the UK and Europe.

Wood’s most recent album, a mixture of new originals and classic soul/blues/r&b songs entitled “Tomorrow Night”, was released in November 2018. Soon to be released (2022) is “Privacy Policy”, an organ trio album with guitarist Chris Allard and drummer Ralph Salmins.

Tags

205
Album Review

Charlie Wood: Lucky

Read "Lucky" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins


Memphis has long been a hotbed of music. It was there that an unknown blues singer named Riley King would later become the biggest name in the genre: B.B. King. The city has also been home to Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire, Isaac Hayes, Rufus Thomas and The King: Elvis Presley. A more recent product of the city on the river is Charlie Wood, a vocalist and organist who plays old-school blues. Wood spent time ...

Read more articles
"Remember the first time you heard Dylan, or Springsteen, or Costello, or Waits? Charlie Wood delivers that same jolt." – Jazz Times

"I fell in love with this man's voice the moment I heard it. He is the essence of soul and blues. I am so lucky to have sung on the same stage as him." – Paloma Faith

"(Wood's) writing is exceptional, the often-ruminative songs featuring well- honed, literate lyrics... written with the technical precision and linguistic flair of a classic from the Great American Songbook." – R2 Magazine

"...a lean, unblemished voice which has the high, lonesome timbre of a dedicated bluesman." – New Statesman

Read more

Mose Allison
piano and vocals
Ray Charles
piano and vocals
Hank Marr
organ, Hammond B3
Trudy Pitts
organ, Hammond B3
Booker T. Jones
keyboards

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

The Memphis Hang

Summit Records
2008

buy

Lucky

Inside Sounds
2007

buy

Videos

Similar

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.