Show Review: Matt Woods, the Aints, and Beau Jennings Steeped the Norman Deli in Song

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This past Monday night I ventured just south of OKC to visit Norman, and more specifically, the small iconic dive bar, The Deli. Situated in the heart of Campus Corner, and nestled in the shadows of The University of Oklahoma, The Deli has been serving up live music since 1973. The Deli is an important fixture in the Oklahoma music scene, supporting and essentially providing a home away from home for countless Oklahoma songwriters and musicians. Somehow, not only was this my first visit to The Deli, it was also my first opportunity to catch Matt Woods and the Natural Disasters. I’m glad I made the drive. Both definitely exceeded my expectations, and that’s certainly always a good thing!

I’d had several friends speak highly of Matt Woods as a songwriter and performer. The Knoxville, Tennessee native writes songs steeped in authenticity and representative of country music from days gone by. More than once during Woods’ set I found myself thinking of Waylon, Shaver, Kristofferson and the like. Woods is just that compelling of a performer, and the songs just that good. Backed by the Natural Disasters, Weston Harris Hill (Guitar), Stone Anderson (Bass) and Jon Whitlock (Drums), Woods and band delivered a musical baptism, communion and exorcism all in the span of their 13 song set. While I found the entire set captivating, “Fireflies,” “Cold Civil War,” “Drive-Thru Song,” “The American Way” and “With Love From Brushy Mountain” were true standouts for me, as was Woods’ wit and charm. Woods’ 2019 release, Matt Woods and the Natural Disasters is available as well as three previous releases on his webpage and I can’t recommend them enough. For more information click here: https://www.therealmattwoods.com/

As I mentioned, The Deli caters to the local Oklahoma Music scene and this evening was a perfect introduction and example of that relationship. Regrettably I arrived just at the tail end of a set from The Aints, but based on the last couple songs they’re a band I’ll be making an effort to catch soon.
Check out more about the Aints here: https://www.facebook.com/AintsMusic/

The middle slot featured Beau Jennings and the Tigers. The Tigers are comprised of, Jennings, Chase Kerby, Jeff Richardson, Michael Trepagnier, Eric Nauni, and tonight were joined by special guests, Andy Adams and Kyle Reid. I really enjoyed their set, and will need to dive deeper into Jennings’ prolific catalog to learn more about this gifted songwriter. The opening sets really showcased the collaborative magic of the Oklahoma Music scene, and effectively complimented the more road worn swagger of Woods and The Natural Disasters. For a Monday night, it was one of best I’ve had in a while. More info on Beau Jennings and the Tigers can be found here: https://beaujennings.bandcamp.com/