When Andy Wood came to Sweetwater in June to promote Suhr Guitars, he told me about the Woodshed Guitar Experience he was hosting in September. He said it’s basically his guitar friends and heroes hanging out and playing guitar with around 100 guests at a retreat on a lake near Crossville, Tennessee. Andy casually listed the names of a few of the amazing players that would be there: Brent Mason, Andy Timmons, Ariel Posen, Ben Eller, Ryan “Fluff” Bruce . . . and he mentioned that Steve Morse was the guest of honor. When he extended an invitation for me to attend, I was all in. Hanging out with those guitar greats? “Uh, yeah! This’ll be cool.” But I had no idea what was in store or just how awesome an experience it would be.
A few weeks later, Tom Quayle flew to Sweetwater from England, and I mentioned to him that I would be at Woodshed. His emphatic reply was that he would be there, couldn’t wait for it, wouldn’t miss it, and that I’d love it. Wow, a glowing report from across the pond!
I arrived at the scenic Lake Frances Retreats on the first day just in time for the “Welcome Concert,” a bluegrass tour de force featuring Andy Wood on mandolin, bassist/vocalist Daniel Kimbro, multi-instrumentalist Justin Moses, and Jake Workman from Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder on guitar. This was the musical equivalent of an ambush: I was in no way prepared to have my face completely melted off within the first hour of arriving. These boys threw down!
As I looked around the very small audience — fewer than a hundred — I noticed that all the guests and artists there were all completely into the music. After the concert, I picked my jaw up off the floor and went up to the stage to say hey to our host, Andy Wood, who had crushed some serious mandolin. As I approached, I saw Steve Morse and Jake Workman discussing picking-hand techniques . . . say what?! Similar discussions were happening all around the room among the artists and the “campers,” as Andy called the attendees. I had been there less than two hours, and there were two more days ahead. Clearly, this was going to be special.
The Workshops
Each day started with a full breakfast served buffet-style to all the campers and artists in the dining hall. The weather was perfect, so dining outside on the patio was the preferred choice. It was very relaxed and casual, come and go as you please, and full of lively conversation, mostly about anything music or guitar related. Some folks even had their guitars with them as they ate! I witnessed this same scene at lunch, dinner, and every time people were gathered . . . which was pretty much the entire time!
The days were filled with workshops taught by the artists. Every artist did one workshop per day, and they were scheduled so that the campers could attend all of them if they chose to. The topics widely ranged from playing techniques, songwriting, how to tap into your deeper musical self, how to play the right part for the song, and navigating the modern-day music business.
Naturally, the workshops involved lots of guitar playing. There was lots of time for questions from the campers, and the small audience size helped keep the vibe very conversational. The campers were able to ask in-depth questions, and the artists enthusiastically responded.
I saw lots of great, one-on-one moments between artists and campers including Brent Mason showing his effects pedals to players, Ariel Posen helping someone try out different slides, and Andy Timmons signing someone’s guitar. I forgot to mention that at least half of the people had a guitar in their lap for every workshop. It was a sea of headstocks!
Every workshop I attended had at least one other artist in the audience, often asking questions. That was an overarching theme of the camp: everyone was there to share and learn.
The Concerts
Another consistent theme of the Woodshed Experience was seriously burnin’ guitar playing, and there was an abundance of it! All three evenings featured a concert. I’ve already detailed Thursday night’s bluegrass insanity. Friday night was an epic jam on a big stage with full production and rhythm section with Daniel Kimbro on bass, Jim Riley and Andy Campbell on drums, and Steve King on keyboards. The artist pairings were like nothing you’d ever imagine: Steve Morse with Jake Workman, Ariel Posen with Brent Mason, the dueling Andys — Wood and Timmons — and, at one point, I think all the artists, plus a couple guests, were onstage for a guitar jam!
Saturday night featured a fully rehearsed show where every artist performed several of their own songs backed by the stellar in-house band. The night had a concert vibe, and seeing all those artists doing their thing, back-to-back, was worth the trip by itself. Steve Morse was, of course, the headliner, and the cherry on top was that he was joined by longtime collaborator and bassist Dave LaRue for his set, so every Steve Morse song was in play! I was particularly excited to hear them play “Cruise Missile,” and they nailed it!
The Fellowship
I almost forgot to mention the nightly camper jam! Every night after the concert, the rhythm section and a house bandleader, Roger Hay, scheduled times for the campers to play whatever song they wanted, either alone, with other campers, or with an artist of their choosing. It was fun to watch everyone interacting and making music together, which really was the goal. Again, the artists were as into it as the campers; they were very encouraging and eager to participate. In fact, it was after midnight on the last night when Steve Morse and I were the last two to leave the jam.
The classes and concerts were the marquee events, but the lifeblood of the Woodshed Experience is the “hang.” I witnessed it with every person there: artists, campers, and staff. It was an easy camaraderie infused with the kind of enthusiasm that you only see among people who are genuinely passionate about their shared interest. It was truly one of a kind, and I’m glad I was there to share in the experience.
And the Best Part?
The best part is that there’s another Woodshed event being planned for 2025, and I wouldn’t miss it! How many months until Woodshed 2025?