Southern Ground

Like the previous edition, the year’s second, live Wood Brothers collection clocks in at just over a half hour, begging the question: Why didn’t they just put it all together on one full-length disc? But like that last one, Nail & Tooth makes up for brevity with excellence. The slow-building opener, Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s gospel classic “Up Above My Head,” is driven by Chris Wood’s crisp, pulsing bass and the other two covers, the traditional “Ain’t No More Cane” (with Clay Cook on lap steel) and a wicked Band-like take on Allen Toussaint’s “Get Out My Life Woman,” are richly rendered. Of the original tunes (all at least partially credited to Oliver Wood), the multi-layered groove of “Shoofly Pie” and the set-closing, balls-out rocker “Atlas” are particular highlights.