BIO
Eric Woodring currently resides in Houston, Texas and is a performing songwriter. He is as Texan as they come and classifies as a traditional country musician. Woodring writes true Texas music and delivers it with a voice that will knock your boots off.
Woodring started playing music professionally in 1996 after moving to Lubbock, TX, becoming a young frosh at Texas Tech University. He quickly became entrenched in the Lubbock music scene and began frequenting multiple venues throughout the Hub City. In the late 90s, he formed and fronted the Texas Speedbump Band. The band became quite popular regionally, frequently performing for large crowds of hundreds to thousands, even sharing the stage with another popular local band at the time – Wade Bowen and West 84. After leaving Lubbock, post-graduation, he settled in New Braunfels, TX where he focused solely on songwriting and performing, often with friend and former Speedbumps fiddler, Tommy Sheen. After relocating to Austin to pursue an attractive day job, he met local Austin music producer and engineer, Ron Flynt and began recording a full-length record. In 2004, he released his first album titled “Lifemiles”. Following the release, he launched the Lifemiles tour of the Southwest US, and received regional radio play.
After finishing the tour and resettling back in Austin, Woodring would eventually get married and move to Chicago, IL. To this day, the time spent in Chicago continues to impact his songwriting. He’s experienced living from both ends of the spectrum, the smallest of towns to the largest of cities. Woodring had a true-Texan upbringing, growing up outside of the tiny South Texas town of Inez, and has always identified as a small towner. Living in Lubbock, New Braunfels, Austin and then Chicago proved to be an intense experience, culturally speaking.
Upon moving back to Texas, from Chicago to Houston, he reunited with Kyle Wright, his long-time friend and former bandmate from Lubbock’s Texas Speedbump Band. After a few rehearsals, they were at it again – playing local Houston venues. In 2012 he began fronting the successful Houston cover band, Retroburn. The band frequented top Houston-area venues such as House of Blues, Pleasure Pier and the Kemah Boardwalk. It was during this time that he developed a working relationship with Retroburn’s lead guitarist, Gerald Thurmond. Thurmond, Woodring and Wright would go on to form the group that grew into the popular Houston-based Texas string-band, The Recollection. The project stayed true to its Texas roots, with Thurmond and Woodring writing songs mostly on Texas themes, about everything from Willie Nelson to Bluebonnets. Performing their original songs, using traditional bluegrass instruments makes for a high energy, foot stomping, good-ole Texas time. In 2017, they released their first recording project, an EP titled “This Is Texgrass!”. In 2018, thanks to the direction of Grammy Award winning Producer, Lloyd Maines, they started working with Houston music icon, Jack Saunders on another recording project. In early 2019, they released a follow-up EP titled “True Texas True” which included guests such as Lloyd Maines, Tina Wilkins and Jack Saunders.
Thru the recording process for The Recollection’s project, Jack Saunders took Woodring under his wing and began to help him develop his solo-artist career. Saunders recognized his ability to write honest and relatable songs and became a fan of Woodring’s pure, powerful voice, suggesting it slots between the Georges - Strait and Jones (ironically, Woodring shares a birthday with the late Jones).
2019 looks to be a big year for Woodring, releasing albums both as a solo artist as well as with The Recollection. With a Full-Length album due out in the Summer, he continues to perform regularly, both locally and regionally, earning respect as a true Texas songwriter, and showcasing his voice that is as big as the state he calls home.