Tag Archives: Jason Isbell

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Song of the Day #6,219: ‘Gravelweed’ – Jason Isbell

Jason Isbell has quietly become one of the most reliable and talented singer-songwriters working today. For two decades, the native Alabaman has filtered his highs and lows through his distinctly southern perspective and set them to heart-tugging melodies.

His latest album, Foxes in the Snow, is his tenth. Every one of those solo studio releases is somewhere between great and excellent. If you’ve never heard him, start from the beginning and work your way through. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

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Song of the Day #5,535: ‘Save the World’ – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

One of the more prominent critics of Jason Aldean’s ‘Try That in a Small Town’ was fellow country artist Jason Isbell, known for his brilliant songwriting chops, his outspoken leftist politics, and his Twitter clapback game.

Isbell opted to take a shot at Aldean for defending a song he didn’t even write. “Dare Aldean to write his next single himself. That’s what we try in my small town,” Isbell tweeted. Then, “Ok here ya go @Jason_Aldean I’m challenging you to write a song yourself. All alone. If you’re a recording artist, make some art. I want to hear it.” And, “Seriously how do you defend the content of a song you weren’t even in the room for? You just got it from your producer. If you’d been there when it was written, you’d be listed as a writer. We all know how this works.”

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Song of the Day #5,417: ‘Cast Iron Skillet’ – Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit

Add one more title to the list of upcoming June releases by my favorite artists. I just learned that Jason Isbell, accompanied by his band the 400 Unit, will release an album titled Weathervanes on June 9.

Isbell first grabbed my attention with 2017’s The Nashville Sound, after which I quickly gobbled up the rest of his catalog. He delivers a rich blend of folk, Americana, and southern rock filtered through his fierce intellect and eagerness for merciless self-reflection. I discovered him around the same time I first heard Brandi Carlile and I think of them as flip sides of the same brilliant coin.

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Song of the Day #4,369: ‘Letting You Go’ – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

I’m interrupting Random Weekends for a day in order to mark a special occasion… the 18th birthday of my daughter, Sophia!

Sophia has been mentioned on the blog quite a few times over the years. Her first appearance during the Song of the Day era came all the way back at Song of the Day #6, when she was just six years old.

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Song of the Day #4,179: ‘Codeine’ – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

Best Albums of the 2010s – #11
Here We Rest – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (2011)

My #11 album of the 2010s is the only one on this list that I didn’t hear when it first came out. Jason Isbell’s Here We Rest eluded me for six years.

I discovered Isbell after reading year-end praise of his 2017 album The Nashville Sound (recorded, like this one, with his backing band The 400 Unit). The excellence of that album prompted me to download the rest of his catalog.

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