Not many artists are given a second chance in the limelight. And even fewer are able to parlay that second chance into a career-defining run accompanied with critical and commercial success.
Two Grammys.
Six American Music Honors & Awards wins.
Two albums which reached the top ten of the Billboard 200.
A genre-defining release worthy of being compared to the works of the greatest singer-songwriters of all-time.
Obtaining sobriety…
Finding a second chance at love…
And welcoming a baby girl.
In the last decade of Jason Isbell’s life, the musician from Green Hill, Alabama, has undergone a number of poetic peaks and valleys befitting of the classic underdog story.
At the current stage of his musical journey, he stands as one of the darlings of the current Americana scene. His quality of songwriting towers above nearly all of his contemporaries. At 38 years old, the former FAME Studios session musician is now a happily married man and the father of a little girl.
But nearly none of this came to fruition…
For six years, Isbell served as the third guitarist and a contributing songwriter for the Drive-By Truckers. The Athens-based outfit rose to fame in the northern Georgia after revitalizing a fleeting brand of Southern rock once made famous by another group of Peach State musicians: The Allman Brothers Band.
During his time with the Truckers, Jason Isbell appeared on three records. His songwriting contributions and musicianship particularly stood out on The Dirty South. The landmark release is arguably still the Truckers’ best in their extensive discography.
In 2007, Isbell left the Truckers. Though the departure was deemed amicable, Isbell’s personal demons and addiction to alcohol undoubtedly played a role in the band’s decision to part ways.
That same year, Isbell released his debut solo release, Sirens of the Ditch. The album featured contributions from several of the Truckers musicians and his first wife, bassist Shonna Tucker. Despite the release, Isbell’s drinking problems continued to spiral out of control for the next several years. Within the ensuing year Isbell and his wife were divorced. Isbell’s career and life seemed to already be in jeopardy by the ripe, old age of 30.
A drunken morning in a McDonald’s parking lot led Isbell to call up a long-time friend, Amanda Shires, and ask for help. In recent interviews, Shires often confesses that she pined for Isbell during the early years of their friendship. However, Shires was unable to pursue a romantic relationship due to Isbell’s marriage to Tucker. Shires helped her friend get clean. As Isbell so wonderfully expressed in Southeatern‘s opening track, “Cover Me Up”: “But I sobered up and I swore off that stuff forever, this time.”
After gaining sobriety, Isbell’s third album Here We Rest (2011) was put out on Lightning Rod Records. Here We Rest was the first Isbell record to feature Shires, who happened to be one of the most well-known fiddle players in the Americana scene. Shires and Isbell were married in February 2013, and Isbell’s fourth solo release, Southeastern, followed four months later. The album proved to be a watershed mark in Isbell’s career.
Isbell departed from Lightning Rod Records to form his own record label, known as Southeastern Records. Southeastern proved to be a glorious signal to a new era for Isbell and Shires, marked by fame and unprecedented success.
Southeastern has sold nearly 150,000 copies to-date and resulted in three American Music Honors & Awards wins for Isbell: Song of the Year, Album of the Year, and Artist of the Year (the ultimate trifecta for music awards.
The album is forged from the same source of introspective genius responsible for Harvest, Blood on the Tracks, Astral Weeks, Blue, and a few other select recordings. Though it might not represent the voice of a generation, it most certainly epitomizes a small town aesthetic which has all but disappeared from popular American music. Southeastern is already one of the densest records of the decade. It is an amalgamation of Americana, singer/songwriter, folk, Southern rock, and alternative country…and a damn good one at that. It is the sort of artistic piece dripping with genuine emotional catharsis that elicits both tears and joy from the listener. The twelve tracks encompassing the 47-minute-long masterpiece could make for a fabulous songwriting career if spread across multiple albums. Yet, they are each packed into this single record. It is perhaps the quintessential redemption album for this period of American music.
After Southeastern put him on the map, Isbell continued his wave of momentum by releasing Something More Than Free (2015) and most recently The Nashville Sound (2017). The former album garnered a Grammy for Best Americana Album while also receiving recognition as the Americana Music Honors & Awards 2016 Album of the Year. The album’s second track, “24 Frames”, won two song of the year awards. Meanwhile, The Nashville Sound is currently nominated for the 2017 Country Music Association Album of the Year.
Isbell has performed everywhere from the Grande Ole Opry to NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Series.
He successfully injects relevant social commentary into his already deeply personal lyrics. In this respect, his work conjures up worthwhile comparisons to Neil Young.
Two months after Something More Than Free debuted at six on the Billboard 200, Isbell and Shires welcomed their baby girl into the world. At least to the naked eye, it would appear as though Isbell has finally attained the happiness and success most artists long for throughout their lives.
Isbell and his supporting band, the 400 Unit, are continuing to tour across the country, and they embark on a run of European shows this fall. More importantly for this dj and fan, Isbell will be appearing at the Baton Rouge River Center Theater on Tuesday, September 26. Tickets are still available for those interested in witnessing one of the South’s most gifted modern artists.
