My opinion of Neff on stage changed Thursday night.

I've always thought he was a great player. And I'm not talking about doing backflips or anything when I talk about stage presence. He just always looked bored when I've seen them play before.

He wasn't like that at all Thursday night. He didn't act crazy or anything but he was definitely into it and obviously enjoying himself. That was good to see.

I really dig Easy on yourself and had no idea other people here didn't like it. Sure it's not about southern boys telling better jokes and advice from my daddy or country boys shooting each other over a feud that none of the current generation remembers the point of. It's different.

I like Neff's playing as well. And that is coming from a guy who jumps up and down on stage because it's fun not to cover my lack of talent. Covering up my lack of talent is just a bonus.

jimmyjack wrote:
All that said, I don't really pull ANY of Jason's solo albums out very often, and I'm as big a fan of DBT in their current incarnation than I ever was. This is a band that would have been incapable of a song like UTBAC during the DD / TDS era. The slo-burn country soul style of latter-day DBT is a revelation. Not sure if it was Spponer's influence, or Booker's, or Betty's, but whatever it was, I'm glad they are the band that they are today. I hate to think Jason peaked really early (like Ryan Adams), but all evidence so far supports this idea. I'll still buy everything he releases, pre-order deluxe packages and see him whenever I can, but that's not based on his having "been a Trucker." It's based on the fact that this motherfucker wrote "Outfit," "Decoration Day," "Goddam Lonely Love," etc etc etc. Any one of those tunes is canon-worthy as far as I'm concerned.

I don't get it when people love Go Go Boots and don't get Jason's S/T. Simpatico, those two.

Cole Younger wrote:Don't know what you mean about the stroking Shonna's hair thing but it made me laugh

Still laughing?

cortez the killer wrote:

Cole Younger wrote:Don't know what you mean about the stroking Shonna's hair thing but it made me laugh

Still laughing?

Um, what?

Nothing will ever be as great as Isbell era DBT period. I have seen them every time they have been within 200 miles since 2003, and the Isbell shows were the best. Jason's first two albums were good, but Here We Rest is a better album than either of the last two DBT releases.

dangerbird wrote:....but Here We Rest is a better album than either of the last two DBT releases.

Hear Hear. I'll go so far as to say self-titled aged considerably better for me than BTCD has. I can't listen to more than side 1 of that record.

I love the stuff with Jason but I really like BTCD and The big to do also. I don't dig go go boots as much but i like it.

Dont get me wrong, the DBT albums are very good, I just think Jason really nailed it on his last record. Cooley is actually my favorite song writer and I have been waiting for a killer knock out song on the last two albums from him and it hasn't been there.

Nice article about Jason in the March 2012 edition of Relix Magazine.

Article reviews his January 5th show at The Fox Theatre in Boulder Colorado. Good article and very favorable review.

dangerbird wrote:Dont get me wrong, the DBT albums are very good, I just think Jason really nailed it on his last record. Cooley is actually my favorite song writer and I have been waiting for a killer knock out song on the last two albums from him and it hasn't been there.

birthday boy, cartoon gold, and pulaski all meet that description (and then some) for me...

I agree. I listen to Jason much more than the DBT records since he left the band. I switch on who my favorite songwriter of the three is but to me Jason is the most consistent.

Crazy since in all honesty I hated Jason's voice when he joined the band.

ford911 wrote:I agree. I listen to Jason much more than the DBT records since he left the band. I switch on who my favorite songwriter of the three is but to me Jason is the most consistent.

Crazy since in all honesty I hated Jason's voice when he joined the band.

Consistancy is not a virtue I would attach to Jason. Sirens is full of great songs but the hodge lodge nature of it makes for a lousy album. JI & The 400 Unit is a beautifully produced record with two or three songs that you remember after you finish listening. Here We Rest, on the other hand, is an amazing record. It has the songs and the killer production which made it one of my favorites from 2011. As a whole though I would say his career has been inconsistent with moment of brilliance. Now live is another story, he's consistent as hell and I'm not sure I've ever seen a bad show.

Tequila Cowboy wrote:

ford911 wrote:I agree. I listen to Jason much more than the DBT records since he left the band. I switch on who my favorite songwriter of the three is but to me Jason is the most consistent.

Crazy since in all honesty I hated Jason's voice when he joined the band.

Consistancy is not a virtue I would attach to Jason. Sirens is full of great songs but the hodge lodge nature of it makes for a lousy album. JI & The 400 Unit is a beautifully produced record with two or three songs that you remember after you finish listening. Here We Rest, on the other hand, is an amazing record. It has the songs and the killer production which made it one of my favorites from 2011. As a whole though I would say his career has been inconsistent with moment of brilliance. Now live is another story, he's consistent as hell and I'm not sure I've ever seen a bad show.

To each their own. Patterson has more songs that I skip than Jason. I love Sirens.

ford911 wrote:To each their own. Patterson has more songs that I skip than Jason. I love Sirens.

Of course. It's all opinions. The only Patterson song I ever skip is President's Penis. My favorite songwriter of the three (the comparison of which is completely unfair but we all do it anyway).

I love the songs on Sirens, can't listen to the record much because it has no consistent feel and the production is a bit lacking, IMHO of course.

Two of the best tracks from the Sirens sessions were left off the record (The Assassin and Crystal Clear)

Tequila Cowboy wrote:

ford911 wrote:I agree. I listen to Jason much more than the DBT records since he left the band. I switch on who my favorite songwriter of the three is but to me Jason is the most consistent.

Crazy since in all honesty I hated Jason's voice when he joined the band.

Consistancy is not a virtue I would attach to Jason. Sirens is full of great songs but the hodge lodge nature of it makes for a lousy album. JI & The 400 Unit is a beautifully produced record with two or three songs that you remember after you finish listening. Here We Rest, on the other hand, is an amazing record. It has the songs and the killer production which made it one of my favorites from 2011. As a whole though I would say his career has been inconsistent with moment of brilliance. Now live is another story, he's consistent as hell and I'm not sure I've ever seen a bad show.

Ha ha we'll never end this.

No, 400 Unit is a beautifully produced record with two or three songs that YOU remember after you finish listening. I remember all of them, even Good, though I pretty much hate the sound of that song. Here We Rest, on the other hand, starts out stellar and descends into being enjoyable. Nothing wrong with that, and God knows his live set needed some fun in it after S/T.

ford911 wrote:To each their own. Patterson has more songs that I skip than Jason.

Patterson has more "skippers" because he lets it all hang out - see Neil Young & Bob Dylan. However, when the dust settles and you've worn you skip button out, Patterson has written far better songs than Jason. And as talented and "upcoming" as Jason is, he will NEVER come close to Patterson.

Zip City wrote:Two of the best tracks from the Sirens sessions were left off the record (The Assassin and Crystal Clear)

Quoted for truth

cortez the killer wrote:

ford911 wrote:To each their own. Patterson has more songs that I skip than Jason.

Patterson has more "skippers" because he lets it all hang out - see Neil Young & Bob Dylan. However, when the dust settles and you've worn you skip button out, Patterson has written far better songs than Jason. And as talented and "upcoming" as Jason is, he will NEVER come close to Patterson.

He's younger than Patterson was when he started DBT, isn't he? Never say never.

cortez the killer wrote:

ford911 wrote:To each their own. Patterson has more songs that I skip than Jason.

Patterson has more "skippers" because he lets it all hang out - see Neil Young & Bob Dylan. However, when the dust settles and you've worn you skip button out, Patterson has written far better songs than Jason. And as talented and "upcoming" as Jason is, he will NEVER come close to Patterson.

Both are really talented and neither has the hit rate of Cooley because they write more and let some songs just spill out. To me, Jason's songs are introspective and can soar and tug the heartstrings more, and Patterson's are more externally focused and can convey such an optimistic spirit, even when focused on pessimistic matters. I can't imagine Jason sharing "It's fucking great to be alive" or Patterson confessing "pretty soon you'll remember when you could remember when you loved someone."

Zip City wrote:Two of the best tracks from the Sirens sessions were left off the record (The Assassin and Crystal Clear)

And Whisper, right?

cortez the killer wrote:

Cole Younger wrote:Don't know what you mean about the stroking Shonna's hair thing but it made me laugh

Still laughing?

I still have no clue why you asked me this.

Cooley is my favorite song writer of the three. That was the case from day one. I love a lot of Patterson's songs. But to me he has more songs that I skip than Jason and definitely more than Cooley. I don't think I skip any of Cooley's songs.

It's all a matter of opinion. Patterson may have more throw aways because he writes so dang many. It might just be the law of averages. But on Jason's solo stuff, I don't skip very many.

To me, Patterson has a tendancy to get kind of repetitive and cover ground that he's already covered and then cover it again just in case you didn't hear him the first two times.

To me, after having The Wig He Made Her Wear on TBTD, we didn't need two evil preacher songs on GGB. I like both Fireplace Poker and GGB, but both of them together just seems kind of pointless. When I'm listening to the GGB album, I always skip one of those two songs.

I also don't understand the tendancy of people to refer to jason as inconsistent.

People say that about Sirens all the time and whatever it is that they're hearing, I guess I'm missing. To me it's a really good album. But if it is inconsistent, that's because it was recorded in pieces over a few years. I still don't hear it but if it's there, that's probably why.

To me, the self titled Jason album is a grower. I didn't love it at first and thought he had taken a step back. But it has aged really well with me.

I'm kind of surprised at what was said about the production on Sirens too. To me it almost sounds overproduced. Very pop sounding compared to DBT.

Cole Younger wrote:

cortez the killer wrote:

Cole Younger wrote:Don't know what you mean about the stroking Shonna's hair thing but it made me laugh

Still laughing?

I still have no clue why you asked me this.

No problem. Go listen to Sticky Fingers now young Jedi.

Cole Younger wrote:Cooley is my favorite song writer of the three. That was the case from day one. I love a lot of Patterson's songs. But to me he has more songs that I skip than Jason and definitely more than Cooley. I don't think I skip any of Cooley's songs.

It's all a matter of opinion. Patterson may have more throw aways because he writes so dang many. It might just be the law of averages. But on Jason's solo stuff, I don't skip very many.

To me, Patterson has a tendancy to get kind of repetitive and cover ground that he's already covered and then cover it again just in case you didn't hear him the first two times.

To me, after having The Wig He Made Her Wear on TBTD, we didn't need two evil preacher songs on GGB. I like both Fireplace Poker and GGB, but both of them together just seems kind of pointless. When I'm listening to the GGB album, I always skip one of those two songs.

For me it is Patterson all the way. I think he makes the most interesting songs. It is also his songs I tend to emotionally connect with the lyrics. Don't get me wrong, Cooley's songs are great and the balance between the two songwriters is perfect. It's this yin/yang that makes DBT my favorite band of all time. I really don't think they need a third songwriter. Jason I really don't care for that much. A couple of his songs are good songwriting Danko/Manuel, Goddamn lonely love. But to me there is too much "butter" (or pathos) in his voice, and the lyrics seems to be less focused (maybe thats because my mother tongue is not English and I don't "get it").

If the song's are good I also don't care if they revolve around the same subject lyrically. I think in the case of GGB and Fireplace poker they complement each other in a great way. The former sets up the scene and provides the "synopsis", while the latter go into the "forensics" of the crime committed and how the law deals with it.

I also never skip. Never! If an album doesn't have enough good songs I just don't listen to it.

RolanK wrote:
For me it is Patterson all the way. I think he makes the most interesting songs. It is also his songs I tend to emotionally connect with the lyrics. Don't get me wrong, Cooley's songs are great and the balance between the two songwriters is perfect. It's this yin/yang that makes DBT my favorite band of all time. I really don't think they need a third songwriter. Jason I really don't care for that much. A couple of his songs are good songwriting Danko/Manuel, Goddamn lonely love. But to me there is too much "butter" (or pathos) in his voice, and the lyrics seems to be less focused (maybe thats because my mother tongue is not English and I don't "get it").

If the song's are good I also don't care if they revolve around the same subject lyrically. I think in the case of GGB and Fireplace poker they complement each other in a great way. The former sets up the scene and provides the "synopsis", while the latter go into the "forensics" of the crime committed and how the law deals with it.

I also never skip. Never! If an album doesn't have enough good songs I just don't listen to it.

With the exception of the fact that I like Jason's stuff both in and out of DBT a great deal, I agree with you strongly.

I like all three songwriters and feel their songs are very complimentary.

Patterson to me is a short story writer who happens to write songs. I compare his whole approach with Raymond Carver, Robert Olmstead (the early, pre-historical fiction Olmstead) and Tom Perotta.

Cooley is an all around great songwriter. There are two sides to his music. The rocking side and the traditional country side. I love both.

Jason Isbell is probably the most diverse of the three. He really came into his own with Here We Rest. He is starting to remind me of Townes Van Zandt.

Patterson shits bigger than Jason