Jason Isbell: Southeastern Album Thread

[brstigerfan]

In my small world of friends and family, Jason is much more popular and than the Drive By Truckers ever have been. He's definitely gotten his own fanbase outside of the DBT world.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Hey, Southeastern debuted at #23 on the top 200 and #8 on the rock charts! Never expected such a thing. I'm so very grateful.

Fantastic showing!

[RolanK]

^^^^ What list is this?

[Tequila Cowboy]

^^^^ What list is this?

Billboard.

[Clams]

^^^^ What list is this?

Billboard.

Bill-what? Never heard of it.

[Tequila Cowboy]

^^^^ What list is this?

Billboard.

Bill-what? Never heard of it.

Smart ass mollusk.

[McButton]

For what it's worth, Southeastern is featured on the Spotify "what's new" screen (the neat one that scrolls through a handful or so albums.) He's featured along with stuff like the new Daft Punk and the new Lonely Island. That's some high visibility that hopefully leads more good things for Jason.

[RolanK]

^^^^ What list is this?

Billboard.

Bill-what? Never heard of it.

Bill-my-ass. Must some kind of a delay in the update, because I don't see it.

[Duke Silver]

For what it's worth, Southeastern is featured on the Spotify "what's new" screen (the neat one that scrolls through a handful or so albums.) He's featured along with stuff like the new Daft Punk and the new Lonely Island. That's some high visibility that hopefully leads more good things for Jason.

I'm sure Jason will be thrilled to hear that.

[beantownbubba]

For what it's worth, Southeastern is featured on the Spotify "what's new" screen (the neat one that scrolls through a handful or so albums.) He's featured along with stuff like the new Daft Punk and the new Lonely Island. That's some high visibility that hopefully leads more good things for Jason.

I'm sure Jason will be thrilled to hear that.

Oh the ironies, trials and tribulations of being a musician in 2013.

[Smitty]

Bill-my-ass. Must some kind of a delay in the update, because I don't see it.

I'm sure there's a delay.

[Markalanbishop]

I can't stand Never Gonna Change

Lurleen, if you want an annulment, I know a sympathetic judge.

She knows this about me and loves me anyhow. The other sacred cow in the catalog I don't care for would probably have y'all at my front door with torches and pitchforks so we'll keep that one a secret...

Come on, you can't just throw this out there and not name names! You know confession is good for the soul. Maybe start a new thread? We're all dying to hear---so spill the beans. Pretty please?

[jr29]

"Live Oak" has a pretty heavy Townes Van Zandt vibe to me.

[bnzz]

I don't recall another album where I feel like I have seen the writers life.

I hear ya, but I don't get the same feeling I get with Southeastern

[RevMatt]

^^^^ What list is this?

Billboard.

Bill-what? Never heard of it.

And whose fault is that?

[RevMatt]

"Live Oak" has a pretty heavy Townes Van Zandt vibe to me.

Love it when my kids register on 3DD. Now go clean your room.

[RolanK]

Bill-my-ass. Must some kind of a delay in the update, because I don't see it.

I'm sure there's a delay.

It's updated thursdays at 9 am EST, which is why I didn't see it on the list yesterday. Apparently they inform (or leak) to the artists before the official update.

[jr29]

"Live Oak" has a pretty heavy Townes Van Zandt vibe to me.

Love it when my kids register on 3DD. Now go clean your room.

Half the posts on this board are comparisons.....this sounds like early Wilco, this sounds like "The Weight", that Cooley reminds me of Tom T. Hall,sounds like John Prine, etc etc etc.

[brstigerfan]

On the Billboard Rock Chart, Southeastern is actually listed at 7, one spot higher than what @JasonIsbell posted.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Come on, you can't just throw this out there and not name names! You know confession is good for the soul. Maybe start a new thread? We're all dying to hear---so spill the beans. Pretty please?

Ha! I've actually said it here before so the cryptic answer was for effect more than anything else. I'm not a fan of Birthday Boy and don't put in with Cooley's best tracks. I kind of like the reworked, dirge like acoustic version that he's playing solo though. Not sure why. The electric version is just meh to me.

[Zip City]

Did not expect this album to be so divisive on here

[Tequila Cowboy]

Did not expect this album to be so divisive on here

No, me either. To me it's such an obvious leap forward that the criticism surprises me. But hey que sera sera, right?

[Duke Silver]

I like it more and more the more I listen to it, which is a lot. Only song I don't care for is Yvette, everything else ranges from good, to great, to unbelievably great. Between Josh Ritter and Jason, it's been a big year for post-divorce albums.

The musical genericness of Jason's records used to bug me a bit, but not so much anymore. Sometimes it's enough for great songs to simply be played well. Get out of the way and let the songwriting really shine. So far in his career he's done a great job of keeping things simple in the studio without letting the arrangements become rote or corny (a problem I have a lot of singer/songwriter albums, from Prine to JTE).

[bnzz]

Did not expect this album to be so divisive on here

No, me either. To me it's such an obvious leap forward that the criticism surprises me. But hey que sera sera, right?

Totally agree, I think it is a huge leap forward

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I like it more and more the more I listen to it, which is a lot. Only song I don't care for is Yvette, everything else ranges from good, to great, to unbelievably great. Between Josh Ritter and Jason, it's been a big year for post-divorce albums.

The musical genericness of Jason's records used to bug me a bit, but not so much anymore. Sometimes it's enough for great songs to simply be played well. Get out of the way and let the songwriting really shine. So far in his career he's done a great job of keeping things simple in the studio without letting the arrangements become rote or corny (a problem I have a lot of singer/songwriter albums, from Prine to JTE).

I can't say "rote" or "corny" is anything I'd ever associate with a Prine record. Not that he's infallible but like Guy Clark, there's rarely a song of his I don't like.

[Zip City]

Did not expect this album to be so divisive on here

No, me either. To me it's such an obvious leap forward that the criticism surprises me. But hey que sera sera, right?

I don't even know if its such a huge leap forward. At worst, it's on par with HWR.

What I didn't expect were so many opinions that this album was a regression

[Duke Silver]

I like it more and more the more I listen to it, which is a lot. Only song I don't care for is Yvette, everything else ranges from good, to great, to unbelievably great. Between Josh Ritter and Jason, it's been a big year for post-divorce albums.

The musical genericness of Jason's records used to bug me a bit, but not so much anymore. Sometimes it's enough for great songs to simply be played well. Get out of the way and let the songwriting really shine. So far in his career he's done a great job of keeping things simple in the studio without letting the arrangements become rote or corny (a problem I have a lot of singer/songwriter albums, from Prine to JTE).

I can't say "rote" or "corny" is anything I'd ever associate with a Prine record. Not that he's infallible but like Guy Clark, there's rarely a song of his I don't like.

To clarify, I'm talking about the music performances only. Not the lyrics or songs themselves. IMO, there's quite a few Prine songs where it sounds like he just hit the "folk backing band" button on a Casio keyboard. And that goddamn pan flute or whatever it is on "Fish and Whistle"...ugh.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I like it more and more the more I listen to it, which is a lot. Only song I don't care for is Yvette, everything else ranges from good, to great, to unbelievably great. Between Josh Ritter and Jason, it's been a big year for post-divorce albums.

The musical genericness of Jason's records used to bug me a bit, but not so much anymore. Sometimes it's enough for great songs to simply be played well. Get out of the way and let the songwriting really shine. So far in his career he's done a great job of keeping things simple in the studio without letting the arrangements become rote or corny (a problem I have a lot of singer/songwriter albums, from Prine to JTE).

I can't say "rote" or "corny" is anything I'd ever associate with a Prine record. Not that he's infallible but like Guy Clark, there's rarely a song of his I don't like.

To clarify, I'm talking about the music performances only. Not the lyrics or songs themselves. IMO, there's quite a few Prine songs where it sounds like he just hit the "folk backing band" button on a Casio keyboard. And that goddamn pan flute or whatever it is on "Fish and Whistle"...ugh.

I've never really been bothered by either. Then again, I've never really noticed those things.

[RevMatt]

Come on, you can't just throw this out there and not name names! You know confession is good for the soul. Maybe start a new thread? We're all dying to hear---so spill the beans. Pretty please?

Ha! I've actually said it here before so the cryptic answer was for effect more than anything else. I'm not a fan of Birthday Boy and don't put in with Cooley's best tracks. I kind of like the reworked, dirge like acoustic version that he's playing solo though. Not sure why. The electric version is just meh to me.

Neff's slide guitar is what makes the song for me. Reminds me of The Gun Club, Las Vegas Story/Mother Juno era.

[RevMatt]

"Live Oak" has a pretty heavy Townes Van Zandt vibe to me.

Love it when my kids register on 3DD. Now go clean your room.

Half the posts on this board are comparisons.....this sounds like early Wilco, this sounds like "The Weight", that Cooley reminds me of Tom T. Hall,sounds like John Prine, etc etc etc.

Wasn't giving you crap for making the comparison. Just referencing the amount of flack I took when Here We Rest came out and I posted that Jason Isbell's songwriting on that album was moving in a Townes Van Zandt direction.