Jason Isbell And The 400 Unit
May 18, 2020
It is hard to believe but Reunions is Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and musician Jason Isbell’s seventh studio album. Produced by Dave Cobb, the album features his wife, Amanda Shires, along with the rest of The 400 Unit: Derry deBorja (keys), Chad Gamble (drums), Jimbo Hart (bass) and Sadler Vaden (guitar).
Reunions also features background vocals from special guests David Crosby and Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons. In addition to the top 10 song, “Be Afraid,” several other tracks stand out including “What’ve I Done To Help,” “Only Children,” “Running With Our Eyes Closed” and “It Gets Easier.”
Of Reunions, Isbell says, “There are a lot of ghosts on this album. Sometimes the songs are about the ghosts of people who aren’t around anymore, but they’re also about who I used to be, the ghost of myself. I found myself writing songs that I wanted to write fifteen years ago, but in those days, I hadn’t written enough songs to know how to do it yet. Just now have I been able to pull it off to my own satisfaction. In that sense it’s a reunion with the me I was back then.”
Isbell and Shires performed a special acoustic livestream concert on album release day (Friday 5/15). The stream, which was hosted by FANS, was free to the public with a suggested donation to support Isbell’s crew as well as the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund.
Learn more about the artist and his new album at www.jasonibell com.
Photo credit: Alysse Gafkjen