JASON ISBELL - BELL AUDITORIUM, AUGUSTA, GA (5-17-16)

A Jason Isbell show has recently become a bucket list item for me. I discovered this singer/songwriter a few years back while flipping channels on the television. For some reason, I stopped on CMT (that's Country Music Television for those of you who are strictly rock and hate country music) for just a moment. The video that came on was Isbell's Traveling Alone. I liked the song so much that I went out and bought his then current album Southeastern. From there I was hooked. That album is a true storytelling masterpiece. I've subsequently picked up his latest album, Something More Than Free, as well as an older album with his band The 400 Unit. I've also picked up a Drive-By Truckers album from his time in that band. I can't express enough to you how good of a songwriter this dude is.

As for this show, it was supposed to include a living legend. Merle Haggard was the scheduled headliner, but unfortunately, he passed away about six weeks before the show. I can't honestly say I was ever a fan of Haggard's, but I would have been quite happy to see him perform. Funny thing is, the show was canceled and rescheduled as a Jason Isbell headlining show, but I didn't know that until me and my neighbor Joey attempted to enter the venue with our previously purchased and printed tickets. We were directed back to the box office, where I was told the original tickets had been refunded to my card and we would have to purchase new tickets. No problem. Instead of upper deck, 40 dollar tickets, we were able to purchase front row, 35 dollar tickets. So that worked out quite well.

The show was opened by Australian guitar virtuoso Tommy Emanuelle. From what I've read, he does occasionally sing, but not a vocal line was uttered in this performance. This guy really just has to be seen to be believed. His playing is out of this world. He picks, strums and uses his guitar for a percussion instrument as well. If you are a true fan of the acoustic guitar, check him out on Youtube.

The main show started with a couple of songs from Isbell's current album, Something More Than Free. From there, he just moved through his catalog with ease, including a couple of songs written while a member of Drive-By Truckers. I will also mention here that Isbell's wife, Amanda Shires, was present for this show. They both have music careers, so she doesn't always appear with his solo band. She brings so much to the show with her violin playing and her beautiful voice. It's fun to watch her. She spent the whole show staring at her husband. I wasn't sure if it was for the purpose of following his lead or if she just couldn't take her eyes off of him. Anyway, Isbell noted between songs that Cover Me Up was written for her. It's basically the story of how she showed him he was worthy of someone's love. It's a killer song. It's also a song that won Song Of The Year in 2014 at the Americana Music Awards (the album Southeastern won Album Of The Year and Isbell won Artist Of The Year as well). Isbell also mentioned that the band plays it every night, and that they play Flagship each time Shires appears with them. They played my wife's favorite song off of his new album, The Life You Choose, as well as my favorite song, Elephant. That is a touching song about a friend with cancer and it is from the masterpiece that is Southeastern.

And just in case you thought this band couldn't rock, they electrified the place with the Drive-By Truckers tune Never Gonna Change. Isbell took a solo and his lead guitarist (Sadler Vaden) did so as well on the outro. They both are very good guitarists. The band gave us two encore songs, including the show closing tribute to Merle Haggard. Isbell gave a heartfelt speech about what kind of affect the song has on him whenever he hears it and plays it.

There you have it. One item checked off of the bucket list, though I hope it's not the last time I see him perform. The show lasted about two hours and was well worth the money. I highly recommend taking in an Isbell performance if you get the chance. There are quite a few very nice live performances on Youtube if you're interested in checking them out. Oh yeah, sorry about the quality of the photos. My iPhone does not take good pictures.