It's cool, but sad, in part due to the loss of Gregg ... of course ... but also because Steve's really struggling to make it through the song, breathing-wise. He's wheezing pretty badly between verses ...
I'd recommend anyone who WANTS to see him ... you better see him soon, because I don't know that he's going to be able to tour much longer ... it's sounding like a real touch of the emphysema kicking in here ...
Also I know that the intersection of 'liking Steve Earle enough to post on a thread like this' and 'not having heard Jason Isbell' is probably a pretty small population, but if you HAVEN'T ... You're in for a real treat. Another country-rock hero who cleaned up and starting writing some great albums, ala Steve & John Hiatt ... I wouldn't regularly try to 'introduce' someone to a new artist via a live recording, but this one ... it's just REALLY REALLY good. And it's really fun to watch Jason sing and play ... cause he's just a f***ing BADASS ... sound quality is awesome, camera-work is great, and his band is super tight.
Also, this show encompasses songs from his whole career, going back to his tenure in the Drive-By Truckers, when he wrote and sang some of that bands greatest tunes. "Never Gonna Change" in particular absolutely ROCKS on this video. Jason unleashes the most seriously fierce fretwork I've ever seen him pull off. Kid keeps getting better and better ...
By the way, the lovely lady on the fiddle Amanda Shires is his wife, who he credits with inspiring him to get sober, and a number of his songs are clearly inspired by, esp. Cover Me Up ... which they KILL in this video. BTW track 5, 'Dress Blues' is a war protest song Steve would be extremely proud to call his own, I can promise you that ...
Oh and June 16 his new album comes out ... CAN'T WAIT!!!
One of the upcoming tracks ...
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