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Jason Isbell's known for his deeply piercing songwriting.
After playing in bands as a teenager, he honed his lyrical chops and landed a publishing deal with FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
From there, Isbell joined the southern rock band Drive-By Truckers as a touring member, soon beginning to write songs for their albums, Decoration Day (2003), The Dirty South (2004) and A Blessing and a Curse (2006).
He eventually left the band in 2007 to pursue a solo career, releasing his debut album Sirens of the Ditch the same year. Two more albums followed alongside Isbell's band the 400 Unit, 2009's Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit and 2011's Here We Rest.
But it was his fourth album, 2014's Southeastern, that picked up serious momentum, both critically and commercially. Isbell's songwriting had clearly reached a new level.
Southeastern helped him win the three major awards at that year's Americana Music Awards: Artist of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year (for 'Cover Me Up').
Hot on the heels of that success, Isbell released another best-selling album Something More Than Free, which was produced by Dave Cobb. His sixth studio album The Nashville Sound followed in 2018. Between those two albums, Isbell won four Grammys, including two for Best Americana Album.
Isbell and Cobb worked together again on his sixth studio album, 2020's Reunions. In 2021, Isbell and the Drive-By Truckers released a live album from their 2014 reunion show at Shoals Theatre.
The project is set to be released on June 9.
The festival takes place from April 20-23, 2023 at Miramar Beach in Florida.
Tasked with celebrating special songs, Caroline Spence turns the dial back to her youth and those essential cuts that forever changed her relationship with music and set her down the songwriting path.
Joined by a handful of like-minded musicians, 'Georgia Blue' sees Isbell cover a selection of songs by Georgia-hailing artists. It's a delightfully loose, expertly played and above all sincere 13-track set that checks every box for a project of this kind.
Isbell's 400 Unit, Drive-By Truckers, Lucinda Williams, and more will perform.
We could happily put money on Hailey Whitters being just as much of an inspiration to new songwriters in the years to come as her choices for Cuts The Deepest are to her.