Georgia Blue
In 2020, Jason Isbell promised fans that he would record an album of Georgia-related cover songs if the state went blue during that year’s presidential election. Isbell, alongside his band the 400 Unit and a stellar lineup of guest musicians, makes good on that offer with *Georgia Blue*, a 13-track collection of classic songs and deep cuts originally by Georgia artists. Isbell and the 400 Unit put their Southern rock stamp on staples by a diverse roster of native music icons like R.E.M., Gladys Knight, and Drivin’ N’ Cryin’, making for an album that’s part ear-candy and part history lesson. Guests include blues singer-songwriter Adia Victoria (“The Truth”), progressive bluegrass virtuosos Béla Fleck and Chris Thile (“Nightswimming”), up-and-coming country artist Brittney Spencer (“It\'s a Man\'s, Man’s, Man’s World,” “Midnight Train to Georgia”), and fellow Alabamian John Paul White (“Midnight Train to Georgia,” “Driver 8”).
Released for charity, this star-studded covers album celebrates music from the state of Georgia. It is a joyful affair with sadness lurking in the shadows.
Nine months into the Biden administration, Isbell has delivered the record he promised, and 2021's Georgia Blue feels more substantive than one might expect.
On last year’s anthemic “Be Afraid,” Jason Isbell sang, “And if your words add up to nothing, then you’re making a choice/To sing a cover when we need a battle cry.” But sometimes, a collection of cover songs can be the battle cry itself, as Isbell and the 400 Unit claim with Georgia Blue—a covers album in support of voting rights in Georgia where the 2020 presidential election came down to the thinnest of margins
Feted southern US singer fires out an often tasty fund-raiser of cover versions. Review by Thomas H Green.