Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit and Jason Isbell

Growing up in rural Alabama, US, Isbell was surrounded by music from a young age as his large extended family were often playing instruments and making music together, honing his talents at high school and university through playing in various country cover bands. He joined Drive-By-Truckers at the age of 21, remaining with the band for six years, helping to write a number of their songs that went on to critical and commercial success.

By 2007, Isbell had left the group in order to forge a solo career, releasing his debut album, “Sirens of the Ditch,” a bluesy, punk tinged record that was very much rooted in the sound of the South. He then formed his backing band, the 400 Unit and began touring extensively, before returning to the studio in 2008. In the following year, his sophomore effort, “Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit” was released, which took another musical direction, favouring tender country ballads in the same vein as Muscle Schoals.

Isabel toured relentlessly for two years, playing an average of 200 shows annually. In 2010, he took a break from being on the road, returning home to Alabama, an area that had been hit hard by the economic recession. Whilst here, he began to write a new collection of songs that focused on the character so of the area, with simple honest songs that reflected the rural country and lifestyle. “Here We Rest” came out in 2011, an album that was warmly received by critics. A year later, Isbell followed “Here We Rest” with a live album, “Live From Alabama, which was recorded at the Workday Theater in Birmingham, US and at the Crossroads venue in Huntsville, Alabama, US. Isabel then returned to the studio for 2013’s “Southeastern,” an album that held a theme of redemption and sombre atonement, reflective of Isbell’s newfound sobriety. The album received massive critical acclaim, with Isbell sweeping up several awards at the 2014 Americana Music Awards, for ‘Album of the Year,’ ‘Artist of the Year’ and ’Song of the Year.’

Patty Griffin grew up as the youngest child with six older siblings. When she turned 16 she bought her first guitar with the intentions to pursue music as a hobby rather than a profession. After her first marriage ended in 1992 she began performing at local coffee houses in Boston and quickly caught the attention of A&M Records, who later signed her to the label.

By 1996 Griffin released her debut album through A&M called “Living with Ghosts”. The album has been one of Griffin’s most successful releases with her selling over 222,000 copies in the US. The album featured the raw approach of Griffin performing only with her voice and acoustic guitar. She avoided the commercial approach of recording with a backing band and opted to produce an album that could be taken as more sincere and direct. The music on the album is very minimalistic and has strong emotional undertones. The album featured the songs “Moses” and “Let Him Fly”.

In 1998 Griffin released her second album “Flaming Red”, which conveyed her switching directions from a minimalistic acoustic guitar approach to a more elaborate approach with a wider range of instrumentation. “Flaming Red” covered genres ranging from folk to rock to country to pop to trip-hop. The album reached the No. 12 spot on the Top Heatseekers chart and was considered more accessible than her debut album.

After “Flaming Red” Griffin was dropped from A&M records and was picked up by Dave Matthews Band’s label ATO Records. Griffin released her third album “1000 Kisses” in 2002, which peaked at No. 101 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 on the Heatseekers chart. Although the album was recorded with a band, the album mostly contained acoustic instrumentation and conveyed an intimate sound. The album contained several popular original songs as well as a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Stolen Car”.

Griffin continued to release albums through ATO Records. In 2003 she released “A Kiss in Time”, which was recorded at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2004 she released “Impossible Dream”, which contained the popular song “Top of the World”, which was made famous when the Dixie Chicks covered the song. In 2007 she released “Children Running Through”, which included a collaboration with Emmylou Harris on the song “Trapeze”. The album received critical praise and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. Griffin released the album “Downtown Church” in 2010, which won a Dove Award for Inspirational Album of the Year. In 2013 Griffin released “American Kid”, which was released to critical acclaim and included a songwriting duet with Robert Plant on the song “Highway Song”.

Griffin is also respected by her fellow musicians and has had the opportunity to tour with the likes of Buddy Miller, Gillian Welch, Robert Plant, and David Rawlings. Her music has also been covered by many artists such as Lind Ronstadt, Bette Midler, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Miranda Lambert.