‘Southeastern’ Special: Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit Perform 2013 Album In Knoxville

Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit kicked off a two-night run at the Bijou Theatre in Knoxville, billed as “Two Very Special Evenings” with the band. Wednesday’s concert matched the promotion as the show began with a complete performance of the album, Southeastern.

Frontman Jason Isbell released Southeastern in 2013. The record was pivotal in establishing his now-successful solo career and included several songs that became staples of his live shows. Wednesday’s first set started with the Southeatern standout opening track, “Cover Me Up,” which according to Setlist.fm stats had not opened a show since 2014.

Isbell and his bandmates – guitarist Sadler Vaden, bassist Jimbo Hart, drummer Chad Gamble and keyboardist Derry deBorja – progressed through the rest of Southeastern matching the setlist to the album’s tracklist.

Several songs on Southeastern are live staples for Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit, such as “Stockholm,” “Traveling Alone,” “Elephant,” “Flying Over Water,” “Different Days,” “Songs That She Sang in the Shower” and “Super 8.” Others are played less often, like “Live Oak,” “New South Wales,” “Relatively Easy” and “Yevette” the last of which reportedly was last played by Isbell in 2016.

After the Southeastern set, the second half started with Vaden fronting the band on a cover of “Honeysuckle Blue” by Drivin’ n’ Cryin’. The band then rolled through favorites from across Isbell’s catalog, including “Hope the High Road,” “Last of My Kind,” “24 Frames,” “Overseas” and “If We Were Vampires.” They capped the set with a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Oh Well.”

The very special evening came to an end with an encore consisting of Isbell’s “Tour Of Duty” followed by “Decoration Day” from his stint in Drive-By Truckers. The band returns to the Bijou tonight for another sold-out “Very Special Evening.”

Setlist