Jason Isbell & Amanda Shires Perform On ‘The Daily Show’

Jason Isbell and his wife, Amanda Shires served as the musical guests on last night’s installment of The Daily Show. Additionally, Isbell spoke with host Trevor Noah about the forthcoming Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit album Reunions, life during the COID-19 pandemic and more.

Isbell and Shires performed “Only Children,” the third track on Reunions, for The Daily Show. The pair recorded their take on the tune at their barn in Tennessee from which episodes of Shires’ I So Lounging livestream show originated.

Noah’s interview with Jason Isbell began with a discussion of the impact from the coronavirus on the music industry. “Nobody knows what’s going to happen, but we’ve all come to a consensus that it’s going to be bad,” Isbell said. Jason noted that while creativity is indispensable, he’s really concerned about those living show-to-show. “I’ve gotten to a point where I have a bit of a safety net,” Isbell said. “Had it been 10 years ago when I was still riding around in a van playing around for a couple of hundred of people a night, I would have to start re-thinking career choices and start making some hard decisions.”

Jason Isbell went do to talk about Reunions. He explained in the last few years, he feels comfortable looking back at the period before he got sober eight years ago. Isbell feels he’s more equipped to write about early experiences in a way he wasn’t when “I was a fallen down drunk and only had a couple of hours a day when I could be productive.” The pair’s conversation ended with Jason sharing his take on Tennessee re-opening following a period of shelter-in-place. Isbell gave his theory on why some Americans can’t wrap their head around just how dangerous COVID-19 is. He doesn’t go out much and added, “If [John Prine] is the only person that this virus took, that would be enough for me to stay in the house.”

Reunions is due out next Friday, May 15 via Southeastern Records. Watch Jason & Amanda’s performance and Jason’s chat with Trevor below:

Only Children

Interview