Here We Rest

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 12, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: LIGHTNING ROD REC.
• ASIN: B004PF0GBY
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,813 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Alabama Pines

2. Go It Alone

3. We've Met

4. Codeine

5. Stopping By

6. Daisy Mae

7. The Ballad of Nobeard

8. Never Could Believe

9. Heart on a String

10. Save it For Sunday

11. Tour of Duty

Editorial Reviews

Here We Rest is the second album from Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit, and Isbell s third. Their 2009 self-titled debut received high praise from the press, including Rolling Stone, Spin, Paste, Details, Washington Post and many more. Blurt gave the album at 10 out of 10 rating and said, From the playing to the arrangements to the lyrical depth of emotion on display, not to mention the rich Southern soul vibe coaxed from the if-walls-could-talk confines of Muscle Shoals Fame Studios, this eponymous platter is a scorcher. An Alabama native, Isbell comes from a tradition of Southern music. His thoughtful songwriting and warm, soulful voice are genuine, natural abilities that shine through in his songs, which blossom with the 400 Unit - keyboardist Derry deBorja, guitarist Browan Lollar, drummer Chad Gamble and bassist Jimbo Hart.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 39 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another record has crept inside and it feels like it's always been there April 13, 2011

By D. J. Galante Jr.

Format:Audio CD

A dear friend of mine bought this for me. She tossed it on the front seat of my car without a word. She didn't have to say anything, she knew me well enough to know that I appreciate honesty and purity in all its forms, especially in music...so here it is, another ISBELL record.

I've never been to Alabama, but after listening to this set multiple times I feel like I get the jist..and it ain't always pretty...but it sure is real. Jason is a master of the craft. You don't just listen to these songs, you BECOME these songs...and even after 10 listens, "Stopping By" still makes the eyes wet.

I imagine the best way to absorb these 11 stories set to song would be to listen to them the way they were created...alone and with a beverage or 12. Just you, the room, the speakers and the songs.

Life isn't fair. Never was...but you have a choice-do you put the bottle to your lips, or the barrel of a shotgun?

Just keep goin', for as Jason and his boys the 400 Unit show here, beauty can be found in the darkest of places.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Another solid entry in the catalog. April 12, 2011

By DanD VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Jason Isbell has been crafting a rather impressive catalog of music, from his work with Drive By Truckers, to his two previous "solo" albums. HERE WE REST is another dependable entry, with fine musicianship, touching (sometimes witty) lyrics, all anchored by Isbell's unforced, raw vocals.

There aren't any tunes here that act as true standouts, which both helps and hurts the album as a whole. "Alabama Pines" is a nice laid-back number; "Daisy Mae" is an acoustic piece; "Never Could Believe" approaches actual swing; "Codeine" is borderline whimsical (think Jackson Browne's "Cocaine"); "Heart on a String" is somewhat soulful; and "Stopping By" is fueled by a dark electric guitar that cuts to the core of the lyrics. Isbell is concerned with relationships--between a man and a woman, between a father and son, between a man and his own past--and HERE WE REST explores this theme from multiple angles. The result is a solid collection of songs that isn't quite his best--though, unlike with his previous efforts, I truly enjoyed every tune here--but it's still a hell of a lot better than most of what's getting put out on the country music scene. In fact, it's almost an insult to consider Isbell a country singer, though I'm sure he would take it with pride. The truth is, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit's latest album is simply a collection of good songs, written and performed by pros who aren't concerned with selling out or impressing anyone. They're in it for the music, and even at the album's lowest points, their integrity shines through.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Download - don't buy the CD May 6, 2011

By E. G. Humphreys

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Very good music, very disappointing packaging.

I am a dinosaur. I have an iPhone with about 2500 songs on it and probably 2485 of these are songs I've downloaded from CDs that I own. I even have a Yep-Roc Records t-shirt that proclaims "I STILL BUY RECORDS". I like liner notes and printed lyrics. If I wonder who is playing saxaphone or singing background vocals on a track, for example, I like to pull out the CD case and look it up.

Having said that, DOWNLOAD THIS ALBUM, DON'T BUY THE CD for two reasons - One, it is very good and Two, the CD packaging offers virtually nothing other than the names of the songs (and they aren't even numbered). The band is listed but the instruments they play aren't. Obviously, I paid more for the CD than I would have if I downloaded it and, for the first time, I regret the decision.

If this is the future of CDs, I won't have to worry out running out of storage space in my home.

One man's opinion.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The fuel July 20, 2011

By Garbageman

Format:Audio CD

This is one of those albums that you put on in the garage while working on your brakes in 100-degree heat while downing bad beer and bitching about your ex-wife. It's serious fuel for juked-up weekend nights at trough bars until 2 AM where you're leaving alone and headed home under sweaty skies, dodging the cops and making tracks on backroads you forgot were even there. Jason Isbell is the Larry Brown of rock and roll, painting vivid pictures of the folks on the outside looking in, evocative and scary and lowdown, with an eye on country-rock but really forging a genre of its own. "We've Met" and "Save It For Sunday" are two of the best melancholy don't-ask lovelorn songs I've ever heard. "Stopping By" is all adults-only melodic roughneckin', heat-blasted sadness with a side of regret that cuts deep. And "Tour of Duty" is one of those very rare songs you actually FEEL, right in your gut, and start thinking hard about stuff you tend to deliberately push away. Although I don't like to compare, a double-bill of Jason Isbell and Ryan Bingham at this point would be almost unbearably intense. It's a good moment for an album like this.

By the way, this thing is mixed unusually loud. Maybe that's the point.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Polished raw material April 20, 2011

By Shane

Format:MP3 Music|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is my first Isbell album and its not going to be the last. I like the opened soul lyrics and the raw blend of rock/country/blues/folk sound. I wasn't sure that I'd love the whole album, but I find myself coming back to it a couple of times a day since I purchased it. Its good stuff!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Freakishly Talented June 22, 2011

By SUPERMAN

Format:Audio CD

I stumbled on to the genius of Jason when he was with DBT. All of his songs quickly became my favorites from the band. I have to admit that I was not thrilled with his first two albums after leaving DBT, but he more than makes up for it with this one. Great songwriting and moving performances.