Something More Than Free
Studio album by
Jason Isbell
ReleasedJuly 17, 2015
RecordedMarch 2015
StudioSound Emporium (Nashville)
GenreAmericana, alternative country
Length43:55
LabelSoutheastern
ProducerDave Cobb
Jason Isbell chronology
Southeastern
(2013)		 Something More Than Free
(2015)		 The Nashville Sound
(2017)

Something More Than Free is the fifth studio album by Jason Isbell, released on July 17, 2015. It was produced by Dave Cobb, who had produced Isbell's previous record, Southeastern (2013).[1] At the 58th Annual Grammy Awards, the album won the award for Best Americana Album, and the song "24 Frames" won the award for Best American Roots Song.[2]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.2/10[3]
Metacritic87/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The A.V. ClubA−[6]
The Daily Telegraph[7]
Entertainment WeeklyA[8]
The Irish Times[9]
Mojo[10]
Pitchfork5.8/10[11]
Rolling Stone[12]
Spin7/10[13]
ViceA−[14]

The album received mostly positive reviews.[15] On Metacritic, it has a score of 87 out of 100 based on 25 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[4]

Jon Freeman of Nash Country Weekly gave the album a grade of "A" and wrote that "Jason Isbell has a reporter's eye for detail and a poet's gift for a beautifully crafted turn of phrase". He went on to say that "Jason's throaty rasp, not unlike Tyler Farr's, is the ideal vehicle for those stories [...] It may not be all pretty, but Something More Than Free is as real as it gets."[16] Craig Manning of AbsolutePunk praised the album, writing: "Like Southeastern, Something More Than Free is a masterwork, and while I'm not sure if I quite agree with Isbell that it's better than Southeastern, it certainly offers a different (but equally satisfying) experience."[17] In another positive review that compared the album to its predecessor, Eric Swedlund of The A.V. Club wrote that, "though Something More Than Free may not repeat Isbell's album-of-the-year accolades, it continues the magic of that breakthrough LP".[6]

Jeremy Winograd of Slant Magazine wrote, in an otherwise positive review, that Something More Than Free "retains Southeastern's intimate acoustic-based feel and heavyhearted lyrical matter, but it's even more smooth-edged and lacks the emotional gut-punches of its predecessor."[18] In a mixed review, Stephen Deusner of Pitchfork described Something More Than Free as "an album that contains too few surprises", and said that "the music does little to distinguish these characters or enliven the lyrics".[11]

Accolades

Publication Year Accolade Rank
Stereogum 2015 The 50 Best Albums of 2015 31[19]
Nashville Scene 2015 16th Annual Country Music Critics' Poll 2[20]
Rolling Stone 2015 40 Best Country Albums of 2015 1[21]

Commercial performance

In the United States, the album debuted at number 6 on the Billboard 200, and at number 1 on Billboard's Top Rock Albums, Folk Albums, and Top Country Albums charts,[22][23] with 46,000 units sold.[24] Although he had previously had critical success in the Americana genre, this was the first time one of Isbell's albums had performed so well on the charts across several genres.[25] As of July 2016, the album had sold 143,000 copies in the U.S.[26]

The single "24 Frames" peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Triple A Airplay chart,[27] and at number 42 on the Rock Airplay chart.[28]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jason Isbell

No.TitleLength
1."If It Takes a Lifetime"3:43
2."24 Frames"3:16
3."Flagship"3:52
4."How to Forget"4:06
5."Children of Children"5:52
6."The Life You Chose"4:05
7."Something More Than Free"3:33
8."Speed Trap Town"4:04
9."Hudson Commodore"3:26
10."Palmetto Rose"4:06
11."To a Band That I Loved"3:52

Personnel

Charts

References

  1. ↑ "Jason Isbell - 06/20/15". Absolute Punk. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  2. ↑ Colurso, Mary (February 15, 2016). "Grammy Awards 2016: Jason Isbell wins for Best Americana Album & Best American Roots Song". Alabama Media Group. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Something More Than Free by Jason Isbell reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Reviews for Something More Than Free by Jason Isbell". Metacritic. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  5. ↑ Deming, Mark. "Something More Than Free – Jason Isbell". AllMusic. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Swedlund, Eric (July 17, 2015). "New sides of Jason Isbell surface on the excellent Something More Than Free". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  7. ↑ Chilton, Martin (December 30, 2015). "Best Country Music Albums of 2015". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  8. ↑ Vain, Madison (July 17, 2015). "Something More Than Free by Jason Isbell: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  9. ↑ Breen, Joe (July 30, 2015). "Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free | Album Review". The Irish Times. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free". Mojo (261): 92. August 2015.
  11. 1 2 Deusner, Stephen M. (July 14, 2015). "Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  12. ↑ Bernstein, Jonathan (July 17, 2015). "Something More Than Free". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  13. ↑ Joyce, Colin (July 17, 2015). "Review: Jason Isbell Sees a Darkness, Embraces Light on 'Something More Than Free'". Spin. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  14. ↑ Christgau, Robert (October 10, 2015). "A Trip Down Country Road: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Vice. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  15. ↑ Mazor, Barry (August 4, 2015). "'Something More Than Free' by Jason Isbell Review". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  16. ↑ Freeman, Jon. Something More Than Free - Jason Isbell. countryweekly.com. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  17. ↑ Manning, Craig (July 14, 2015). "Jason Isbell - Something More Than Free - Album Review". absolutepunk.net. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  18. ↑ Winograd, Jeremy. Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free. Slant. 8 July 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  19. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2015". stereogum.com. December 1, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  20. ↑ "16th Annual Country Music Critics' Poll". nashvillescene.com. January 28, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  21. ↑ "40 Best Country Albums of 2015". rollingstone.com. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  22. ↑ Mason, Anthony (August 9, 2015). "The fall and rise of Jason Isbell". CBS News. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  23. ↑ Kellmurray, Beth (July 27, 2015). "Jason Isbell Celebrates the Chart Success of 'Something More Than Free'". Diffuser.fm. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  24. ↑ Jim Asker (July 28, 2015). "Jason Isbell Lands No. 1 on Country Albums Chart". Billboard.
  25. ↑ Hight, Jewly (August 5, 2015). "Country Star (and Expectant Dad) Jason Isbell 'Glad to Have My Baby on the Brain'". Billboard Magazine. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  26. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (July 12, 2016). "Country Albums Sales Chart: July 12, 2016". Roughstock.
  27. ↑ "Jason Isbell Album & Song Chart History - Adult Alternative Songs". Billboard.com. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Jason Isbell Album & Song Chart History - Rock Airplay". Billboard.com. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  29. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Jason Isbell – Something More Than Free". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
  30. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Jason Isbell – Something More Than Free" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
  31. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 30, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
  32. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Jason Isbell – Something More Than Free". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
  34. ↑ "Jason Isbell Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  35. ↑ "Jason Isbell Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  36. ↑ "Jason Isbell Chart History (Top Americana/Folk Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  37. ↑ "Jason Isbell Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  38. ↑ "Jason Isbell Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  39. ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  40. ↑ "Americana/Folk Albums – Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  41. ↑ "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  42. ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2016". Billboard. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
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