“Leave It Alone” – Amanda Shires. This song totally blew my mind this week. Shires is Jason Isbell’s wife and a member of his backing band, The 400 Unit. When I first began exploring his music, I checked out some of the songs she had recorded in the past. They leaned a little too country for my tastes.
But her new album, To The Sunset has been getting a lot of very positive buzz so I decided to check out this advance single. One critic likened it to what would happen if Emmylou Harris sang over some Johnny Marr guitar. That’s quite the comparison. And this is an utterly delightful song.
I’m a few tracks into the whole album – it was released today – and Shires has definitely shifted her sound in a more pop-oriented direction without completely turning her back on her Texas, country roots. I like what I’ve heard so far. There is some serious talent in that family.