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Back in 2022, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit welcomed Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready to the stage of the Paramount Theatre in Seattle to cover, fittingly, Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing.” Earlier this week, Isbell and McCready reunited once again in the Emerald City, this time to jam out on an Isbell original.
“Our good friend, Mike McCready,” Isbell said by way of introducing the guitarist at Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo, where the 400 Unit were headlining. Along with 400 Unit guitarist Sadler Vaden, the three shredders tore into the encore of “This Ain’t It,” a standout rocker on Isbell’s latest album Weathervanes. The album version is one of Isbell’s most ferocious guitar anthems; onstage it took on even more heat, with Isbell and Vaden, both on Gibson SGs by song’s end, sparring with McCready on a Stratocaster (according to Isbell, it was actually his ‘60s Strat).
Isbell and the 400 Unit — with Dominic Davis of Jack White’s band on bass while Jimbo Hart takes some time off —are currently on a headlining tour in support of Weathervanes, the follow-up to 2020’s Reunions. Produced by Isbell, Weathervanes features a number of instant Isbell classics, including “Cast Iron Skillet,” “Middle of the Morning,” and “King of Oklahoma.” The band returns to the road on July 8 with a stop in Salt Lake City.
