The song “Cover Me Up” was written and first performed by Jason Isbell, a country music performer from the United States. It is the first song of his studio album Southeastern from 2013. 2017 saw a version of the song by the country music group Zac Brown Band for Spotify’s Spotify Singles. Morgan Wallen, a country music performer, recorded the song in 2019, and it appeared on his album Dangerous: The Double Album in 2021.
Content and background
In 2013, Isbell admitted to NPR that the song was inspired by his wife, Amanda Shires. He remarked that the song was “a hard one for me to even get through without breaking down the first time” because of how intimately he believed it captured his adoration for Shires. The accompanying album was released when Isbell’s alcohol treatment programme was completed. The song is solemn, simple, and slow, floor[ing] listeners with its stark vulnerability and the depth of its romanticism as Isbell reveals his love for Amanda Shires, according to The Bluegrass Situation.
E-flat major is the song’s key of composition. It has a 44 beats per minute (bpm) average pace and a 6/8 time signature.
Critical Acclaim
“Cover Me Up” was described as a “beautiful opening love song” by Steve Leggett in his review of the album for AllMusic. Southeastern is “on the one hand a gentle, insistent love song, and on the other a moving testament to personal redemption that never once turns a blind eye to past transgressions,” according to Jerrick Adams’ review of the album for Paste. The remainder of the record, which is equally devoted to the promise of romance and the ever lurking prospect of misery, both self-induced and arbitrary, is set up by this song.
Version by Morgan Wallen
Wallen’s rendition of “Cover Me Up” was revealed as one of the songs on his then-upcoming album Dangerous: The Double Album in November 2020. Co-producers Dave Cohen and Joey Moi worked on Wallen’s rendition,
Prior to the release of his studio version, Wallen had performed the song live for more than a year. Performances during this time included appearances on tour with Luke Combs and in a Taste of Country video shoot. The latter outlet observed that although Wallen’s live covers had drawn mixed reactions from audience members, Isbell had expressed support for Wallen’s performance. Wallen’s cover appeared on the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country Songs, and Canadian Hot 100 charts between 2019 and 2020 even though it wasn’t made available as a single. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and Music Canada both awarded it platinum certification.
On November 22, 2019, Wallen published an 8-minute short film that was shot close to Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee, and directed by Justin Clough. The plot of the song is depicted in the video through the eyes of a soldier who is experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder. Isbell declared that he will give his songwriting income to the Nashville branch of the NAACP following a dispute regarding a video of Wallen uttering a racist slur in February 2021.
The back story
The timeless love and longing ballad “Cover Me Up” by Jason Isbell. The song, which is from the songwriter’s 2013 album Southeastern, describes a long-overdue midwinter reunion between two lovers. Isbell’s forceful vocal performance amplifies the song’s strong emotions, giving the impression that this story is drawn from his personal experience. Southeastern has a lot of songs with this vibe, which is what makes it such an amazing album. Songs like “Elephant” provide a similar depth of feeling despite being about a very different subject. Aside from the obvious real affection that pours through, “Cover Me Up” refers to Jason Isbell’s journey to sobriety and his appreciation for the role that his wife Amanda Shires played in it. Many people are familiar with Jason Isbell’s narrative because he battled alcoholism in his formative years while playing with the Drive-By Truckers from 2001 to 2007. He was eventually expelled from the band as a result, and it took him some time to sober up. With the first line “A heart on the run,” Jason Isbell’s wild lifestyle is immediately introduced in Cover Me Up. Consequently, he was abusing alcohol to escape from himself and his feelings of distrust.
He sings, “Such damage was done in the days when we raged, we flew off the page. “Isbell later met Amanda Shires, who is now his wife, and she later informed him that she would only be with him if he put the bottle down permanently. He ultimately decided to stop drinking since these were important issues for him, and as a result, his job and quality of life have improved. Since then, he has remained with Shires, and “Cover Me Up” is Jason Isbell’s testimonial to their relationship as well as to his abiding love for her. When Isbell starts to explain his trip in the opening stanza, the lyrics also address this: “But I made it through, ’cause somebody knew, I was meant for someone. Cover Me Up can resonate with everyone who has experienced intense affection and gratitude for someone who has helped them through a difficult moment and who they also think to be very handsome. It’s been a while, it’s chilly outside, there are sentiments on both sides, and, well, you get the idea. You two are confined inside till you, um, straighten out a few things.
This brings us to the chorus, which is subtle enough for you to imagine it on your own while still making it very apparent that Jason Isbell is singing about two people having passionate sex. It depicts the enchantment that results. In spite of the fact that “Cover Me Up” is explicitly about sex, there is a deeper level of appreciation that also contributes to the song’s sincerity as a love ballad. He is assuring himself and his wife that he is on the right road right now and that she is more than enough for him as he sings, “know you’re enough, to use me for good.” She has assisted him in filling the old void that he previously tried to drown with alcohol. The two lovers in “Cover Me Up” have such a strong bond that it would take a lot of pressure to get them to leave their house. Unless there is a medical emergency or the magnolias blossom (which won’t happen until spring), Isbell expresses wanting to depart. By citing the Percy Priest Dam, which contains so much water that if the river really did pass through, it would unquestionably “carry this house on its stones like He even connects the song geographically to Nashville with the line “a piece of driftwood.” For example, the Zac Brown Band and the pop-country vocalist Morgan Wallen have both covered “Cover Me Up” with additional musicians.
The original, however, is incomparable because it features Jason Isbell’s signature sensible vulnerability that makes songs like “Cover Me Up” and many others so exceptional.
“Cover Me Up” had a terrific live performance on the 2018 CD Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit’s Live from the Ryman, which included several songs from their 6-night run at the Ryman in Nashville in 2017. This rendition allows you to clearly hear the emotion in Isbell’s voice, which is certain to give you the goosebumps every time. Although I couldn’t find it on YouTube, I highly suggest the “Cover Me Up” song from the Live from the Ryman CD. Below, you may hear the studio version and watch a distinct live version from the Ryman that features Amanda Shires.
POPULARITY
Isbell admitted that he had his wife, the fiddler Amanda Shires, in mind while writing the song. The country singer attributed Shires’ role as the change’s impetus. Isbell claimed that he wouldn’t have had any genuine drive to become clean if it weren’t for his wife. In fact, “Cover Me Up” has established itself as Isbell’s anthem. In addition, it won Song of the Year honours at the 2014 Americana Music Awards. Seven years later, Morgan Wallen reintroduced the song back into popular culture. For his performance, which peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs list and No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100, Isbell won sizeable royalties.
Isbell has however stated that he will be giving all the money he makes from Wallen’s album to the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People after Wallen was censured by the whole industry after he was discovered using a racist slur. Since then, Isbell has denounced Morgan for his behaviour, calling it “disgusting and horrifying,” and even urging the country music business to “give that spot to somebody who deserves it.” Songs by Morgan Wallen were also promptly taken off of radio broadcasts and playlists on various streaming services. It thus came as no surprise when Morgan’s sophomore album, Dangerous: The Double Album, contained the stirring ballad as one of its thirty tracks. Since Morgan Wallen began performing it live, notably on his tour with country singer Luke Combs, “Cover Me Up” has astonishingly become a fan favorite. The entire crowd would be singing the song back to him while standing up and swinging their flashlights from floor to ceiling.
Cover Me Up Lyrics
- A heart on the run
Keeps a hand on a gun
Can’t trust anyone
I was so sure
What I needed was more
Tried to shoot out the sun
The days when we raged, we flew off the page
Such damage was done
But I made it through, ’cause somebody knew
I was meant for someone - So, girl, leave your boots by the bed
We ain’t leaving this room
‘Til someone needs medical help
Or the magnolias bloom
It’s cold in this house and I ain’t going out to chop wood
So cover me up and know you’re enough
To use me for good - I put your faith to the test
When I tore off your dress
In Richmond on high
I sobered up, I swore off that stuff
Forever this time
And the old lover’s sing
“I thought it’d be me who helped him get home”
But home was a dream
One that I’d never seen ’til you came along - So, girl, hang your dress out to dry
We ain’t leaving this room
‘Til Percy Priest breaks open wide
And the river runs through
And carries this house on its stones
Like a piece of driftwood
So, cover me up and know you’re enough
To use me for good - So, girl, leave your boots by the bed
We ain’t leaving this room
‘Til someone needs medical help
Or the magnolias bloom
It’s cold in this house and I ain’t going out to chop wood
So cover me up and know you’re enough
To use me for good
So cover me up and know you’re enough
To use me for good
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