Kathy Coleman of "about.com" gave "Out of the Ashes" three and a half out of five stars. Even though the album was given a fairly average rating compared to allmusic's, Coleman gave the release positive feedback instead of constructive criticism. Coleman explained how the release of the album helped Colter overcome Jennings's death, emerging her "from grief into a renewed life." Coleman called the track, "The Phoenix Rises" to sound like, "Jessi does indeed rise like the Phoenix from the ashes." She later summarized the album, stating, ""Out of the Ashes" is a beautiful record, and a new classic by a true legend."