WARREN HAYNES - The man from the mountains

25. June 2015

Warren Haynes Gov´t Mule

WARREN HAYNES - The man from the mountains

Warren Haynes is a workaholic. Or would it be better to say Warren Haynes are workaholics? It is hard to imagine that this man's inconceivable workload can be mastered by a single person. There are not only the albums and constant tours of his main band Gov't Mule, his acoustic shows as a solo artist, his numerous guest appearances with the Grateful Dead follow-up bands, with Gov't Mule he also performs a special cover program twice a year, which is only rehearsed for one show at a time.

And now this new record he recorded with the bluegrass group Railroad Earth. Haynes' vocals and guitar in combination with banjo, fiddle, mandolin and double bass. No big deal for the heavyweight from the south. "This side of me has always existed," he waves dryly. "Probably I wrote more of this kind of songs than of any other songs. But they didn't fit in with Gov't Mule or the Allman Brothers Band. You wouldn't have fitted on my last solo album 'Man In Motion' either. For many years I have been looking for the right context for a record in this direction. I've needed for it so far, but many of these songs are already extremely old. I've been collecting them for many years. Had I made that record ten years ago, it probably would have been even more surprising. But at least in the USA, listeners are familiar with my solo acoustic shows that go in a similar direction."

The folk and country element has always been part of Haynes' music, whether he was with the Allman Brothers or Gov't Mule. It was always this unique gravity that brought his musical gravity to Southern Rock. But at the side of Railroad Earth everything suddenly sounds very easy. Especially vocally Haynes seems to have fallen into a fountain of youth...

Lesen Sie mehr im eclipsed Nr. 172 (Juli/August 2015).