A quick peek at Warren Haynes’ 2026 calendar would show a wide range of shows: There were solo shows in February, concerts with the Warren Haynes Band in March and an upcoming symphonic experience in April. But there’s also more than two dozen Gov’t Mule shows on tap this spring and summer.
“Each situation is completely different from the other, and I really enjoy going back and forth,” Haynes said in a recent call. “It keeps me fresh and inspired. I’m grateful that I have that opportunity. I think if I just did one thing all the time I would probably go nuts, but I’m thankful that that’s not the case.”
Gov’t Mule, which specializes in Southern rock mixed with jam bands, will play Timber Rock Amphitheater in Farmington on April 17, with Larkin Poe also on the bill. Haynes, a longtime guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, said he appreciated the Pittsburgh area crowds — the band has played in the region more than 25 times — and the opportunity to keep touring.
“It’s in our blood,” he said. “Live performance is something that we’re all motivated by, and I’m thankful that I get to do this for a living and that we’re still going.”
In a phone call from New York earlier this month, Haynes spoke with TribLive about Gov’t Mule’s latest album, guest appearances, the remaster of his solo debut and more. Find a transcript of the conversation, edited for clarity and length, below.
It looks like the shows feature a variety of covers. Have there been any songs that would be off limits, or is pretty much everything fair game for you?
Gov’t Mule shows are different night after night. Sometimes we’ll go four shows in a row without repeating one song. And the shows are very long. It’s three hours with a break in the middle normally, unless there’s an opening act, in which case, they’re not quite as long. But over the course of that time period, anything goes. We play predominantly original music, but we throw in a handful of covers here and there, and it’s always fun to see where the night goes.
When do you come up with the setlist? Is it that day?
It’s usually a few days in advance, but that doesn’t mean that we’re going to stick to it, so to speak.
Your 2023 album, “Peace Like a River,” has been out for a bit now. So what are your thoughts on the album?
I love that record. I think it’s one of the best ones that we’ve done. Really proud of all the songs for that record and the way it was captured. I think sonically it’s a really good sounding record, and it’s been fun translating that music to the stage. A lot of times, the studio versions are just a template and we see how they’re going to take shape on stage. A lot of times, even two or three years later, songs have a way of changing and growing in a live context that is interesting to watch.
So people who may have only heard the studio version, when they hear the live version there could be something completely different?
In some cases. Not in all cases, but, yeah, I would say most cases at least to a certain extent.
The album includes some guest appearances from people like Billy Gibbons and Billy Bob Thornton. Did you call in some favors for those guys to show up?
Yeah. In both of those cases, we’ve been friends a long time, and they were the right person for the job.
Did you have the songs written in mind for them? How did that work out?
In the case of Billy Bob for the song “The River Only Flows One Way,” when we recorded the song, the verses I intended to be kind of talk-sung, to be almost like spoken word, like beat poetry. I did a version with me doing it, which we eventually included as a bonus track on the bonus CD. But I wanted a voice other than mine for those parts of the song. Billy has one of those speaking voices that just draws you in. So he came to mind and did a fantastic job. In the case of Billy Gibbons for the song “Shake Our Way Out,” that song has a lot of ZZ Top influence. So as we were rehearsing it, and especially once we got into the recording process, we thought, well, it’d be nice to add Billy to the picture. Unlike in the past, where he’s played guitar on, as an example, the song “Broke Down on the Brazos” from a previous record, on this track he’s only singing. But he just is an important part of the overall vibe.
If you look at Gov’t Mule itself, how would you describe the evolution of the band from where it first started to where it is now?
We started out as a trio, and our first record that we did in 1995 was predominantly live in the studio. Very few overdubs, and it just captures a snapshot of the trio, for the most part, performing live. The second record had a little bit more production and a few more overdubs, but not much. By the time we got to our third record, we brought in our friend, Johnny Neel, to play keyboards on about half of that record. So, half of that record was a quartet instead of a trio. And then, sadly, Alan Woody passed away, and when that happened, we decided to become a quartet from that point forward. The biggest change is being a four-piece instead of a three-piece. With the album, we pursue different influences and add more influences to the overall picture. We like for every album to be different from the one before. And at this point, I think we’ve done 12 or 13 studio records and you can see the natural progression, and you can see with each record, or you can hear how we’re adding in, I wouldn’t say new influences, but different influences that had not been utilized in the past.
Whenever you’re writing, how do you differentiate between Gov’t Mule music and solo music? Is it just a matter of, you’re writing for a specific purpose at that time?
If there’s a project on the horizon, then I’m writing specifically for that project. If there’s not, I’m just writing for the sake of the song, and I can decide after the fact if I think it belongs as a Gov’t Mule song or as a song for one of my solo records or for someone else or whatever the case may be. Sometimes there’s an overlap. I think there’s room on every Gov’t Mule record for two or three songs that could be interpreted differently for one of my solo records and vice versa. But for the most part, they tend to separate themselves automatically.
Is there more new music in the works now, or would you say touring is a bigger priority nowadays?
We’re starting to think about what’s going to be next from a recording standpoint, but we’re not there as of yet. We’re mostly concentrating on the live performance for the time being.
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In January, you released a remixed, remastered version of 1993’s “Tales of Ordinary Madness.” What did you rediscover about that album during that process?
Well, I wanted to remix that record, because I always was curious what it would sound like with a little drier, more organic mix. That record was recorded and mixed in 1992, when records in general were a little slicker, a little glossier, and had more reverb and more processing and compression and EQ. A few years later that would change back to a more organic approach to recording, and so I always was curious to see what it would sound like remixed with that approach. As we were approaching the 30th anniversary, we decided to make that come to fruition. We got Jim Scott, our friend who is fantastic, to remix it. I think it just has less of a time stamp on it now. The original mix, which I think is really good, sounds like it was done in a certain time period, where the new mix sounds like it could have been done any time over the past 50 years.
What do you remember about that time whenever you were writing that? You were putting yourself out there as a solo artist, but you were also still in Allman Brothers Band then.
I kind of just joined the Allman Brothers. I was working toward making that record from about 1987 or ’88. When I joined the Allman Brothers in 1989, I put it on the back burner because we were so busy at that time period. I didn’t get back into the studio until 1992 to make that record. But you only make your first record once, so there was a lot of thought and effort and energy that went into it. I have extremely fond memories of making that record. It’s not something that I listen to very often, but hearing it recently for the first time in quite a while, I think it holds up, especially with the new mix. In some ways, it’s more timely, or as timely as it was then. It’s kind of fun to revisit some of those tunes that haven’t been played in so long. It’s been fun.
You’ve also got some several signature guitars with Gibson. What do you like about the Les Paul?
This is my first signature Les Paul with P90 pickups which is different for me. I’ve always been a humbucker guy in the past, but I’ve been enamored with P90s in the last few years and really enjoying the change, and on this guitar they sound fantastic. This guitar was co-designed in a way that I think, whether it’s a new player or a seasoned player, there’s a lot of tonal options more so than than a normal Les Paul. It feels and plays fantastic. I’m really proud of it. It’s the first time we’ve done a signature model that’s not a limited edition so more people have the opportunity now to experience what I recommend as far as the design of this instrument.