Warren Haynes

Dreams & Songs: A Symphonic Journey

Evil Teen Records

Some might imagine Allen Woody hearing this version of “Thorazine Shuffle” with a raised eyebrow up there in that great gig in the sky. The gentle monster of a bassist cut the original, sprawling, psycho-medication-craving ditty in 1997 with Gov’t Mule. That power trio spinoff from the Allman Brothers Band also featured—and still does in quartet form—the immensely talented guitarist, songwriter, and singer Warren Haynes, and drummer Matt Abts. Haynes’ presentation of it at this special concert 22 years later features Oteil Burbridge, (ironically Woody’s successor in the Allman Brothers), keyboardist John Medeski, drummer Jeff Sipe, sax player Greg Osby, background vocalists Edwin McCain and Jasmine Muhammad, and a 64-piece symphony. What surprises is that the tune loses not a whit of the Mule’s kick, the enlarged band and symphony only enhancing the jazziness of it with expansive weight.

Dreams & Songs: A Symphonic Journey takes a listener on a penetrating musical ride through Warren Haynes’ long, fruitful career. Haynes wrote or co-wrote most of the songs presented, or, he had a hand in reshaping them. In several cases, the songs reshaped him. Besides leading Gov’t Mule and performing under his own name, Haynes was a member of the Allman Brothers Band and latter-day Grateful Dead configurations The Dead and Phil & Friends. In every context, he has not only played his own incomparable songs, but those of others with respect and verve. U2’s “One” and The Band’s “It Makes No Difference” are the two he chose to deepen his marks on at this concert with wholehearted renditions.

The show commences on “Dreams and Songs (Part One),” which Haynes wrote for a latter-day Gov’t Mule album about his life in music. Joyful reflection then folds with dramatic fanfare into Gregg Allman’s monumental “Dreams,” a song like no other about struggling through the blues. Haynes’ clean blue guitar lines and throaty, Allman-esque singing recall the glory days of the Allman Brothers, irrespective of the sparkling sheen afforded it by this band and the symphony. Gov’t Mule’s “Banks of the Deep End” details chance and escape amid a mix of Southern rock and Dead-like adventurousness. The sprightly “Spots of Time,” written by Haynes with the late Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh about memories of wild abandon, was purportedly earmarked for a final Allman Brothers album that hit a dead end. The epic ended up on Haynes’ folk and bluegrass-tinged solo album, Ashes & Dust, but here, draped in the boldest of melody, it hits most profoundly. Greg Osby’s sax solo brings it home on sturdy wings of soul.

The socio-political messages in “Broken Promised Land,” from Haynes’ 35-year-old solo debut, still resonate strongly today, yet are delivered with elegance besides a big bang. The coupling of the Grateful Dead’s “Terrapin Station” and “Slipknot” provides a fantastic side trip within this journey, and Gov’t Mule’s “Raven Black Night” combined with “Silent Scream” presents spectacular folk music art, akin to what I imagine Led Zeppelin might have come up with if they’d stayed the course for the long haul that III seemed to have them on.

Dreams & Songs: A Symphonic Journey ends on a wallop of blues glory with Gregg Allman’s masterpiece, “Whipping Post.” Warren Haynes connected the dots and blurred the lines beautifully at this impressive concert. Chances are good that Mr. Woody has been looking down with not a raised eyebrow but with a buzz and a huge, knowing grin.

Tom Clarke for MAS

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