Concert review: Warren Haynes is a national treasure
He may or may not be a senior citizen, but the former Allman Brother showed why he should be a first-round pick in any fantasy musicians draft
As the Warren Haynes Band prepared to begin the second set of their show at the Peoria Civic Center on Feb. 16, the crowd grew quiet. Someone near the front shouted: “Hey Warren, not bad for a senior citizen!”
The 64-year-old Haynes quickly shot back: “Who are you calling a senior citizen?”
The comment … why?! BUT, it is easy to think Haynes has been around long enough to be near retirement. He wasn’t part of the Allman Brothers’ original run, but he joined the band in 1989, released his first solo album in 1993 and formed Gov’t Mule in 1994. All those dates are more than 30 years ago.
But Haynes doesn’t look or sound anywhere near retiring. He’s still one of the best guitar players on the planet, still has a strong, soulful voice, writes great songs and is a deep and poignant lyricist. If you were having a fantasy draft for band members, he’d be a top pick. Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman have received plenty of credit for their music over the years, but their scouting — bringing in both Haynes and Derek Trucks to the Allman Brothers — goes underrated.
I’d never listened to any Haynes’ solo work until his release last year of Million Voices Whisper, which was my No. 1 album of 2024. It led me to listening to his other solo work, including the excellent Man In Motion, which has a similar vibe.
I’d regretted missing Gov’t Mule their last time through the area and made sure when this show was announced, I got tickets. I won’t be missing Haynes if he appears anywhere near me again (Shawn and I also have tickets to see Gov’t Mule open for Tedeschi Trucks in September in Chicago).
I attended the show with concert buddy Shawn and a mutual friend from the State of Amorica podcast, Jason — he was also at the Black Crowes show in Chicago last year. Shawn got us a room at the Pere Marquette, which had an indoor (though not heated) walkway from the hotel to the venue.
This was my first time at the Peoria Civic Center’s Prairie Home Alliance Theater. It wasn’t empty, but also not full — the show started about 30 minutes late, possibly to let the crowd fill in a little. Shawn and I had tickets in Row D, and Jason was further back — but there were quite a few open seats near the front, so we all three ended up sitting in Row B, and sometimes in Row A if I didn’t want to crawl over people when I came back from the restroom.
There were a few scattered standers, but mostly people stayed in their seats — including me, though only to not be an asshole. I wanted to stand.
In fairness, though, I’m not sure the crowd knew what to expect. Until reforming his solo band last summer, it had been 11 years since Haynes toured in support of 2011’s Man In Motion. During that time he finished out his run with the Allman Brothers in 2014, released a solo album of roots music with Railroad Earth in 2015, did four Gov’t Mule studio albums and several live projects with Mule exploring everything from jazz to reggae to Pink Floyd to the Rolling Stones.
The song, “Man In Motion,” — a song Haynes went nearly 11 years without performing but has been a staple for the solo band since its return — sums up Haynes’ feelings and actions as an artist well. The song begins:
“Still life is overrated. Burn-out factor is part of the game. Life should be an adventure. Anything else is a crying shame.”
Haynes has a style but he doesn’t like to be boxed in. And, when he feels like releasing something specifically with more of a Stax Records (Memphis soul) sound, which is a great fit for his talent and part of his roots as a musician, he does it as a solo artist. This is his fourth solo album overall, with Millions Voices Whisper and Man in Motion both featuring more of the Stax sound.
Live, Haynes’ band is an all-star group of musicians — drummer Terence Higgins of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Gov’t Mule bassist Kevin Scott, former Magpie Salute keyboard player Matt Slocum and jazz legend Greg Osby on sax.
The show was one big highlight. Every band member sounded great and got multiple chances to shine — how many shows do you see with two drum solos and two bass solos? And they all worked!
I decided to limit myself to top five moments. Here they are:
“Dreams”: Anytime a band does this Allman Brothers classic, it has potential to be special, but they better bring it or it’ll pale in comparison to the Allmans. I witnessed a great version in December from the Allman Betts Family Revival featuring steel guitarist Robert Randolph and 17-year-old guitar phenom Grace Bowers, but this one was another level. Osby began the soloing portion by taking the song places that would’ve had Duane Allman grinning wide. Following Osby, Haynes took over and proceeded to play a stunning four-minute solo that paid homage to both Betts and Duane Allman. Vocally, Haynes doesn’t do a copy of Gregg Allman, but he channels his style to perfection.
“What Is Hip?”: I have to admit, while I’d heard of Tower of Power, I wasn’t real familiar with their catalog and this sent me down a rabbit hole. How was the entire theater not on their feet shaking their asses to this one? The jam became other songs at times, including Van Morrison’s “I’ve Been Working,” and featured a particularly jaw-dropping Slocum organ solo. The crazy thing is this came directly after “Dreams” in the first set, and it wasn’t even the end of the set.
“Real, Real Love”: Though “Go Down Swinging” might have been my favorite performance of the four songs Haynes did off the new album, this was just the second time on the tour for both “Real, Real Love” and “These Changes.” It provided a good comedown after “What Is Hip?” and was among the emotional highs of the show, with Haynes singing the hell out of it and Osby subbing in some sax where Trucks’ solo is on the album.
“Pretzel Logic”: Any time you give me Steely Dan, I’m going to be happy. Steely Dan songs can be tough to sing but Haynes nailed it, threw in some nasty guitar licks and the band went full-out jazz jam.
“Soulshine”: This was the encore. Everyone stood and sang along — it was beautiful. I understand that all of us have our own taste in music, but there are certain songs that when you hear them, you wonder: How could anyone not like this song? I know there are people whose eyes don’t start to well up every time they hear: “Well now people don't mind. We all feel this way sometimes. Gotta let your soul shine. Shine till the break of day.” I’m not one of them.
Post-show, we headed to the hotel bar … which was closed. So instead we ventured into the cold and to Kenny’s Westside Pub, which was still serving food after 11 — clutch!
Last thought: If you made it this far into this and you’ve never listened to Warren Haynes, immediately search your music platform for Soulshine by Gov’t Mule and listen to that, then search for “Man in Motion,” then just put on the whole Million Voices Whisper album. Also, this show is on Nugs.net — it takes a subscription to listen, but it’s well worth it.
More videos and photos
Another of my favorites from the new album: “Life As We Know It.”
“These Changes” from Million Voices Whisper
The end of Greg Osby’s sax solo on “Dreams.” Pretty sure that’s Shawn yelling!
“Banks of the Deep End” — one of four Govt. Mule songs in the set.
