Post by Shutter Girl on Nov 26, 2006 10:52:01 GMT -5
So wouldn't you love to see the man Rolling Stone voted the 23rd best guitarist in the world? I had no idea that Warren Haynes held this honorable distinction when I purchased tickets for RJ and me to see Gov't Mule at the HOB. My nephew had seen them at Bonaroo and has raved about them ever since... and no wonder, they're a blockhouse of a band.
The audience was a rather odd conglomeration of older fans (those in their 50's and even 60's) and a handful of young folk. I was wondering about the mix when the nice fellow next to us pointed out that most of the older crowd were old Allman Brothers fans, Warren Haynes was their guitarist. This was all starting to make sense... The whole house filled with smoke quickly as the band made their way to the stage and played 2 sets of almost 3 hours in length total.
Some bands are tighter than others and this band was tight as a drum. And speaking of drums... Gov't Mule drummer Matt Abts was a powerhouse of a player (and he looked to be enjoying himself, too!). His rapid, in sync tapping of those skins tied the whole band together and made the audience go insane. You know how people say that the days of the big drum solo are dead? Not when Matt's in the house, he ripped one great drum part after another and was certainly given his due. It was a pleasure to watch those tattooed arms go to work --- he is truly a sight to behold.
Bassist Andy Hess laid down a deep bass part in every tune, he's a true musician. I wish he would have turned to face the audience more, he was facing Matt Abts almost the entire time. Still, I love a good bassist and Mr. Hess has it in spades. It was fun to watch Danny Louis play the keyboards, his knit hat gave him a cool look. I loved when he threw in a little 70's groove now and again, sweet! All in all a great band they really seem to enjoy one another.
But the centerpiece of the entire evening has to be the smooth, screaming guitar licks and killer voice of Warren Haynes. This man can play. His use of the slide is some of the best work I've ever seen. They played two long sets and he played so hard and with such feeling that I think a normal human being might keel over dead... but not this superstar. This man was born to rock and rock he did!
Oh yeah, and the songs were pretty good, too:
Set 1
Mr. Man
Brand New Angel
She Said, She Said->
Tomorrow Never Knows
I Think You Know What I Mean
When The Levee Breaks->
I Think You Know What I Mean
Nothing Again
Take Me To The River
Flip Wilson The Song Formerly Known As #2
Thorazine Shuffle
Set 2
Bad Little Doggie
Mr. High & Mighty
Endless Parade
Pygmy Twylyte->
Trouble Every Day->
Drums->
I'm A Ram*->
Love Me Do*->
I'm A Ram*
Brighter Days
Mule
Encore:
Sad And Deep As You
Reggae Soulshine
*featuring So Ram, So Rong Teases
Usually I can't stand Beatle covers but I loved what they did with She Said, She Said, Tomorrow Never Knows and Love Me Do. The arrow ( --->) indicates the songs that ran into one another and let me tell you, there were a lot of them. These guys don't stop long enough between songs to even breathe, they look like one of the hardest rocking bands in rock.
Donavan Frankenreiter opened with his band and they brought the funk to the HOB in grand style. He's a man to watch, this kid could take over the blues world if he plays his cards right.
All in all it was a wonderful evening given to us by musicians who truly are in it because they love to play. You can see the passion in their eyes and that makes the experience all the better for their audience. Thanks, gents.
BTW, you can download the whole show right from the Gov't Mule site!
www.mule.net/from_the_road/details.php?year=06&month=11#19
And if you notice, the setlist is very different from one night to the next... what a concept!
If you look real hard you can see RJ and me sitting in the second row of the balcony behind the two people in blue. We're wearing black so we might be a little hard to make out:
The audience was a rather odd conglomeration of older fans (those in their 50's and even 60's) and a handful of young folk. I was wondering about the mix when the nice fellow next to us pointed out that most of the older crowd were old Allman Brothers fans, Warren Haynes was their guitarist. This was all starting to make sense... The whole house filled with smoke quickly as the band made their way to the stage and played 2 sets of almost 3 hours in length total.
Some bands are tighter than others and this band was tight as a drum. And speaking of drums... Gov't Mule drummer Matt Abts was a powerhouse of a player (and he looked to be enjoying himself, too!). His rapid, in sync tapping of those skins tied the whole band together and made the audience go insane. You know how people say that the days of the big drum solo are dead? Not when Matt's in the house, he ripped one great drum part after another and was certainly given his due. It was a pleasure to watch those tattooed arms go to work --- he is truly a sight to behold.
Bassist Andy Hess laid down a deep bass part in every tune, he's a true musician. I wish he would have turned to face the audience more, he was facing Matt Abts almost the entire time. Still, I love a good bassist and Mr. Hess has it in spades. It was fun to watch Danny Louis play the keyboards, his knit hat gave him a cool look. I loved when he threw in a little 70's groove now and again, sweet! All in all a great band they really seem to enjoy one another.
But the centerpiece of the entire evening has to be the smooth, screaming guitar licks and killer voice of Warren Haynes. This man can play. His use of the slide is some of the best work I've ever seen. They played two long sets and he played so hard and with such feeling that I think a normal human being might keel over dead... but not this superstar. This man was born to rock and rock he did!
Oh yeah, and the songs were pretty good, too:
Set 1
Mr. Man
Brand New Angel
She Said, She Said->
Tomorrow Never Knows
I Think You Know What I Mean
When The Levee Breaks->
I Think You Know What I Mean
Nothing Again
Take Me To The River
Flip Wilson The Song Formerly Known As #2
Thorazine Shuffle
Set 2
Bad Little Doggie
Mr. High & Mighty
Endless Parade
Pygmy Twylyte->
Trouble Every Day->
Drums->
I'm A Ram*->
Love Me Do*->
I'm A Ram*
Brighter Days
Mule
Encore:
Sad And Deep As You
Reggae Soulshine
*featuring So Ram, So Rong Teases
Usually I can't stand Beatle covers but I loved what they did with She Said, She Said, Tomorrow Never Knows and Love Me Do. The arrow ( --->) indicates the songs that ran into one another and let me tell you, there were a lot of them. These guys don't stop long enough between songs to even breathe, they look like one of the hardest rocking bands in rock.
Donavan Frankenreiter opened with his band and they brought the funk to the HOB in grand style. He's a man to watch, this kid could take over the blues world if he plays his cards right.
All in all it was a wonderful evening given to us by musicians who truly are in it because they love to play. You can see the passion in their eyes and that makes the experience all the better for their audience. Thanks, gents.
BTW, you can download the whole show right from the Gov't Mule site!
www.mule.net/from_the_road/details.php?year=06&month=11#19
And if you notice, the setlist is very different from one night to the next... what a concept!
If you look real hard you can see RJ and me sitting in the second row of the balcony behind the two people in blue. We're wearing black so we might be a little hard to make out: