If you were to look up the phrase “A rolling stone gathers no moss,” it would be fair to expect a picture of Warren Haynes looking back at you.
The former Allman Brothers Band guitarist and founding member of jam-band stalwarts Gov’t Mule is the epitome of someone who keeps multiple plates spinning. Haynes and the Mule are preparing to launch the first of two separate tours that will take up the remainder of this year. The one he’s kicking off this summer, which will come to the Great South Bay Music Festival, is the Kicking in Your Stall Summer Headlining Tour.
Having come through Patchogue twice before, most recently in 2023 as part of the Dark Side of the Mule Tour, Haynes is looking forward to playing at Shorefront Park again. And as with every Mule tour, the set list is always a moving target.
“It’s a very cool festival,” he said. “With every show being different, we’re just going to be covering a lot of ground from the beginning to now. We never know what we’re going to play until a couple of days before the show. Every show is different from the night before. We try to do something from each period of Mule. We’ve been digging back and doing a lot of old stuff recently, which has been fun. And some stuff from the past couple of albums as well. You just never know.”
Once Kicking in Your Stall wraps up at the end of August, Haynes and company will switch gears to co-headline the Dreaming the Same Dream Tour with old friend Ziggy Marley. The 16-date jaunt launches on Sept. 23 in New York City. Haynes’ relationship with Marley dates back roughly 15 years, and for Haynes, he’s surprised this live music jaunt hadn’t happened sooner.
“Ziggy and I have been friends for a long time,” Haynes said. “We’ve played together before. He sat in with the Allman Brothers and played a version of ‘I Shot the Sheriff’ in Los Angeles, and it was fantastic.”
He added, “We actually wrote a couple of songs together, one of which is ‘Dreaming the Same Dream,’ which I did on my Live at the Moody Theater live release. There’s never been a studio version of it, but there’s been a live version. That seemed like an appropriate title for this tour. It’s basically co-headlining, with each band playing an equal set length. I think all or most of the shows have Gov’t Mule closing, but we’re both playing the same amount of time, which will be great.”
An additional bonus of the Dreaming the Same Dream Tour is the inclusion of English singer-songwriter Yola, who will perform a DJ set. Having only recently met Yola during Gov’t Mule’s annual New Year’s Eve gigs at Manhattan’s Beacon Theatre, Haynes found the chance to have the leather-lunged vocalist be part of Dreaming the Same Dream a no-brainer.
“Having Yola come out with us was just brought up, and everybody thought it was a great idea,” Haynes explained. “She joined Gov’t Mule for our New Year’s shows at the Beacon. She sang ‘Black Dog’ by Led Zeppelin and ‘Me and Bobby McGee,’ the Janis Joplin version, during our New Year’s Eve set. She’s fantastic. She’s kind of been on our radar, and vice versa.”
As if the Asheville, NC, native didn’t have enough going on, Haynes is also preparing for the September release of Dreams & Songs. This 16-track collection, recorded with the 64-piece Asheville Symphony Orchestra, showcases material from throughout Haynes’ solo career, along with music he’s recorded with The Allman Brothers Band, Gov’t Mule, The Dead, and more. Originally recorded in 2019, the pandemic threw a monkey wrench into what Haynes described as a “once-in-a-lifetime project.”
Next year, Haynes will bring the Dreams & Songs Symphonic Experience to Nashville for a pair of dates at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in March. He’s fully focused on the live dates at hand.
“We’re going to play a lot of shows with Joe Bonamassa and one show with JJ Grey & Mofro, along with many shows on our own during the summer tour,” he said. “It’s going to be a busy year covering a lot of ground, but we’re excited. The band feels fantastic right now, and everybody is having a great time.”
Gov’t Mule will be playing on July 12 at the Great South Bay Music Festival at Shorefront Park, 49 Smith St., Patchogue. Visit www.greatsouthbaymusicfestival.com for more information.
