Gov’t Mule Blazes Own Trail

Gov’t Mule’s beefy guitar licks, whiskey-throated vocals and swampy rhythms clearly make it a descendant of such hard-driving blues-based rock bands as Cream, Mountain, Free and ZZ Top. But the connection to that earlier rock era isn’t just musical.

Two of its three members--guitarist and singer Warren Haynes and bassist Allen Woody--also play in the Allman Brothers Band, a group spawned during the same fertile late-’60s and early-’70s period. Drummer Matt Abts formerly played with the Dickey Betts Band.

Unlike many groups formed by moonlighting members of well-known bands, Gov’t Mule is capturing a solid following and enthusiastic reviews on its own merits.

“The response has been excellent,” said Haynes in a recent phone interview. “Even in the beginning, when no one had heard of the band or heard any of the songs, they were still very receptive to the music. They’d stay throughout a 2 1/2-hour show, which is a very nice compliment to us.

“Before we put the record out, it was mostly Allman Brothers fans coming out, curious to see what we were going to be doing. But now we have people coming to the shows who were turned on to the Gov’t Mule record and didn’t even realize that Woody and I are even in the Allman Brothers,” he said. “It’s starting to be more high school and college age people coming to see us, which is a very nice thing to see.”

Haynes, 35, joined the Allmans in 1989 and has been acclaimed--by both the press and members of the group--as the first guitarist the band recruited who approaches the intensity of musicianship demonstrated by the late Duane Allman, killed in a motorcycle accident in 1971.

In Gov’t Mule, Haynes gets to stretch out even further and present the full range of his talents. He asserts that his earliest influences as a guitarist were people like Hendrix, Beck, Winter and Clapton, so it’s only natural that he feels at home in a power-trio setting.

“All the bands we get compared to are not only bands we really like, but we’re influenced by them,” he said. “I don’t think we really sound like any of them, but the influences are there, so it’s OK. I’m much happier when someone compares us to Mountain than if they compare us to Lynyrd Skynyrd just because we’re from the South.”

In his role with the Allmans, he gets to sing a few tunes--he’s the only nonoriginal member of the group who has recorded lead vocals with them. But he truly relishes being lead vocalist in Gov’t Mule. Haynes’ growling, blues-steeped vocals may surprise Allmans fans who thought of him primarily as an instrumentalist.

“I knew when I joined the Allman Brothers that I’d be singing a lot less, so again, this gives me the opportunity to do what I’ve always done,” he said. “People may not be aware, but I’ve always placed equal importance on singing. I listened to a lot of old R&B--Otis; Redding is probably my all-time favorite singer. I love Son House, Levi Stubbs, Dennis Edwards [of the Temptations].

“All the white singers I listened to were white singers who emulated black singers--people like Paul Rodgers, Lowell George, Gregg Allman, Bonnie Raitt. I also love Van Morrison and Steve Winwood, although they use that approach a little less.”

While Haynes is the focus of Gov’t Mule and gets much of the ink, he’s quick to credit the contributions of his band mates.

“All of us take a different role,” he said. “Woody’s role is more aggressive in Gov’t Mule than it is in the Allman Brothers, although he’s aggressive in the Allman Brothers anyway. Matt is the perfect trio drummer--he plays very unconventional and reckless. He fills up a lot of space, but he’s very musical.

“I think a lot of the sound of Gov’t Mule hinges on the rhythm section. Woody and Matt have a very cool approach to a trio rhythm section, and it establishes a nice foundation for me to play and sing across.”

Although Gov’t Mule gives Haynes a forum for his talents that isn’t offered by the Allman Brothers, he says he’s by no means unhappy as part of that Hall of Fame band.

“Woody and I are still in the Allman Brothers--we go back to work with the Brothers in March,” he said. “This is in addition to doing that. But we are placing a lot of focus and emphasis on Gov’t Mule. . . . There’s fewer Allman Brothers tours these days.”

Gov’t Mule will soon be recording a new studio album aimed for an October release, and a mail-order-only live album will be offered in March to those on the group’s mailing list.

“We’re taking a grass-roots approach,” said Haynes. “Radio has trouble putting us into a category, but forget the categories--do you like it or not? That’s the important thing.”

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Gov’t Mule, Barrelhouse and Deb Buyer perform tonight at the Galaxy Concert Theatre, 3503 S. Harbor Blvd., Santa Ana. 8 p.m. $10. (714) 957-0600.