Southern Comfort.

I distinctly remember sitting down on my sofa in front of the television with the sound turned almost all of the way down, eyes closed tightly, head throbbing slightly, suffering from a hang over. (before I quit drinking.) It was a Saturday night and my bud Luis Chavez told me that the Allman Brothers were going to be playing on Austin City Limits. for me, Dickey Betts was always worthy of a listen, so there I sat, hung over, patiently waiting. Then I hear something that doesn’t sound quite right, yeah, it was a Les Paul, definitely, but there was something different sounding about it, I hear this Paul screaming into the opening of “the Same Thing” and I immediately opened my eyes and leaned forward. I remember thinking; “damn, now who is THIS guy?” after doing a little digging, I discovered that “THAT” guy’s name is; Warren Haynes. Yeah I know, that’s probably not the first name that pops into your head when you pause to consider the long line of names in the annals of rock and blues guitar players, but he is there, trust me on that.



Warren Haynes was born on April 6th1960 in Asheville NC, he had just turned the ripe old age of 20 in 1980 when he would catch his first big break. When by chance, Mickey Hayes- (The bass player for David Allan Coe’s recording & road band) spotted him playing in a nightclub in Asheville Called; “The Brass Tap” Hayes told Coe about this guitarist that he’d heard and Coe ended meeting up with and recruiting Warren Haynes shortly thereafter. He would tour several countries with the band for several years and it was through Coe that he would eventually come to meet up with his eventual Allman Brothers Band mate Dickey Betts. Warren Haynes and Mickey Hayes would leave Coes band and relocate to Nashville TN, where together they would form their own band; Rich Hippies. Since then Warren Haynes would continue to refine his guitar playing prowess while moving in and out of the line ups of several different bands throughout his career, arguably the most prominent being The Allman Brothers and of course Gov’t Mule. (Not that I’m Biased or anything)



Today I’m sitting here, a few years after the fact, and I’m here in my desk chair not far from where I first sat when I first heard that Paul screaming in my hung over ears. So here I now sit blasting the mule from my speakers, And as I’m listening to this voice, and this guitar playing, I find myself wondering why Warren Haynes doesn’t get the credit that he so richly deserves? I could go up to 10 or maybe even 20 people, and it is more than likely that less than 10 percent of them would recognize his name. it is a truly sad thing to me, but I know that it isn’t the fans fault, I would think that it has more to do with limited airtime and piss poor public exposure. The truth is Warren Haynes is a monster musician and singer and it is about damn time that the world catches up with the rest of us that have become acquainted with his body of work have known all along, Warren Haynes is an amazing musician, and Gov’t Mule is an amazing band. So here’s what I want you to do. Turn off everything else in your house for at least 10 minutes, sit down and get comfortable. And then turn up your computer speakers. And just listen. Warren should take care of the rest.