After the negative vibe of the whole UPA shenanigans I thought I would write about something that brings me great joy. That is the music of Gov't Mule. My all time favorite band and IMO the Efren Reyes of blues/rock bands. They kick copious amounts of ass.
A Dead Head friend of mine turned me onto the Allman Brothers about seven years ago. I had heard them before of course but only the stuff on the radio. He showed me concert DVD's and I really got into it. The improvisational nature of their stuff as well as the eclectic mix of songs worked for me. My buddy told me "You should check out Gov't Mule if you like that"
I did and I have been a Mule junky ever since. The front man for Gov't Mule is Warren Haynes. A stone musical genius who has one of the most soulful voices I have ever heard . He is also a legendary guitar talent. The real hook for me with this guy is that he writes some of the most amazing songs. Just knock out stuff. You can read about the history of them here.
In some TAR matches we have to supply the background music. Most guys want something playing so that there is not complete silence and the tension that goes with it plus the background noise tends to drown out the expert in the second row who likes to tell the guy next to him how Alex played that position wrong. :D
Gov't Mule usually is on in the background at some point during those occasions. I have had more than a few people ask me "Who is that? I like that music." They are the nuts. Here is a little YouTube clip to sweat if you like:
The really cool thing about these guys is they do their own amazing original work and some wildly varied covers. Everything from Black Sabbath to James Brown and it is all awesome. Warren Haynes plays with damn near everyone it seems. From Dave Mathews to the Grateful Dead and many people I had never heard of. I use Mule and Haynes as kind of a guide to new interesting music. One of the newest groups I found is Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. I saw her in a YouTube video performing with Mule. This chick is amazing. Check her out:
Another kick ass site for music lovers is Sugarmegs. This is a site for tape traders and was mainly a Dead thing. It has since exploded into all types of music. It is thousands of recordings of live concerts. All of the bands in the list allow tapers so it is legal. The quality ranges from bad to perfect but there is an unreal variety of music to listen to for free. If you like Mule, Allman Brothers, The Dead or just about any Jam Band they are there. Plus some crazy stuff like concerts from the 60's and 70's that are pretty cool.
Check out Gov't Mule. If you like them buy their shit, it is well worth it. I recommend The Deepest End concert set that includes a three hour DVD.
A bit from one of my favorite Waren Haynes creations:
"Time drags by
When you're boring
Don't care what you do care what you say
There comes a time
When you got to let the monster inside you
Let him come on out, come on out and play
Step right back and watch me now
I'll show you how it's done
Stay right here with me now
Till the damage is done"
~Thorazine Shuffle by Gov't Mule
Random life observation: Why is it that the hotness of a chick is in direct proportion to how crazy she is ?
Till next time.....
Well shit, if that were true, I'd be Miss Universe by now, don't you think?
ReplyDeleteYour theory does not compute.
LOL. Nice.
ReplyDeleteI stand by my theory though. It has been proven in practical trials too many times to be an anomaly.
Thanks for the heads up on Gov't mule. I'm a big Allman Brothers/Marshall Tucker/all southern rock fan.
ReplyDeleteIf you also like heavier rock, might I suggest "Shinedown". The lead sing Brent Smith writes all of their music & its some seriously deep stuff. He covers everything from his own battle with cocaine to his redneck uncle that recently died ("Two packs of cigarettes a day, the strongest whiskey KY can make. That's a recipe to put a vagabond on his hands and knees").
You can hear all of their songs & read all of the lyrics on their website shinedown.com, check 'em out someday when you've got some extra time on your hands. Its some good stuff... I've seen 'em live twice in the last month. ;-)
I got turned on to Gov't Mule by watching a TAR match stream. A Million Miles From Nowhere was playing, and it sounded great. I asked who that band was and a fellow stream viewer told me. I had heard of Gov't Mule before, but had never given them a listen. I just assumed it was more of a hippie jam band. So I passed.
ReplyDeleteWarren Haynes is an amazing guitarist and songwriter. Thanks for the find. I always love finding new and interesting music.