This weekend, Warren Haynes will team with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra for an expanded, two-night run of his Warren Haynes Presents Dreams & Songs – A Symphonic Experience. Ahead of these performances, the Gov’t Mule guitarist returned to his hometown of Asheville, North Carolina, early to sit in with Little Feat on Wednesday.
Currently, Little Feat are celebrating their 50th anniversary, complementing the landmark year with a bi-coastal run throughout the spring and start of summer. With the first East Coast leg of the tour wrapping up at the end of the month before the iconic rock act looks to the West Coast in May, the band stopped in at Asheville’s Thomas Wolfe Auditorium on March 13 ahead of their show in Nashville on Friday and four-night Florida run next week.
The performance comes on the heels of the Haynes and Little Feat’s collaboration at New York City’s Beacon Theatre on Friday, March 8, when the guitarist joined the band for show-closing takes on “Spanish Moon” and “Dixie Chicken.” Much like Warren’s sit-in earlier in the month, in Asheville, the former Allman Brothers Band guitarist once again appeared to close out the single-set show. In addition to a 10-minute “Spanish Moon” and nearly 20-minute “Dixie Chicken,” Haynes also contributed on an eight-minute take on “Skin It Back,” off the group’s fourth studio album, Feats Don’t Fail Me Now. Following the special guest appearance, Little Feat performed the title track of their classic 1974 LP as an encore.
Prior to Haynes’ appearance, the band offered a decade-spanning sample from their catalog. Starting with the title track of their sixth studio album, 1977’s Time Loves A Hero, the group then drew from 1975’s The Last Record Album for “Day or Night” and 2012’s Rooster Rag for “One Breath At A Time.” By way of 1998’s “Home Ground,” 1972’s “Tripe Face Boogie” and 1979’s “Down On The Farm,” Little Feat landed in a more improvisational section, featuring a series of well-segued combos, including “Willin’” into “Don’t Bogart That Joint” and a tribute to The Band in the form of “Long Black Veil” into “The Weight.” To lead in to Warren’s guest sit-in, the band offered renditions of The Byrds’ “Truck Stop Girl,” Lee Dorsey’s “Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky” and Hank Williams’ “Lonesome Whistle Blow.”
Listen to the full performance below, courtesy of taper mrsoul:
Setlist
Set: Time Loves A Hero, Day or Night, One Breath At A Time, Home Ground, Tripe Face Boogie, Down On The Farm, Willin’> Don’t Bogart That Joint, Long Black Veil > The Weight, Truck Stop Girl, Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky, Lonesome Whistle Blow, Spanish Moon $, Skin It Back $, Dixie Chicken $
Encore: Feats Don’t Fail Me Now
- $ featuring Warren Haynes (vocals, guitar)
