Gov’t Mule guitarist Warren Haynes was joined by Blind Boys of Alabama for “Soulshine” at The Peach Music Festival on Sunday. The famed singing group backed Haynes on “Soulshine” to close out his Fourth Of July set at Montage Mountain in Scranton, Pennsylvania before both Warren and Blind Boys Of Alabama sat-in with The String Cheese Incident at different points of SCI’s festival-ending performance.
Warren’s 90-minute set took place on the festival’s main Peach Stage and brought Haynes’ six-night solo tour of the Northeast to a close. The longtime The Allman Brothers Band guitarist is a staple of The Peach Music Festival dating back to the first installment in 2012, when he was first joined by Blind Boys Of Alabama for “Soulshine” at the event.
The guitarist opened his Sunday afternoon set with “Traveling Tune” from Gov’t Mule’s latest studio album, 2017’s Revolution Come…Revolution Go. Haynes then played “Hattiesburg Hustle” off 2011’s Man In Motion. A trio of varied covers came next as Warren offered his first take on John Lennon’s “Working Class Hero” of the tour before performing the traditional “Railroad Boy” and Van Morrison’s “Ballerina.”
Warren’s lengthy set moved on with Man In Motion track “A Friend To You” and “Is It Me Or You,” the lone song of the afternoon plucked from Haynes’ 2015 album Ashes & Dust. The rest of frame saw Warren focus on beloved covers and classic originals starting with an emotional rendition of U2’s “One” and continuing with blues standard “It Hurts Me Too” and a tear-jerking take on Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” Haynes then honored Bill Withers, who would have been celebrating his 83rd birthday, with “Hope She’ll Be Happier.”
Oldie “I’ll Be The One” came next along with “Old Friend,” a song Haynes wrote for The Allman Brothers Band’s 2003 album Hittin’ The Note with Chris Anderson. Warren stuck with Hittin’ The Note material in delivering “Desdemona” before digging in on the ABB gem “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More.” Haynes started “Soulshine” but then took a moment to address the crowd. “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Blind Boys Of Alabama to the stage,” the guitarist exclaimed following the first verse. “We did this a few years ago and it was one of the most exciting memories of my life. For those of you who weren’t here to hear it, we’re going to do it again,” Haynes explained in referencing their 2012 collaboration. Blind Boys Of Alabama provided gorgeous harmonies on Haynes’ signature song to bring his set and tour to a conclusion.
Watch video featuring the final four songs of Haynes’ set including the collaboration with Blind Boys Of Alabama on “Soulshine” below:
Setlist (via Setlist.FM)
Set: Traveling Tune, Hattiesburg Hustle, Working Class Hero, Railroad Boy, Ballerina, A Friend To You, Is It Me Or You, One, It Hurts Me Too, Hallelujah, Hope She’ll Be Happier, I’ll Be The One, Old Friend, Desdemona, Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More, Soulshine (w/ Blind Boys Of Alabama)
