PREVIEW: GOV’T MULE’s ANNUAL NEW YEAR’S SHOW: 1971 THE YEAR MUSIC CHANGED EVERYTHING
12/28 @ Proctors, Schenectady
Photo by Emily Butler
“That's the way that year was — there was so much stuff coming out that we were just getting bombarded with fantastic music.”
Gov’t Mule will kick off their annual three-day New Year’s run at Proctors on December 28.
Since 2002, Gov’t Mule has played two nights at the Beacon Theatre in New York City as well as one other rotating location nearly every year around this time. This has become a special tradition and an important part of New York culture. Nearly every year has had a theme. This year, the theme is the music of 1971, considered by many to be one of the most transformative years in rock and roll history. The only covers the band will do will be from albums released within that year.
I spoke with guitarist and vocalist Warren Haynes about this year’s show and why the band chose 1971 as its theme.
“1971 is arguably the greatest year in rock music history, which also includes a lot of great soul music, jazz, and blues, etc.,” he tells me. “The records that came out that year… the list of amazing stuff is just astounding.”
It was a year of incredible releases and an unprecedented cultural burst of creativity. Haynes and I discussed a wide range of albums. While not an exhaustive list, a few we touched on include: IV by Led Zeppelin; Live at Fillmore East by The Allman Brothers Band; The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys by Traffic; Electric Warrior by T. Rex; Little Feat by Little Feat; Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones; There’s a Riot Goin’ On by Sly and the Family Stone; Madman Across the Water by Elton John; Imagine by John Lennon; Leon Russell and the Shelter People by Leon Russel; Who’s Next by The Who; Pearl by Janis Joplin; The Sun, Moon & Herbs by Dr. John; Tapestry by Carole King; L.A. Woman by The Doors; What’s Going On by Marvin Gaye; E Pluribus Funk by Grand Funk Railroad; Ain’t no Sunshine by Bill Withers; Grateful Dead by The Grateful Dead; Can’t Get Next to You by Al Green; If I Could Only Remember My Name by David Crosby; and Master of Reality by Black Sabbath.
“People didn't realize at the time how influential a lot of these records were going to be,” Haynes says. “The biggest challenge is how to tear it down to a workable set because there's so much stuff that it's really hard to choose, but that's a good problem to have… it's daunting, but it's all music that we love and that we're excited to play.” 1971 also happened to be the year Haynes started playing guitar at 11 years old.
“Thanks to my two older brothers, there was great music playing in our house all the time. A lot of wonderful music dominated the radio back then, especially FM radio. I remember being at the beach with my family in the summertime and hearing a lot of that [music] just walking around at all the arcades and amusement parks. And I remember specifically, “Won't Get Fooled Again” by The Who just playing over and over. That's the way that year was — there was so much stuff coming out that we were just getting bombarded with fantastic music.”
While having so many well known and acclaimed albums, 1971 also had many releases that weren’t wildly commercially successful. Although musically, they happen to be very important for Haynes and Gov’t Mule’s sound.
“The first Little Feat album is historically important,” he notes. “They are one of my favorite all time bands, and so that’s a monumental release.”
Gov’t Mule has taken on the challenge of learning all new songs. According to Haynes, continuing to challenge himself and expand his repertoire is one of his favorite parts of being a musician.
“Most of the stuff that we're going to play we've never played before. We did acknowledge that there's probably more than 20 songs from 1971 that we've already covered. We'll do some of those in Schenectady and the first night at the Beacon. It's mostly going to be stuff we've never done before and we're still in the process of learning. We'll be practicing right up to the end.”
Even with this added challenge of learning all new material, the band will keep their tradition of playing a different setlist every night.
“It's fun, and we're not trying to be perfectionists about it. It's a fun thing for us that we do twice a year on Halloween and New Year's. It's a lot of work, but it's enjoyable; even the process of learning and rehearsing the songs is fun.”
We also discuss the important concerts of 1971, like the Madison Square Garden Concert for Bangladesh and Soul to Soul in Ghana, which were cultural events to bring awareness to social justice issues.
“The concert for Bangladesh that was at Madison Square Garden was such a huge influence on the music scene that year. At one point, we even thought of covering that as the theme, because those were cultural events that brought about tons of amazing music.”
Paying additional homage to some of the greats, Haynes will be playing three guitars with a special personal history. First, Dickey Betts’ 1958 Gibson Les Paul — also known as the Tolerburst — which was played on the 1971 Live at Fillmore East Recordings. He will also be playing the 1963 Telecaster Mike Bloomfield played during Bob Dylan’s electric set at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. Lastly, Haynes will have Jerry Garcia’s Travis Bean TB500, which played at about 100 Grateful Dead concerts. Although these will likely only be making an appearance on New Year’s Eve, Haynes still promises a memorable night of surprises for the Capital Region.
“We're looking forward to playing Schenectady again. I think that's going to be a really fun show.”
In other Gov’t Mule and Warren Haynes news, Haynes just played his annual Asheville Christmas Jam with Stone Temple Pilots, MJ Lenderman, Maggie Rose, Grahame Lesh and more. He also recently released a new cover of Kevin Kinney’s song “The Flower and the Knife.” Kinney is releasing a four-album package of covers of his solo and Drivin and Cryin songs for charity, which will feature Haynes’ cover. A remastered edition of his 1993 solo debut “Tales of Ordinary Madness” is set to be released by Haynes, including new material. He also announced 15 new solo and Warren Haynes Band dates across the U.S. for next winter 2026. Gov’t Mule itself also has many dates lined up for 2026, including eight dates with Joe Bonamassa. Be sure to check these out in the year ahead.