The Mule never disappoints. The first set of the April 25th show at the NYCB Theatre at Westbury seemed like it might be a mellow one. Sure, Warren Haynes showed his usual guitar brilliance on “Railroad Boy” and “Thorazine Shuffle,” but once the instrumental “Sco-Mule” began, it seemed like this might be the usual raging Gov’t Mule show. Think again. Not only was the instrumental, originally composed with the name-checked John Scofield on fire, but there was even a nice “Smoke On The Water” tease which the Long Island crowd loved.
The reggae-infused (though less than usual) “Time To Confess” led to a pair of songs off 2017’s Revolution Come…Revolution Go. “Burning Point” featured harmonica player Hook Hererra, who has been out for every show of the tour thus far. Hererra pushed Warren to dig deep on the blues for the set-closing Robert Johnson number, “32-20 Blues.”
Haynes mentioned that the band “knew it was a school night” and would be back soon. They were indeed and the first performance of Billy Cobham’s “Red Baron” was the perfect soundtrack to get people gradually back to their seats. “King’s Highway,” which appeared on 2005’s Mo’ Voodoo EP followed, and it was a scorcher. The “KH Jam” that followed was similarly hot. “World Boss,” off 2013’s Shout! album, started the home stretch and segued into “Mother Earth.” This was where the blues really took over the show. Haynes brought the crowd all the way down, built them back up, and smashed them over the head all the same time. The set-closing “Mr. Man” had another Deep Purple reference, this time “Highway Star.”
Besides drummer Matt Abts, who was getting huge cheers all night, the roar of the crowd was reserved for some deep, dark, blues. Muddy Waters’ “Champagne & Reefer” featured the Mule at its most delicate. You could hear every note of the guitar. You knew it would get intense, but didn’t know when or how it would sound. Clearly, the band wasn’t ready to leave the screaming crowd so they finished with another number, “Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’.” The Mule paid proper honor to Duane, Gregg, and Butch with this one and the harmonica brought back echoes of the Fillmore East versions with Thom Doucette. Once again, this band saved its best for last.
