Warren Haynes has often gone down the road less traveled.

His creative journey can be attributed to his practice of coloring outside of accepted lines, always chasing something new. There is never a shortage of projects roaming around in his mind, both potential and those already in motion.

From the very beginning, it’s been about the music, something the former Allman Brothers Band guitarist continues to demonstrate through his chosen work. He spent the first part of the fall out on the road with Gov’t Mule, as the band shared the bill with Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. Appropriately, the group modified their own sets to have more of a reggae tint — they are consistently musical shapeshifters in that way.

This chameleon aspect has been a constant element of Haynes’ work. This makes Dreams & Songs: A Symphonic Journey, his latest release, a particularly welcome visitor. Hearing his own “Dreams and Songs Pt. 1” open the set, shifting seamlessly into a version of “Dreams” by the Allman Brothers, pushing deeper into the Mule’s “Banks of the Deep End,” reveals how everything that the guitarist has done throughout his career connects.

READ MORE: How Warren Haynes Shaped His Career With the Allman Brothers Band

Watch Warren Haynes Perform ‘Dreams’ in Asheville

How Warren Haynes Put the Pieces of His Long Legacy Together

No matter how different it might have felt in certain moments when hearing the records or seeing live shows, collectively, it all makes sense here on Dreams & Songs. Available as a triple LP or double CD set, the material was recorded live in Haynes’ hometown of Asheville, North Carolina, at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in 2019 and takes stock of a good amount of his body of work.

The Asheville Symphony Orchestra added an additional creative wrinkle — and a whole lot of depth — to the evening’s music. Haynes himself was also joined by a formidable group of players for his core band. Bassist Oteil Burbridge, John Medeski on organ and keys, Jeff Sipe on drums, and Greg Osby on saxophone as well as Edwin McCain and Jasmine Muhammad on background vocals form the lineup of talented folks he played with that night.

He took the concept that started there in Asheville and eventually hit the road, playing additional Dreams & Songs concerts in various locations, including a memorable night at the historic Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. The next pair of dates will happen Mar. 11 and Mar. 12 in Nashville. Though he faced plenty of challenges and things to figure out on that initial night in North Carolina, he shares that similar work he did playing Jerry Garcia’s music in a symphonic setting helped him a lot.

Warren Haynes in Asheville 2019

He Started Down the Path by Honoring Jerry Garcia

“The Jerry Garcia estate had called and said they wanted to do his music with a symphony and some different guest artists and wanted to know if I was interested in being the first one,” he remembers now. “I said, ‘Yeah, I would be honored to do that.’ At that point, I’d never done anything with a symphony. I’d thought about it but never seriously. But it was such a cool experience that I started thinking about doing it with my own music.”

“In the beginning, I wasn’t sure what that was going to be. But once we settled on doing some sort of retrospective type thing, it made sense to have all these different catalogs to choose from,” he explains. “It turned into highlights of what I’ve been doing for over 30 years, all done differently with an orchestra.”

“It took a while for me to get comfortable in that environment, but that whole thing with the [Jerry] Garcia Symphonic Celebration was wonderful for that,” Haynes says. “By the time I got to doing Dreams & Songs, I had been pretty comfortable working with an orchestra and felt better about it. What a wonderful opportunity.”

Watch Warren Haynes Perform ‘Shakedown Street’ in Asheville

‘Dreams & Songs’ Brought New Life to Old Favorites

Haynes honors his time spent working with members of the Grateful Dead years after Garcia’s passing as well, with a particularly potent version of “Shakedown Street.” He loves the additional twists and turns he was able to add into the material while working with the orchestra.

“Just Another Rider” is one example he points to regarding how they expanded their musical horizons. Gregg Allman had included this track, which he co-wrote with Haynes, on his 2011 solo album, Low Country Blues. It quickly became a fan favorite within the Allman Brothers Band community.

“Actually, the Allman Brothers rehearsed that song but never performed it. It was during a time when we were looking at new material, but some stuff never made it to stage,” he explains. “Gregg decided to do it for his solo record. I had written this horn line that didn’t make it to his studio version.”

Performing “Just Another Rider” in Asheville gave him an interesting opportunity.

“When I decided to include that song with the orchestra, I thought, ‘Oh, I could bring that horn line back,'” recalls Haynes. “I sent it to Steven Bernstein, the arranger, who utilized it in his orchestral arrangement, and it turned out great,” he says. “That’s another one of my favorite arrangements on this project.”

“I’m really happy with all of them, but that song transforms into something else. The studio version is very cool, but this orchestral version takes on a whole new life,” he shares. “There’s another four or five minutes at the end where it turns into another piece of music. I’ve always loved that song and was glad to include it.”

What’s Next for Warren Haynes?

This New Year’s Eve will find Gov’t Mule breaking away from their traditional concerts at the Beacon in New York City. This year, they’ll perform in Boston instead. The MGM Music Hall will host Gov’t Mule and Friends, featuring various guests including former Black Crowes members Steve Gorman and Audley Freed, as well as Kevn Kinney from Drivin N Cryin and early Allmans associate keyboardist Reese Wynans.

The advance press pledged they would bring what they’re billing as A Southern State of Mind to Boston. With this lineup, how can they not deliver on that promise?

“After doing 20 years at Beacon in New York City, taking it to Boston was like a semi-logical next step,” he tells UCR. “That’s always been a great market for us; we thought about what we could do to really bring in the new year.”

“We considered celebrating music from the South—not just what people call Southern rock but other things people may not expect—other music that came out of the South,” he explains. “So looking at our network of friends and who might be available to join us, let’s see what we can connect and bring cool southern music to Beantown.”

Your annual Christmas Jam, will also be returning to Asheville on Dec. 12 with a lineup featuring Greta Van Fleet, The War on Drugs, JJ Grey & Mofro, Daniel Donato, Lukas Nelson, and many others.

If you’re wondering about his next musical steps? He has some interesting ideas rolling around in his brain as always.

“I’ve been concentrating on music that’s kind of between my Ashes & Dust record and my latest solo release Million Voices Whisper. There are many songs I’ve been writing in that vein.

“I’ve also been thinking about an instrumental jazz-influenced record that’s been on my list for a long time but never checked off,” he adds. “So both those things are front and center at the moment. We’ll see where it all goes.”