CIRCLING BACK

From an incomplete Gregg Allman track to appearances by former ABB bandmate Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes’ gripping new album oozes with Allman Brothers Band mojo

- BY ALAN PAUL

WARREN HAYNES HAS been one of the greatest, most active musicians on the roots and jam scene for four decades now, working with Gov't Mule, the Allman Brothers Band and the Dead, among many others. Yet the new Million Voices Whisper is only his fourth studio solo album across all those years. Like its predecessors, it's a collection that focuses a bit more on the songcraft than jamming, a diverse set of songs with a heavy soul underpinning.

The headline for fans of the Allman Brothers Band is that Derek Trucks appears on three songs that the two guitarists co-produced. Though they've played together on stage many times since the ABB's last show a decade ago, these tracks represent the first studio collaboration between Haynes and Trucks since 2003's Hittin' the Note, the ABB's final album. One of the songs, "Real Real Love," was based on lyrics written by Gregg Allman, who never completed the song. These three tracks go a long way in completing an unbroken circle for Haynes and Trucks, who played together in the ABB from 2001 to 2014.

"I always wanted to do one more Allman Brothers studio record, but that just wasn't meant to be," Haynes says.

The Allman Brothers Band's final concert, which took place October 28, 2014, was released in a newly remastered version on the 10th anniversary of the show, further adding closure to Haynes and Trucks' sparkling partnership in the group.

Million Voices Whisper also features guest appearances by Lukas Nelson and Jamey Johnson, whom Haynes toured with for several years as part of The Last Waltz Tour, a tribute to the Band. The album's core band, now on the road with Haynes, is John Medeski on keyboards, New Orleans drummer Terence Higgins and Gov't Mule bassist Kevin Scott. Though the quartet had never played together before the album sessions, Haynes says, "it felt really natural really quickly."