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Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and guitar virtuoso Warren Haynes played in The Allman Brothers Band for 25 years, cofounded the influential jam band Gov鈥檛 Mule and has played and toured extensively with members of the Grateful Dead. His fourth solo album, 鈥淢illion Voices Whisper,鈥� debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Blues Albums chart in 2024, and its companion album, 鈥淭he Whisper Sessions,鈥� came out in 2025, featuring stripped-down versions of the 鈥淢illion Voices Whisper鈥� songs.

Haynes recently kicked off his 鈥淲inter of Warren鈥� tour and is performing at The Lensic Performing Arts Center on Friday, Feb. 20.

鈥淥n these solo dates that I鈥檓 doing, it鈥檚 more about the songs and my voice, and less about the guitar playing,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淎lthough I do enjoy and have as much fun playing guitar by myself as I can, it鈥檚 not as easy to express yourself as a guitar player when you鈥檙e by yourself. So, these shows are more coming from the singer-songwriter direction.鈥�

As a songwriter, Haynes cowrote Garth Brooks鈥� No. 1 hit 鈥淭wo of a Kind, Workin鈥� on a Full House.鈥� He also wrote 鈥淪oulshine,鈥� which became one of the best-known songs in The Allman Brothers鈥� catalog.

Haynes had met Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman of The Allman Brothers Band in 1980 when he was 20 years old, and he officially joined the band when they re-formed in 1989.

鈥淚 was such a huge fan of The Allman Brothers鈥� music that being allowed into their inner sanctum was pretty incredible,鈥� Haynes said.

Haynes remained with the band until 1997, returning again in 2000 and staying until their final performances in 2014.

鈥淚 had studied that music all my life, but to be able to tap into it on the inside like that, and learn what makes it tick, was pretty amazing,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淗aving the opportunity to work with amazing, legendary musicians and artists is always a learning experience, and you take that with you to the next thing.鈥�

Over the years, Haynes has performed and recorded with a diverse array of musicians, including Willie Nelson, Dave Grohl, Coheed and Cambria, Dave Matthews Band and Carlos Santana. He said he enjoys talking to other musicians about who they listen to, because the answers are often surprising.

鈥淚 think every musician has secrets that aren鈥檛 necessarily commonly shared,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淲hat I mean by that is, we all listen to and explore a lot of different types of music, and, in some cases, it鈥檚 music that might be different than what we鈥檙e known for.鈥�

As an example, he mentioned a conversation he had with country legend Bonnie Raitt.

鈥淲e got into a discussion one afternoon about music that we loved, and it was just a casual conversation, but we realized we were both fans of Peter Gabriel,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淲e even talked about the song he did with Kate Bush (鈥楧on鈥檛 Give Up鈥�) that both of us really liked a lot. I don鈥檛 think she expected me to be a huge fan of it, and vice versa. It was a cool moment.鈥�

One reason Haynes鈥� own musical tastes are so eclectic, he said, is that he鈥檚 always searching for new ways to express himself musically.

鈥淚 always want to intentionally go down some road I鈥檝e never gone down before. 鈥� I feel like with Gov鈥檛 Mule, or with my solo records, I鈥檝e been trying to fill in the gaps and utilize influences and musical directions that have always been there but that I鈥檝e never really explored in the past,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淚 equate it, in a weird way, to being a painter who鈥檚 painting with colors that they鈥檝e never chosen before.鈥�

Lyrically, Haynes has been changing, too.

鈥淚鈥檝e always tended to write lyrics that are not necessarily upbeat and happy. I鈥檝e been asked about that a lot, and my response has always been that when I鈥檓 happy, I鈥檓 not thinking about writing a song,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淏ut recently, I鈥檝e been exploring the other side of that coin and tapping into the things that I鈥檓 grateful for.鈥�

He said it鈥檚 much harder to write happy songs, because it鈥檚 easier for happy lyrics to sound clich茅.

鈥淎s an example, throughout my career, I don鈥檛 have many love songs,鈥� Haynes said. 鈥淏ut the love songs that I have are heartfelt and real to me. 鈥� It has to mean something to me, or I don鈥檛 feel the need to explore it.鈥�

Logan Royce Beitmen is an arts writer for the sa国际传媒官网网页入口 Journal. He covers visual art, music, fashion, theater and more. Reach him at lbeitmen@abqjournal.com or on Instagram at .