Gov’t Mule Welcomes Marcus King, Jimmy Vivino & More At Beacon Theatre

Warren Haynes and Gov’t Mule returned to familiar ground on Friday night for their first of two year-ending shows at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Mule has continued a trend started by The Allman Brothers Band by bringing out guests at most Beacon shows and the quartet had five friends help out on Friday at the Beacon.

Gov’t Mule opened with a cover of ZZ Top’s “Just Got Paid,” a song they recorded for their first studio session which was finally released earlier this year. “Just Got Paid” had been shelved for over a decade before returning to action earlier this year. Next up was a take on The Beatles’ “And Your Bird Can Sing.” The Revolver track was added to the repertoire after Mule recorded a cover of the tune for Howard Stern’s tribute to 50 years of Revolver. Other highlights from the first set was the rare “Doing It To Death,” a gorgeous “When Doves Cry”/”Beautifully Broken” mashup and the “I’m A Ram” > “54/46 Was My Number” > “I’m A Ram” sequence.

After kicking off the second set with “Steppin’ Lightly,” the quartet went guest-less for “Mr. High & Mighty,” “Brand New Angel” and “Need Your Love So Bad.” The first guests of the evening were guitarist Marcus King, drummer Steve Holley (Wings) and studio bassist extraordinaire Paul Ill. All three added to a cover of the Marshall Tucker Band’s “Can’t You See,” while Mule’s Matt Abts and Jorgen Carlsson sat the song out. King stuck around to jam with Haynes on “Freeway Jam” by Jeff Beck.

“Fallen Down” came next and led into a fierce jam on “The Other One” by the Grateful Dead featuring Conan house band leader and Beacon run regular guest Jimmy Vivino on guitar. Vivino and legendary drummer Carmine Appice also added to a cover of Billy Joe Royal’s “Hush.” For the encore, Gov’t Mule said farewell with a version of “32/20 Blues” containing contributions from Jimmy Vivino. The band finishes off 2016 at the Beacon Theatre tonight.

Videos (Captured by Scott Gibson)

Playlist (As Of Press Time – More Being Added): Just Got Paid, And Your Bird Can Sing, Temporary Saint, When The World Gets Small, Mule, Doing It To Death, When Doves Cry > Beautifully Broken > When Doves Cry, I’m A Ram, Steppin’ Lightly, Mr High & Mighty, Brand New Angel, Need Your Love So Bad, Can’t You See, Falling Down, Freeway Jam