Gov't Mule - Deep End 1

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Music reviews of Deep End 1

Music Review: "...Deep End" Indeed!
Rating: 5 Stars

All questions, however, were put to rest when the opening riff of "Life On The Outside", the 2nd cut, blared out of my speakers. The song flies off the disc like no Gov't Mule track since "Mother Earth"...

The whole album is wonderfully dynamic, and for the first time, Warren Haynes' lyrics match the intensity of the music. Still, even as these songs are extremely personal for Haynes, the ability of he and Abts to fit in the seemingly endless array of guests into those songs is what makes the album truely remarkable.

"Fool's Moon" would have made a great track had Haynes and Abts performed it alone with a session bassist. But, when Jack Bruce's voice comes in on the 2nd verse, you wonder how the tune could ever survive without him.

"Banks of the Deep End", "Same Price" and "Beautifully Broken" are 3 tracks that cover some new ground for the Mule. All 3 of theose tunes have FM radio potential, while still maitning the high musical standards that Gov't Mule has laid out for themselves. "Same Price", may start out poppy, but the middle section is deeply reminiscent of the great middle sections that made the Who famous in the early 70's. No mistake, seeing as how John Entwhistle plays on the tune.

"Down and Out In NYC" and "Tear me Down" are out and out FUNK tunes, supplanted by the grandmasters of funk bass themselves, Flea and Bootsy Collins. The guitar work in both tunes are vintage Haynes, especially on "Down and Out In NYC". Haynes, who has stayed mostly in the jam-rock genre since his debut with the Allmans in 1989, fits seemlessly into the wall of horns and organ. The coda at the end is one the Mule's most satisfying musical moments.

"Sco-Mule" is a great instrumental tune, reminiscent of "Trane" from the band's debut album, and acts as a bridge between the jam-happy tunes of the first 2 albums to the meaty material of "Deep End"...

"Maybe I'm A Leo", "Effigy" and "Sin is a Good Man's Brother", 3 of the 4 covers on the album, stay true to the original versions, but are unmistakably Mule tracks. The latter is Allen Woody's last recorded studio cut. "Maybe I'm A Leo", an Allen Woody favorite, blisters as it fades with a meaty Haynes solo.

"Soulshine" and "Worried Down With the Blues" (featuring the Allman Brothers' Gregg Allman, Otiel Burbridge and Derek Trucks) come off wonderfully as good-old-time southern blues/R&B. "Soulshine", in particular, sounds wonderful with the funky arrangement it's given.

As a longtime Mule fan, I wouldn't hesitate to call this the Mule's most complete album to date. There is a depth the the songs, and the lyrics, that just weren't there before. The first 2 Gov't Mule albums, while wonderful in their own rite, were merely comprised of jam-riffs turned into songs. Haynes and Abts choose their spots more finely now, but when they do, the results are absolutely chilling.

Truely a wonderful album.

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