Simon RushworthWarren Haynes – Ashes & Dust Featuring Railroad Earth (Provogue)
Genre: Folk Rock/Americana/Country
Not content with a burgeoning career at the heart of the Allman Brothers Band, Gov’t Mule and The Dead, singer songwriter Warren Haynes has found the time and the motivation to release Ashes & Dust. Thank God he did.
This is, quite simply, the most stirring rock record we’ve heard all year. Emotive, engaging, embracing several genres and ensuring Haynes eclipses every conceivable career high, it’s a heady mix of folksy Americana and laid back blues.
New Jersey’s Railroad Earth provide the perfectly complementary foundation for some sublime arrangements but guest vocalist Grace Potter steals the show on the dazzling duet Gold Dust Woman. It’s not often Haynes is eclipsed – this is one of those rare occasions.
Shawn Colvin and harmonica legend Micky Raphael add considerable weight to the wonderful Wanderlust as Haynes allows his musical imagination to run wild. Ashes & Dust is booming example of blind ambition brilliantly realised and Haynes knows exactly when to enlist a little help from his friends.
This is a record that’s supposed to offer sanctuary to those songs without a home. Ironically Haynes sounds like he’s finally found his way home…after a career spanning hundreds of live shows, myriad albums and Grammy wins. His future will be fascinating. Simon Rushworth
RUSHONROCK RATED: 10/10 Ashes And Lust