Gov’t Mule never lost sight of where they began. During a break from The Allman Brothers Band in 1994, Haynes and original bassist Allen Woody formed Gov’t Mule with drummer Matt Abts, with whom Haynes played alongside in the Dickey Betts Band. Confidently merging rock, blues, jazz, and funk, the trio carved out a place in the American rock ’n’ roll canon with a string of influential albums, beginning with 1995’s Gov’t Mule, followed by Dose [1998], and Life Before Insanity [2000].