Gov’t Mule will release the first installment in their new Bootleg Series on October 16 via Evil Teen Records. The series kicks off with The Georgia Bootleg Box, which captures live recordings from a 3-night run through the state of Georgia in 1996. Included are the shows from April 11 at the famed Georgia Theater in Athens, April 12 at The Roxy in Atlanta, and April 13 at the Elizabeth Reed Music Hall in Macon.

These seminal recordings feature the band’s original trio of Warren Haynes (vocals/guitar), Matt Abts (drums) and Allen Woody (bass) along with guest appearances by a young Derek Trucks and Tinsley Ellis.

“I was instantly taken with the visceral nature of the music along with the rawness of the way they were captured”,” says Haynes about discovering the recordings after fifteen years. “This was at a time in our career when our repertoire was small but constantly growing, not unlike our fan base.”

Gov’t Mule’s “connection with the state of Georgia is a deep one,” he says. “Our first rehearsals were at the one-time living quarters of the Allman Brothers Band known as The Big House in Macon, GA…A lot of our growth as a band took place in front of Georgia audiences.”

Check out “Blind Man In The Dark” from 4/11 along with the full tracklisting below.

4/11/96
Georgia Theatre
Athens, GA

Disc 1:
1.Blind Man in the Dark 9:30
2. Mother Earth 8:00
3. John the Revelator 1:40
4. Temporary Saint 6:11
5. Game Face 6:22
6. No Need to Suffer 8:09
7. Trane > 7:14
8. Eternity’s Breath Jam > 2:00
9. Thelonius Beck > 4:08
10. Trane > 1:19
11. St. Stephen Jam > 4:30
12. Trane 2:48
13. Don’t Step on the Grass, Sam 8:02

Disc 2:
1. Presence of the Lord 6:41
2. Birth of the Mule 6:00
3. Left Coast Groovies 6:23
4. Drums > 6:44
5. Mule > 4:54
6. Who Do You Love > 1:35
7. Mule 3:11

Encores:
8. Goin’ Out West 7:11
9. Spanish Moon(*) 11:47
10. Gonna Send You Back to Georgia(*) 7:29

(*) With Derek Trucks on guitar

4/12/96
The Roxy
Atlanta, GA

Disc 1:
1. Blind Man in the Dark 11:00
2. Mother Earth 7:05
3. Mule 5:54
4. Temporary Saint 6:15
5. Game Face 6:27
6. No Need to Suffer 8:19
7. Trane > 6:51
8. Eternity’s Breath Jam > 2:02
9. Thelonius Beck > 3:56
10. Trane > 1:41
11. St. Stephen Jam > 4:37
12. Trane 1:35
13. Painted Silver Light 7:19

Disc 2:
1. Don’t Step on the Grass, Sam 7:59
2. Birth of the Mule 5:31
3. Just Got Paid 7:32

Encores:
4. Goin’ Out West 6:16
5. The Same Thing 10:17
6. Gonna Send You Back to Georgia(*) 8:33
7. Young Man Blues(*) > 2:35
8. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl(*) > 7:23
9. Young Man Blues(*) 1:59

(*) With Derek Trucks on guitar

4/13/96
Elizabeth Reed Music Hall
Macon, GA

Disc 1:
1. Blind Man in the Dark 9:53
2. Mother Earth 9:09
3. John the Revelator 1:42
4. Temporary Saint 5:49
5. Rocking Horse 4:36
6. Game Face 6:47
7. No Need to Suffer 8:41
8. Trane > 8:55
9. Eternity’s Breath Jam > 1:58
10. Thelonius Beck > 4:01
11. Trane > 1:41
12. St. Stephen Jam 5:46

Disc 2:
1. Presence of the Lord 6:44
2. Birth of the Mule 6:41
3. Monkey Hill > 4:36
4. She’s So Heavy Jam 1:28
5. Mule 7:07

Encores:
6. Goin’ Out West 7:55
7. She’s 19 Years Old(*) 10:20
8. Gonna Send You Back to Georgia(*) 8:20

(*) With Tinsley Ellis on guitar