Gov't Mule, Allman Brothers guitarist rocks Track 29 tonight

As suggested by the title of his latest studio album, "Man in Motion," Warren Haynes isn't good at being sedentary.

That "Man in Motion" is his first solo album in almost 20 years is testament to the Asheville, N.C., native's blues/rock guitarist's restlessness.

"I've always wanted to be a part of different projects," Haynes said in a telephone interview. "I've been fortunate to be a part of musical projects that are fulilling and challenging in a good way."

Since he first took up a pick at age 12, Haynes has leant his incendiary guitarwork and gravelly vocals to some of rock's most titanic groups.

At age 20, he was brought on to tour with outlaw country musician David Allan Coe, with whom he played for four years and later co-founded the band Rich Hippies.

In the late 1980s, Haynes joined the ranks of the newly re-formed Allman Brothers Band, with whom he performed for almost a decade while playing on the side with his own band.

In 1994, Haynes formed a new group, Gov't Mule, with Allman Brothers bassist Allen Woody and drummer Matt Abts.

In 2004, he added the Grateful Dead to his resume when he was recruited to tour with the surviving members of the legendary psychedelic band.

Despite his continued involvement in all three groups, Haynes continues to perform occasionally with the Warren Haynes Band, which he will bring to the stage at Track 29 tonight.

"As to the new album, I think what happened was the songs I was writing just didn't seem like Mule songs or Allman Brothers songs, but when I looked closer at them, they worked together, so I started to think about doing a solo record," he said.

"I also went back through my older catalog at some songs that hadn't been recorded. They didn't work for those projects then, but they did seem to work for this."

The venue's moveable stage will be set for an audience of 1,000. As of last week, Track 29 co-owner Adam Kinsey said only 200 tickets remained, and the show was expected to be the venue's third sellout since opening in September.

Although close to minimum capacity, reducing the room size adds to the intimacy of the event, a move that worked wonders at recent shows for artists such as Lucinda Williams and Robert Earl Keen, Kinsey said.

"Where the stage is set lets the audience get up close to the artist," he said. "There has been a lot of interaction between the artist and the fans. It allows for a lot of banter to happen."