Another musical treasure has passed. Unfortunately, I never got to see the Mavericks live but I have been told by those friends who did attend and enjoy the band how great they were live. And more than once my reply was " I'll see them next time around." Damn...
What a beautiful tribute to an irreplacable voice. The way Malo could shift from that Orbison-style baritone to those soaring highs while keeping everything emotionally grounded was something I still dunno how to describe properly. I remeber catching The Mavericks live back in 06 or 07, and the way he connected with the crowd without any of tht manufactured Nashville polish was refreshing. The genre-hopping made sense because Malo's voice was the thru-line that held it all together.
Great words on a great artist. What a loss, and I don't say that lightly. Raul was a great artist.
Country? Hardly.
How do you categorize top shelf musicians led by a top talent with deep Southern Florida Latino roots that started as a punk/ska outfit that had more in common with a Southern California sound by way of a loose Los Lobos connection (through Raul's work in Los Super Seven), and a bend toward the greater Bakersfield sound? We can't really pigeonhole them as "country".
I always imagined the record exec.'s trying to figure out how best to categorize The Mavericks and the A&R guys working on a promotion plan. "They have horns in the band! Do we send them out with Lyle Lovett and his big band (which would have been a great pairing), or do we pair them up with Dwight Yoakam as the opener? (which they did two years ago)".
The Mavericks were chameleons as they could play with anybody. They opened for Marylyn Manson.......
Like so many "overnight success stories" it took years for them to reach the point where they are now. Watch the many Youtube videos of the band and you can see Raul get more comfortable on stage as the years pass. Like so many artists, by the time the band was settling into the best years it all ended much too soon.
Absolutely spot on. In a strictly business sense, however, being marketed country back then was a savvy move on Tony Brown's part. By doing so, it elevated the format at a time when saccharine ballads and line dancing were all the rage, while giving The Mavericks a relatively accepting place to display their wares. Let's face it, rock radio wouldn't have touched them in the days of melancholy alternative/indie post-grunge angst. They were right where they needed to be for the time, and, thankfully, fit perfectly under the Americana umbrella a few years later.
And indeed, they were just getting their second (third?) wind with their last few releases and superb live shows. A cryin' shame for sure.
Lovely tribute. I interviewed Raul in London when Dance The Night Away was a huge hit here - I had no idea the Mavs were seen as "country" in the US, I thought of them as more a Travellin' Wilburys type of band. He was a joy to speak with - so intelligent and enthusiastic and open minded (and laughing at Florida's dire politicians). RIP.
Thanks! They definitely stood out on the air in that era. I never had the pleasure of interviewing Raul, but I did finally get to see them in concert a few years back, and it was well worth the wait.
The comparison to the Wilburys is insightful - I can definitely hear similarities. Joy and fun flowed effortlessly from both groups. That fun always had depth to it, though, unlike the Boot Scooters and line dancers of mainstream country at the time, who were a mile wide and an inch deep.
Another musical treasure has passed. Unfortunately, I never got to see the Mavericks live but I have been told by those friends who did attend and enjoy the band how great they were live. And more than once my reply was " I'll see them next time around." Damn...
What a beautiful tribute to an irreplacable voice. The way Malo could shift from that Orbison-style baritone to those soaring highs while keeping everything emotionally grounded was something I still dunno how to describe properly. I remeber catching The Mavericks live back in 06 or 07, and the way he connected with the crowd without any of tht manufactured Nashville polish was refreshing. The genre-hopping made sense because Malo's voice was the thru-line that held it all together.
Well said!
Great words on a great artist. What a loss, and I don't say that lightly. Raul was a great artist.
Country? Hardly.
How do you categorize top shelf musicians led by a top talent with deep Southern Florida Latino roots that started as a punk/ska outfit that had more in common with a Southern California sound by way of a loose Los Lobos connection (through Raul's work in Los Super Seven), and a bend toward the greater Bakersfield sound? We can't really pigeonhole them as "country".
I always imagined the record exec.'s trying to figure out how best to categorize The Mavericks and the A&R guys working on a promotion plan. "They have horns in the band! Do we send them out with Lyle Lovett and his big band (which would have been a great pairing), or do we pair them up with Dwight Yoakam as the opener? (which they did two years ago)".
The Mavericks were chameleons as they could play with anybody. They opened for Marylyn Manson.......
Like so many "overnight success stories" it took years for them to reach the point where they are now. Watch the many Youtube videos of the band and you can see Raul get more comfortable on stage as the years pass. Like so many artists, by the time the band was settling into the best years it all ended much too soon.
Absolutely spot on. In a strictly business sense, however, being marketed country back then was a savvy move on Tony Brown's part. By doing so, it elevated the format at a time when saccharine ballads and line dancing were all the rage, while giving The Mavericks a relatively accepting place to display their wares. Let's face it, rock radio wouldn't have touched them in the days of melancholy alternative/indie post-grunge angst. They were right where they needed to be for the time, and, thankfully, fit perfectly under the Americana umbrella a few years later.
And indeed, they were just getting their second (third?) wind with their last few releases and superb live shows. A cryin' shame for sure.
Lovely tribute. I interviewed Raul in London when Dance The Night Away was a huge hit here - I had no idea the Mavs were seen as "country" in the US, I thought of them as more a Travellin' Wilburys type of band. He was a joy to speak with - so intelligent and enthusiastic and open minded (and laughing at Florida's dire politicians). RIP.
Thanks! They definitely stood out on the air in that era. I never had the pleasure of interviewing Raul, but I did finally get to see them in concert a few years back, and it was well worth the wait.
The comparison to the Wilburys is insightful - I can definitely hear similarities. Joy and fun flowed effortlessly from both groups. That fun always had depth to it, though, unlike the Boot Scooters and line dancers of mainstream country at the time, who were a mile wide and an inch deep.
Thanks for this.