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The Mavericks
The Mavericks
The Mavericks
Genres: Country, International Music, Pop, Latin Music
 
On their first album since 1998, the Mavericks have finally made a Career Move that Matters--they've ditched the desperate, ultra-cool factor and settled down to play straight-head, unselfconscious pop. If Raul Malo & ...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: The Mavericks
Title: The Mavericks
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Sanctuary Records
Release Date: 9/23/2003
Genres: Country, International Music, Pop, Latin Music
Styles: Americana, Outlaw Country, Today's Country, Neotraditional, Caribbean & Cuba, Cuba, Salsa, Latin Pop
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPCs: 060768461222, 060768464728, 5050159019229, 5050749228420, 006076846122

Synopsis

Amazon.com
On their first album since 1998, the Mavericks have finally made a Career Move that Matters--they've ditched the desperate, ultra-cool factor and settled down to play straight-head, unselfconscious pop. If Raul Malo & Company had simply done this earlier, it might have buoyed their off-and-on career, and moved them beyond country radio, where they never really belonged in the first place. As such, the album signifies a rebirth, reflected in the self-titling of what amounts to their reunion album. From the opening cut, the driving "I Wanna Know," the band immerses itself in the thrill and energy of `60s British pop, with the usual side trips to the graves of Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley, and to the sonic birthplace of Malo's Cuban heritage. While a faithful remake of the Hollies' "The Air That I Breathe" closes the record, it sets the scene for the album as a whole with its grandiose and theatrical homage to obsessive love. At last, the melodramatic Malo never sounds overreaching, because he's made the material match his nearly operatic vision. Throughout, The Mavericks is smart, sophisticated, and knowing, from its lush and sensuous cocktail forays ("Wondering," "A Little Too Lonely"), to its sexy Latin come-on ("San Jose") and swingy shuffle ("Because of You"), the latter of which recalls the way Presley updated hoary country songs recycled from Hank Snow and Eddy Arnold. Still, it's not the ghost of either of the big Hanks that hangs over this album, but Phil Spector. A dazzling comeback, and one of the year's best albums. --Alanna Nash

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CD Reviews

Once again.....
Shaolin Warrior | Brooklyn Zoo | 02/20/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Mavericks are truly a gift to the world of music, and while

I have not heard the whole album, what I have merits the rating.

So my not having heard this in its entirety, I give the Mavericks special credit for being an enigma. In a way I admire them for having come in through the backdoor, so to speak, being a "country" outfit, and while understanding the genre and tipping their hats to the founding fathers, they enjoyed the popularity country provided them, yet doing it in a disguise. Where I give the Mavericks a lot of credit is that they have displayed their rock/pop sensibilities in their live shows when they were riding the crest of their country popularity. That they have truly branched out, playing what they feel like, and hopefully letting some of those who are country fans and Mavericks fans alike, enjoy some diversity. One thing that needs to be said about the Mavericks is they are true music fans, spanning many facets, and we can hopefully look forward to more output from this band. My hats off to the Mavs.

"