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30 years into their storied career, The Mavericks are as vital and popular as ever, with a devoted following as diverse as their music itself. They celebrate their 30th Anniversary by paying tribute to artists and songs that have inspired their journey on the brand new studio album The Mavericks Play The Hits (Mono Mundo Recordings/Thirty Tigers), an eclectic 11-track playlist of songs they cut their teeth on, all made famous by other people, now disassembled and totally reimagined in signature Mavericks style. Produced by the duo of Niko Bolas (Neil Young, Melissa Etheridge) and Raul Malo, lead singer and co-founder of The Mavericks, it’s a testament to how great these songs are, and how this band can get inside the material and make it their own.

The first single, “Swingin’”, a take on the John Anderson classic, is pure Mavericks audacity, swinging for the stands and connecting with their patented, churning groove. Now picture second single “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way”, a country jam taken way uptown with sass, swagger, and horns! The collection rolls along like a prime Fats Domino record, with joyful brass and lilting whiffs of Dion & the Belmonts. The party atmosphere tones down for some beautiful intimate moments, like the acoustic guitar of “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” and Malo’s stunning performance of “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain”, showing off not only his singing but his ability to get inside such disparate songs and find something uniquely his and the band’s.

In the long run, after 30 years, how would you sum up all that music? “The Mavericks has been our experiment,” muses Raul. “It’s the ‘why not’ band. Why not just do it? It’s more fun that way. We’re not beholden to anything or any one genre. All it has to do is just sound good.” Yes, that’s about it.