The Mavericks made their neotraditional country breakthrough in 1994 with What a Crying Shame, which hit the top 10 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart that year. Music writer Robert Christgau deemed it “the best Cuban American Texas music Nashville can capitalize,” and the album is a product of the Nashville studio system, with several co-writes from Kostas, covers of Bruce Springsteen and Jesse Winchester, and guitar from studio ace Brent Mason. Singer and co-founder Raul Malo does sing something like, say, Roy Orbison, but I don’t really hear what’s specifically Texas about The Mavericks — the up-tempo songs on What a Crying Shame remind me of Dwight Yoakam more than they do George Strait. Malo defines The Mavericks’ style with his big voice, and they’ve always chosen good material — check out 2017’s “Damned (If You Do),” with former Yoakam guitarist Eddie Perez on board for one of their best tracks. Malo has been battling cancer in recent months and won’t be performing at the band’s two-night run at the Ryman, but he will be in attendance. Paying tribute to the great singer and one of country’s finest bands will be a bunch of acolytes, including Patty Griffin, Hector Tellez Jr., Steve Earle, Marty Stuart and Wendy Moten.
Dec. 5-6 at the Ryman
116 Rep. John Lewis Way N.
