The fresh new venue shines as well
The newest venue in San Diego offers a fresh and clean cut alternative to the other arenas in the region. Frontwave Arena in Oceanside has crisp architecture inside and out, great sight lines from every corner and comfortable crowd flow. Visitors found plenty of parking and a helpful staff. All in, a very relaxed vibe.
The Mavericks roared onto the stage with a full scoop of their patented Mexican-Cuban-soul-rock stew. Led by Raul Malo and one of the finest voices in the business, The Mavericks never cease to amaze. Malo drew on his rich baritone vocals to drive each song. The set list was a blend of originals and eclectic covers.
Lead guitarist Eddie Perez held down stage right, balancing flashy solos with commanding rhythm figures. He shredded when needed and laid back impressively as well. Stage left on keyboards, Jerry Dale McFadden channeled his inner Jerry Lee Lewis. Arrayed across the middle of the stage were the powerhouse engine room of drummer Paul Deakins and bassist Scotty Huff. Rounding out the sonic brassic colors were Max Abrams (saxophone) and Julio Diaz (trumpet). Crucial to the Mavericks sound is Percy Cardona on squeeze box, better known as accordion for those in love with the band’s songbook. In the middle of a stomping number, the band dropped in a few stanzas of ‘A Message to you Rudy,’ which took them deftly into the ska realm, and boy howdy it fit just fine.
Dedicated to the folks in flooded Texas hill country the achingly beautiful ‘How Can You Mend a Broken Heart’ slowed the pace. Malo’s plaintive vocal prowess was in full effect. The ever-reliable swirling sound of the Farfisa organ pumped through the traditional last song of their set ‘All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down’ and after an hour The Mavericks invariably left the crowd wanting more.
Dwight took the stage after a couple well chosen walk on songs: ‘Everyday People’ and ‘These Boots Are Made For Walking.’ Long live Sly Stone!
The first song of Dwight’s set? ‘Keep on the Sunny Side,’ which never rocked this hard since The Carter Family brought their song down from the holler near Bristol TN. With only a half breath between each of his first four songs, Dwight hit his stride with his signature ‘Streets of Bakersfield.’ After paying homage to his hero Buck Owens, Dwight then took a breath and introduced ‘I’ll Pay the Price’ as a tribute to the crucial Byrds album Sweetheart of the Rodeo. The song was a quick and heartfelt history lesson, connecting the dots from the Dust Bowl to the Hollywood Bowl. Rich five part harmonies and lonesome pedal steel guitar reminded me of seeing Dwight at the Palomino Club in North Hollywood when he was coming up in the 1980s. In that storied venue played many of his musical influences.
I am uncertain if another artist has ever included both The Carter Family and Queen in their set list, but Yoakam acquitted himself well on ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love.’ Freddie Mercury would have been proud. Dwight dropped a few names late in the show; Post Malone (they did a collab on Dwight’s latest album) and then buddy Billy Bob Thornton (they both starred in the 1996 critics’ fave Slingblade film). Thornton was the subject of a rambling story of abduction, a good segue into a smooth rendition of ‘A Thousand Miles From Nowhere.’
That song was definitely not referring to Frontwave Arena, a great place to see this excellent double bill.
(photos by Brad Auerbach)
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