Tonight at 8:00 PM, ACL Live at The Moody Theater brings together a bill that reads like a who's who of Texas music. The Mavericks & Friends are in town for a one-night-only stop on 'The Music Lives On Tour,' a tribute tour honoring the legacy of the band's late frontman, Raul Malo. It's the kind of night Austin is built for: a rotating cast of guest singers and musicians sharing the stage with a band that has spent decades blending country, rock & roll, Cuban grooves, Tex-Mex and Latin swagger. The Austin Chronicle has flagged it as a staff pick, and it's open to all ages, so it works whether you're bringing the kids or meeting friends after work.
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The guest list is the real draw here. Jimmie Vaughan, the Dallas-born blues rock guitarist and former member of The Fabulous Thunderbirds, is set to play, and he's joined by Jesse Dayton, the Beaumont musician and producer known for his work in alternative country and rockabilly and for collaborating with the likes of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson. Rounding out the bill are Emily West, James Otto, Kevin Russell and Joshua Ray Walker, each taking a turn at the mic. It's a rotating lineup, which means the set will shift from one guest to the next, keeping the energy moving across the whole evening.
For anyone who knows the band's history, the emotional weight of the night isn't lost. The Mavericks were co-founded in Miami in 1989 by Malo and drummer Paul Deakin, and over three decades they charted 15 times on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, with 'What a Crying Shame' going platinum in the US and double-platinum in Canada. Their highest-peaking single, 'All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down,' a collaboration with Flaco Jiménez, hit number 13 in 1996. Malo, born in Miami to Cuban immigrant parents, was the voice and the heart of that sound. He was diagnosed with colon cancer in June 2024 and continued to tour until September 2025, when the progression of his illness forced him to cancel his remaining dates. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 60. In the days before he died, the band held two tribute concerts at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, with James Otto and Emily West among the guests — two names that reappear on tonight's bill.
The band continuing the tour is a decade-spanning version of the group: Paul Deakin on drums, Eddie Perez on guitar and vocals, and Jerry Dale McFadden on keyboards, with bassist Robert Reynolds back in the lineup after ten years away. The tour itself has been on the road since July, with stops in Kansas City, St. Louis, Des Moines and Oklahoma City before landing here in Austin. After tonight, it heads to Dallas and then out east, so this is the one night to catch it in town.
As for the room, ACL Live at The Moody Theater is a LEED-certified venue in downtown Austin and the home of the KLRU-TV produced Austin City Limits, the longest-running music series in American television history. It's a fitting place for a night built around a legacy that spans decades of Texas and American music. If you've been meaning to see The Mavericks, this is the night to do it.
Published Date
8 August 2026
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