Formed in Miami, Florida, in 1989, the Mavericks defied typical genre conventions. Blending country, rock, and Tejano music, the band have sent 15 singles to the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, peaking at number 13 with 1996’s “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down”. Tragically, the Mavericks frontman Raul Malo died in December 2025 following a nearly two-year battle with cancer. However, Malo’s bandmates—including drummer Paul Deakin, born on this day (September 2) in 1959—are carrying on his legacy, continuing to tour with two new alternating vocals.
Today, we’re diving into the life and career of Paul Deakin on his 67th birthday.
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About Paul Deakin
The way Paul Deakin tells it, his reasons for learning to play drums were purely pragmatic.
“I wasn’t very good at sports and somewhat socially awkward so…I figured it was my best bet at not dying alone,” he said. “That and The Monkees.”
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, Deakin practiced the drums every day as a child. Forming his first band at age 15, he studied music at the University of Miami after high school.
Deakin wasn’t choosy about what kind of music he played. Prior to joining the Mavericks, he played drums in a progressive rock band.
“As musicians, you play whenever you can. You have to eat… There are not too many styles that I haven’t played,” Deakin told the Dallas Observer in 2014. “I am not saying that I did them all well.”
Joining the Mavericks
In 1989, lead vocalist Raul Malo and bassist Robert Reynolds formed the Mavericks after bonding over their love of artists like Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, and Elvis Presley.
Reynolds invited his friend, Paul Deakin, to join the band on drums. Lead guitarist Ben Peeler rounded out the original lineup, although he left after the band’s second album. The Mavericks have since dubbed Deakin the “Songwriter’s Drummer.”
“We started a country band in Miami with a Cuban-American singer who sounded like Roy Orbison. Our first gig was 25 years ago,” Deakin told the Dallas Observer. “We were playing in these punk clubs. It was all wrong. Somehow, it kind of worked out.”
The Mavericks released their self-titled debut album in 1990. Gaining a massive following in Florida, it eventually caught the attention of nearly every major labels in Nashville.
In May 1991, the Mavericks inked a deal with MCA Nashville. Their breakthrough arrived with their third album, 1994’s What a Crying Shame, which yielded five top 40 singles.
The title track landed the Mavericks their first Grammy nod for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. They also earned the first of back-to-back Top Vocal Group honors from the Academy of Country Music in 1994.
A Hiatus and Reunion
Across nearly four decades, the Mavericks have weathered multiple lineup changes and periods of hiatus.
After the band quietly went their separate ways in 2004, Paul Deakin enjoyed a second career as—of all things—a carpenter.
“I’d always wanted to be carpenter. So I bought a lot of tools,” he said. “People figured I could do the job because I had so many tools. If I was told I’d have to hang a door, I’d go online the night before and learn how to do it.”
Featured image by Rick Kern/Getty Images
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Unspecified – 1974: Conway Twitty performing on the ABC tv special 'The 1974 Country Music Awards'. (Photo by Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images) -
Group shot of English rock and roll band The Rolling Stones posed in 1968. Clockwise from top left: Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Brian Jones (1942-1969), Mick jagger and Keith Richards. (Photo by Mark Hayward Archive/Redferns)
