THE MAVERICKS”Music for All Occasions” MCA* *...

THE MAVERICKS

“Music for All Occasions”

MCA

* * 1/2

The letdown here is that this exceedingly talented quartet revisits the same country it staked out so authoritatively in last year’s breakthrough “What a Crying Shame” album. It’s seductive territory to be sure, a country-rock fantasy-land where Patsy Cline still sighs, Roy Orbison still cries and Buck Owens still rules the jukebox.

Unfortunately, several new songs suffer from overworked situations and sentiments that neither Raul Malo’s consistently gorgeous vocals nor the band’s instrumental expertise can revivify.

The album (out on vinyl Tuesday, with CD’s and cassettes due Sept. 26) springs to life, however, when the group is living up to its name. “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down” sails along on an electrifying Tex-Mex/zydeco groove, and the jazzy-bluesy treatment of Rafe Van Hoy’s “My Secret Flame” captures the lyric’s tale of love suppressed and deferred.

Last year the Mavericks (who play the House of Blues on Tuesday) proved they can deliver a pithy country love song as potently as anyone. The challenge now is to return to the broader thematic palette of their early albums while retaining their terse writing and eclectic musical settings.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).