Kentucky native Rick Nielsen of the Corduroy Mavericks is doing it big, blazing out tracks with labels such as Flapjack, Beatdown, Coyote Cuts, Juiced, Native Soul, Funk Mansion and Dufflebag to name a few. Now with new music, a mix and an upcoming tour with some of his compadres, this man gives 5 an exclusive mix and a little insight behind the work.
Corderoy Mavericks: 5 Magazine’s New Mix Monday #162
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The 5 Mag Interview with Corderoy Mavericks
Let’s start with the name??
Rick Nielsen…well you see, when I was born, my mom and dad…
Oh you mean Corduroy Mavericks?
Well you see, I was a top bull rider on the PBR tour for 5 years before an injury to the cartilage in my left ear sidelined me. I had always been a Wrangler Jeans man but noticed that the smoothness of the material allowed for too much slipperiness in the saddle. One day I wore a pair of Levi corduroys and noticed that my saddle time jumped up 3.68 seconds. That uneven texture gripped better and all of a sudden I’m consistently hitting 8 seconds… the rest is history.
Great story but alas…
Now the real ish. I wish there was this great back-story about how it came to be but there was a quirky randomness to it that just seemed to fit. I had always loved the uniqueness and marketing lasting power of names like Rhythm Plate, Lawn Chair Generals and East Coast Boogiemen. I felt those types of names are much more memorable than a generic name like DJ “Vanilla”. I think at one point “Velvet” and “Cowboys” was in the running for the name and it eventually morphed into Corduroy Mavericks. It just felt right…so it stuck and we went with it. That’s all to the story…
The Midwest seems to have created a really strong breeding ground for producers of the jack. How do you think this came about?
Are we including Chicago in this conversation? Because Chicago is an anomaly unto its own lol. This is a tough one to answer because unintentionally I’m going to miss a city, region or artist but I hope that I can give you my viewpoint.
When I first moved to Kentucky in 2005 the West Coast sound was really big and Chicago was doing its thing, but other than a one off producer here and there, the middle part of the country wasn’t really on the map for producers (parties? Yes, legendary parties but we are having a conversation about producers and that Jackin’ sound). Then around that time and around 2006/2007 you start to see some really talented producers start to make a name for themselves pushing that style of music. We are talking the likes of Wattie Green, RTHM, Jonn Hawley, TSR, Bryan Jones, Camouflage, High Maintenance to name a few right off the top. Fast forward 7 years and you see these pockets of areas where, not just Jackin’ House but, all styles of 4/4 are being created…Nashville, Detroit, Dallas, Denver, Milwaukee, Tallahassee and of course Chicago.
Gotta throw some love to Lexington and Kentucky as we are seeing some new talent breaking out…Unkle Funk, Grand Reserve, Dual Residual…watch out for these guys!
So tell me about this upcoming “Dirty 30 Tour”, the music and the mixes?
Native Soul has always been a label that has supported us from jump. Beufie has always been like a brother and half to me so when him and Bobby approached me about being part of the tour to celebrate its 30th release, I was on board immediately 100%. And then when you add in the other artists (Rescue, Beufie and Bobby Breezy) on the tour, it was a slam-dunk. So they provided John and I with the entire catalog of NS releases and asked us each to do a mix of 15 tracks each (our choice), hence the 30. My mix is a little different, for both 5 Magazine and for NS, as I have some downtempo on there. NS has a sister label called Native Soul Lounge that is dedicated to the slower side of house (think Mushroom Jazz flavor) so I felt compelled to tap into that sound to show some breadth of style. I produce downtempo too so I felt it was a good way to promote that other side of both the label and CMavs. I am currently working on a full 10 track downtempo album for release in 2013 and I am very excited about this project. As we swing into 2013 I have a pretty heavy tour schedule lined out already keeping me pretty busy all the way up until April and I’m really excited about how the future is looking. I wanted to take a moment to say thanks to all the supporters out there, the labels and listeners and to 5 Magazine for keeping House at the forefront. See you on the dancefloor.
Essentials: You can reach Rick via Facebook, Soundcloud and Twitter.
Tracklisting
001: – Tommy Largo – Its the Beat – (Corduroy Mavericks Grits & Gravy edit)
002: – J. Caprice – Roof Top Jazz
003: – Giano – White
004: – Combined – Get Me There
005: – Rithma – Builder (Kaskades Lets Make out Mix)
006: – Up, Bustle & Out – Running Rude
007: – Greyboy with Bart Davenport – Genevieve
008: – Greyboy with Bing Ji Ling – So Good
009: – Mark Farina ft. Sean Hayes – Dream Machine
010: – Up, Bustle & Out – Tinto Tintero
011: – Thievery Corportation – Samba Tranquille
012: – St. Germaine – Bohemian Sunset
013: – Kruder & Dorfmeister – Bedroom Rockers
014: – Zaint – Sandy V – Ripped on a Nip
