When Santana was great!

man it's a hot one

I've heard a little bit of Santana IV; it's a lot slicker than they sounded in 1971, obviously, but there's some very cool instrumental stuff, too.

I gave my copy of Abraxas (think it was an original pressing) to a friend who loves Santana just recently and now I'm starting to regret it.

this is great -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8dGh1iEmCY

am curious about the new album with the original lineup.

New album is pretty good. Slicker and more commercial hard rock than previous albums by this lineup, obviously - there's one song that's blatantly trying to be another "Smooth," and it's not even one of the two that Ronald Isley sings - but there's still plenty of hot instrumental stuff in between the radio-friendly tracks.

I'm quite fond of early Santana, but to be honest I'd sooner listen to a Mandrill record.

"Jazz-rock supergroup" Mega Nova: Carlos, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Marcus Miller, Cindy Blackman Santana, apparently just for one-off at Hollywood Bowl--bet there will be an album, legit or not: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/inside-carlos-santanas-new-jazz-rock-supergroup-w434803

New album sucks

Better than Abraxas Pool, though

Honestly surprised Turrican fucks with Santana!

that supergroup has got my number

Marcus Miller would not have been my choice of bassist for that group. Better options, in order:

- Michael Henderson ('70s Miles band)
- Buster Williams (Mwandishi)
- Stanley Clarke
- Tony Levin (saw him with Santana in the late '80s)
- Bill Laswell

man marcus miller plays bass on cupid & psyche he can be in any supergroup he wants

curious what Brad thinks of "Say It Again."

i haven't before now but i feel extremely positive about the first thirty seconds

lol

Marcus Miller shreds! Fuiud

I liked him a lot with Miles, especially We Want Miles and Tutu, but would prefer someone with more of a '70s jamming mindset with Santana. I've never heard Cupid & Psyche and that's unlikely to change.

He seems fluid and versatile enough to succeed with that sound, idk. We'll see I guess.

- Michael Henderson ('70s Miles band)
- Buster Williams (Mwandishi)
- Stanley Clarke
- Tony Levin (saw him with Santana in the late '80s)
- Bill Laswell

that band has a big bottom

Just heard "Open Invitation" from Inner Secrets (https://youtu.be/cQP_05hTYWg) on Pandora--Santana biting Zep or Whitesnake or something for one of the most "1978" Rock records you can imagine.

Wasn't Inner secrets the album they recorded down the hall from Prince when he was tracking For You (and where he met Sheila E)?

"santana supergroup" just brings back bad memories of that mclaughlin thing he did in '73.

But Love Devotion Surrender is a fantastic lp with a great bunch of live sets from a supporting tour.

& it's got Larry Young onboard and everything

^^^^ otm

^^^^ otm

― who is extremely unqualified to review this pop album (BradNelson),

hancock/shorter jazz fest set was one of my favorite musical experiences of 2016

honestly it was the best thing i've ever seen prob

someone uploaded a longer video of it finally

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3agp0ejoGs

i think it was essentially 3-4 improvised pieces over 45 minutes

herbie handcock, the porn version of herbie hancock

ugh carlos is the bono of lead guitarists

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Iel_DGhklw

https://youtu.be/1Iel_DGhklw

or, the jordan crawford or something.. total disregard for feel and integration, just "here i go shredding away, look out everyone"

oh man. Excerpts:

[u]It certainly was a very hot one!

Cast of characters:

Carlos Santana
Rob Thomas
Itaal Shur (co-author)
Matt Serletic (producer)
Brian Yale (Matchbox Twenty bass player)
Bono (Bono)
Marcus Raboy (Music Video Director)
Marisol Maldonado (Thomas’ wife, the Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa)

The year was 1999. Carlos Santana and Rob Thomas recorded “Smooth” and it quickly became one of the most ubiquitous and successful singles of all time. Whether you love it or hate it, “Smooth” remains a career defining moment for both Santana and Thomas, and continues to evoke strong and passionate reactions seventeen years later. Here now is the untold and often harrowing story of how “Smooth” came to be, in the words of those who lived through the life-changing experience.
Chapter I: A Hot Day

Carlos Santana: It is difficult to remember much about the song “Smooth” featuring Rob Thomas because I do not care and it does not really matter. But I believe it all started when Jamiroquai rang me on the telephone to tell me about his boring day.

This may or may not be 100% real.

Matt Serletic (producer): It’s been confirmed again and again that Jamiroquai made no such call. Everyone knows Jamiroquai has no phone. And if he did, he wouldn’t know how to use it. [laughs uncontrollably]

Itaal Shur (co-writer): Santana’s people reached out to me to see if I had a song up my big sleeves that would close out their concept album. The only direction they gave me is that it should make the listener visualize sexual-intercourse.[/i]

Thomas: I didn’t even know who Carlos Santana was at this point. I actually thought he was the guy that who was in charge of Libya

and

Thomas: “Room 17” was a great song. Maybe the best I’ve ever heard. It made me super horny. I loved it. But something was missing. So I changed the lyrics, the melody, and everything else about it. When I sat down to re-write my intention was not only to write a song that makes the listener want to bone another human being, but to write a song that could [here, Thomas closes his eyes] kill God.

Maldonado: Mr. Santana was not pleased with the line about the Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa. I don’t blame him. That line means nothing to Rob, and it makes me throw up every time I think about it.

Santana: I said, “What the hell is this Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa crap all about, white boy?” Rob said nothing for a moment. Finally, he smiled like a murderer and told me nothing means anything until the Kingdom of Heaven burns. I have to admit, the kid had guts. [laughs]

http://www.gq.com/story/santana-rob-thomas-smooth-oral-history?mbid=social_facebook

Just got my copy of the super deluxe Japanese reissue of Lotus in the mail. It was triple vinyl originally, and a double CD when it was reissued in the 90s, but now it's a triple CD, fully remastered in surround sound (it's a hybrid SACD) to replicate the original quadrophonic mix, plus it's got 7 previously unreleased tracks adding 35 minutes of music. It's in a 5"x5" package that folds out like the vinyl edition used to, has two thick-ass booklets, a poster, and a whole bunch of other shit. It's crazy. No plans for a US release as far as I know.

Shit that sounds awesome. Lotus is such a great record. SACD is the one surround format I still don't have – otherwise I would be all over that.

I had my eye on that, importcds had it for $6x, now it's $72, too much.

If you saw the physical package, you wouldn't hesitate. It's seriously one of the most beautiful things ever. And the music sounds fantastic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Hs2SjSqJjw

I wrote a big piece about Santana's "white suit" years for VinylMePlease, because I've always wanted to write about this whole era, and they accepted the pitch.

digging that article phil and ALSO digging these santana albums that i haven't revisited since i was 14 prob

There are some pretty dope tracks on those '70s records, especially when he's not soloing. I like the ones that are basically Rhodes, bass, and a blizzard of thinly-recorded percussion.

Been on a run listening to the first three Santana albums. That original band was something else. I really am impressed on how those records sound as the way they pan it out with the percussion gives it a real deep stereo sense of space.

The Santana records, the main kit is panned a bit to the right with one of the percussionists and then they have the other panned usually to the left. Then the deep congas are right in the middle of the mix with the bass. I'm sure some of those big old style CBS studios they used probably helped too, as all of those Columbia records usually always sounded great.

You listen to some of the Dead's studio recording with their two drummers, it's like the band loses a bit of the low end out of the percussion. It would have definitely been cool to have a studio version of That's It for the Other Ones with that kind of production quality of the first three Santana records.

Best music.

If you had asked me previously if had heard Lotus I would have said yes, but I'm listening to it today and I have no recollection of Leon Thomas' yodelling on it. I saw Santana around the time it was recorded (1973? 1974?) but he must have been replaced by then. Anyway, cool record.

Leon Thomas also sang on "Welcome" which was the studio record before Lotus. I don't think Lotus was released in the US until the CD age. "Borboletta" is also a fusion record too and worth hearing too.

I just started into the next group of Santana groups hearing Amigos, Festival and Moonflower for the first time this year. Only heard them once though so far...

Man, Caravanserai is a very satisfying listen. Easily one of his best.

yea it is really good!

I heard Abraxas for the first time in ages over the weekend and it prompted me to listen to some more. I don't think I'd heard Caravanserai for 20+ years.