SANTANA SPIRIT
It would be difficult to imagine any artist who has had a more profound impact on the course of popular music than Carlos Santana. A transformative guitarist, composer and innovative, he played a major role in the introduction of Latin music into the American musical mainstream. His electrifying appearance at Woodstock, which preceded his band of the same name’s eponymous debut, literally changed the face of rock and roll overnight, and in the process, made him a certified superstar. Three years later, Santana played a major role in the budding jazz fusion movement, spurred on by his newfound association with John McLaughlin, a veteran of Miles Davis’ band, founder of his own Mahavishnu Orchestra and a devotee of Sri Chinmoy. It marked a major turning point in Santana’s trajectory when Sri Chinmoy accepted him as a disciple and started him on the road towards meditation, soul searching and spiritual enlightenment.
In time, he’d work with other groundbreaking artists as well, while freely delving into such diverse stylistic realms as pop, funk, blues, free jazz, third world music and classical forms that allowed him to easily shift his stylistic stance at every turn. Working both solo and alongside an evolving cast of players as part of his namesake ensemble, he released any number of landmark albums that continued to net him critical acclaim while pointing the way forward for his fans and followers. With no less than 10 Grammy Awards to his credit and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he’s attained a stature that’s garnered him a rarified level of admiration and appreciation.
Never one to rest on his laurels, Santana returned to the musical mainstream in 1999, teaming up with Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty for the hit song “Smooth,” culled from the multi-award winning album Supernatural. The song would go on to spend 12 weeks at No. 1. In 2016, he reunited with the seminal members of his original Santana band — Gregg Rolie, Michael Carabello, Michael Shrieve and Neal Schon — and released Santana IV, a belated reunion that reestablished the group’s erstwhile early legacy.
Santana’s currently touting a new album, tellingly titled , an especially ambitious effort that reunites him with Thomas in addition to connecting him with any
