I first got into Santana when I moved to Colorado in
1978. Shortly thereafter, I learned
their best work was their first four albums between 1969-72 [Santana, Abraxas, Santana III, and
Caravanserai]. One of the oldest clichés in the music
business when a band splits up is “musical differences,” but in Santana’s case
it was the truth. Gregg Rolie and Neal
Schon were perfectly happy in sticking with the Latin rock formula, while
Carlos Santana and Michael Shrieve were more interested in jazz, specifically
that of Miles Davis and John Coltrane.
And so, after four albums, the musicians went their separate ways [no
pun intended]. Santana and Shrieve stuck
around and cut Love Devotion Surrender
with John McLaughlin [to include their take on Coltrane’s A Love Supreme], while Rolie and Schon formed Journey. The Santana band of old [especially after
Neal Schon came on board in 1971] was like the original Allman Brothers
Band. There were two lead guitar players
who complemented, not competed against, each other. Both bands had a back line of thunderous
percussion, and both had a fine singing organist/songwriter named Gregg.
Imagine my surprise when over a year ago I read Carlos was getting
the band back together. It was the same
feeling I had when Deep Purple Mk II reunited and made Perfect Strangers back in 1984.
Gregg Rolie, the best singer and organ player Santana ever had or will
ever have, was back, as was Michael Shrieve, Mike Carabello, and Neal
Schon. David Brown died in 2000, and
Jose Chepito Areas is missing in action.
Filling those spots are percussionist Karl Perazzo and bassist Benny Rietveld from the last Santana band.
My hopes for Santana
IV – that it not suck, that is compares favorably with the first four
albums, and that there’s nothing slightly resembling Smooth. The results? Where has this album been since 1972? Gregg Rolie is singing better now in his 60s
than he did in his 20s. The fiery
Hammond B3 is back, Neal Schon is pushing Carlos like he hasn’t been pushed for
a long time. It took me awhile, but I think I can tell the guitarists apart. Put on your headphones and listen to Neal Schon panned all the way to the right, Carlos is panned to the left. Sometimes the two guitarists meet in the middle. The percussion is flawless. Santana
IV sounds like a cross-between their commercial peak Santana III and the adventurous Caravanserai. For some reviewers, there’s too much music on
this disc. – screw them! For my money, you can’t have enough Santana music of
this quality.
Yambu – Chanting, lots of it.
But it serves notice that the real Santana is back!
Shake It – Gregg Rolie telegraphs how the song is going to go
in the first line - Doesn’t matter what I
know/Gonna find the groove that don’t let go… Where has this band been the
last 45 years? This is the biggest,
nastiest, most monstrous groove Santana and his musicians of choice have played
since the 1987 instrumental Touchdown
Raiders. Not only is the groove
back, but also Neal Schon has lit a fire under Carols’ ass like what hasn’t
happened for much too long. Carlos plays
the riff, Neal freaks out on the wah-wah and the whammy bar.
Heaven…
Anywhere You Want To
Go – Carlos gets a speaking part - Hey
baby! What’s your name, baby? Come over here, girl – sit on my lap. Albert King used to do that on his records. But soon thereafter the band launches into
another fine groove not unlike Oye Como
Va. This is the first single from Santana IV. I’m loving this album already…
Fillmore East – When I first saw the name I knew it would be an
instrumental. The question was would it
bring the thunder like Soul Sacrifice,
or would be cosmic like a Caravanserai tune? This is a long, spacey but subdued jam, so
I’m going with “cosmic.”
Love Makes the World Go Round and Freedom in Your Mind - Ronald Isley on guest
vocals. I have a few rules when it comes
to music. One rule is this - If I don’t
like what I hear within 10-15 seconds, I probably never will. These two songs of peace, love and cosmic
hippie shit fit that category. Note to
Carlos – if you want guest vocalists, save it for the umpteenth iteration of Supernatural.
Choo Choo – A dance tune that I actually like. The lyrics are cringe worthy, but the music
makes up for it.
All Aboard – The instrumental coda to Choo Choo, like Savor was
for Shades of Time on the first
Santana album [you know, right before Jingo].
Sueños
– As the title suggests, this is a dreamy instrumental that would fit nicely on
Caravanserai.
Caminando -
it's got cheesy synth horns, but it's an "okay" song. The
guitar interplay between Carlos and Neal saves the track from disaster. Skip this one.
Blues Magic – Fifty years after being known as the Santana
Blues Band, these guys finally cut a blues song. It’s a good one. Think Taboo
from Santana III.
Echizo – An up-tempo instrumental with which I have one
complaint – it’s too short. It fades at
the end, so I know there’s more.
Leave Me Alone – This is
another strong vocal number. Solid.
You And I – Another fine instrumental. This one is of the slow piano/guitar variety.
Come
As You Are – “Hola! Hola-la-la!
Hola! Just come as you are.” Um…no.
This didn’t pass the 15-second test. Skip this track.
Forgiveness – Epic
closer. This one veers very close to
Jeff Beck territory. A soulful vocal
from Gregg Rolie is icing on the cake.
Bottom line –
Welcome back, gentlemen. What took you
so damn long? I’ve waited a long time
for this. The more I listen to it, the
more I like it. Of the sixteen tracks on
this album, twelve of them are keepers.
Buy this album! I hope there’s
more where this came from. If you can
find it, buy Shape Shifters as well.
