One of the best-known musical firms in the world and an innovative Afro-Latin-blues-rock fusion group in San Francisco, this is how we can describe “Santana”, the band of the musical icon, Carlos Santana. The musician has been the visionary force behind Santana’s musical proposal that has transcended musical genres and generational, cultural and geographical boundaries.
Carlos is a Mexican born in Jalisco on July 20, 1947, son of José Santana and Josefina Barrangán. He grew up in Tijuana, the place where his family moved in 1955. In that place he was introduced to traditional music by his father, a mariachi violinist, who, after a tour around California, gave him his first guitar. As a teenager, he also learned to play the trumpet and violin.
In 1960 Carlos’ family moved to San Francisco, United States, where he also moved a year later. There he found a melting pot of cultures and the perfect environment to continue perfecting his style of playing guitar, which would later identify him as one of the most innovative musicians of our time. At the age of fourteen he began playing in bars and local bands. After finishing high school in October 1966, he founded Santana Blues Band with Gregg Rolie, David Brown, Tom Franzer and Rod Harper.
The group “Santana” emerged on the world stage at the Woodstock festival with an epic set in 1969, the same year their self-titled debut LP Santana came out. This includes Santana’s first Top 10 hit called “Evil Ways,” which reveals the influence of salsa and funk on the group. In addition, the same album introduced one of his best-known songs Oye cómo va, an example of Caribbean music with the flagship rock touch of Santana’s guitar. The album remained on the Billboard album chart for two years and was soon followed by two more classics, and Billboard’s #1 albums: Abraxas and Santana III.
For more than fifty years, Santana has won 10 Grammy Awards, of which 9 broke a record for being awarded to a single musical project: Supernatural released in 1999 (including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for “Smooth”). He has also been awarded three Latin Grammys. In 1998, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, whose website states, “Guitarist Carlos Santana is one of rock’s true virtuosos and guiding lights.”
Among many other honors, Carlos Santana received the Lifetime Achievement honor in 2009 from the Billboard Latin Music Awards, and was the winner of the Billboard’s Century Award in 1996. On December 8, 2013, he received the Kennedy Center Honors Award in 2013. On the other hand, Rolling Stone magazine has named him #15 on the list of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time,” noting that “Santana’s crystal clear tone and clean arc make him the rare instrumentalist who can be identified on a single note.”
The release of his album Corazón in 2014, led Santana to surpass the band Rolling Stones and is one of only two musical acts in Billboard history to score at least one Top Ten album, since the 1960s.
In the fall of 2014, Carlos Santana released his memoir “The Universal Tone: Bringing My Story to Light,” which offers a story of musical self-determination and inner self-discovery, with personal stories filled with colorful details and life-affirming lessons.
In 2016, Carlos reunited with Santana’s revered lineup of the early ’70s to release an album titled: ‘Santana IV’. The album debuted at #5 on Billboard’s Top 200 Chart, #2 on Billboard’s Top Current Chart, #2 on Billboard’s Rock Chart, and #1 on the Billboard Independent Albums Chart. This album marked Santana’s fourteenth Top 10 album.
Then, in 2018, Carlos released his first Master Class, followed by the powerful Africa Speaks (2019), inspired by the sounds and rhythms of Africa, which was called his “best album in decades” (NPR) and was ranked among “the fiercest albums in Santana’s 50-year career” by The New York Times. 2021 marked the release of Blessings and Miracles, one of the most ambitious, inspired and magical albums of Santana’s historic career. With collaborations with Rob Thomas, Chris Stapleton, Steve Winwood and many others, it was billed as one of the American songwriter’s best albums of the year.
Recently, he celebrated three epic milestones: the 20th anniversary of his groundbreaking album Supernatural, the 50th anniversary of his legendary Performance at Woodstock, and the 50th anniversary of his masterpiece Abraxas.
The artist combines his lifelong dedication to music with his dedication to social activism and humanitarian aid. That devotion led him to create The Miracle Foundation, originally established by Carlos Santana and his family in 1998, who has given more than eight million dollars to non-profit programs that support low-income children and youth in arts, education and health.
Beyond music, Santana was introduced to the realm of lifestyle and entertainment with his company River Of Colors (ROC) founded in 1997. It has enjoyed tremendous success with the Carlos by Carlos Santana and Unity by Carlos Santana brands, dedicated to bringing to market products that embody Carlos Santana’s passion and integrity, and that are true to his distinctive style and taste.
Santana currently stars in a multi-year residency at House of Blues at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.
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