Santana Love Songs (1995){columbia 480574 2}

Latin rock legend’s late ’70s solo albums remastered. Liner notes feature new interviews with Jorge Santana and Richard Bean. Features the hit “Love The Way.” Latin rock pioneer Jorge Santana’s musical journey began right after high school when he joined the popular San Francisco nine-piece, horn-driven band, the Malibus. The Malibus added the 17-year-old guitarist and morphed into Malo by 1971. Their self-titled debut album was issued in 1972, yielding the Top Twenty hit, “Sauvecito.” Malo continued to evolve over the course of their four albums for Warner Bros. with a changing cast of members passing through their ranks including keyboardist Richard Kermode formerly of Janis Joplin’s Kozmic Blues Band, singer/founders Arcelio Garcia and Richard Bean, and three members of the band, Naked Lunch, among others. After Malo’s fourth Warner Bros. album Ascención was released, Santana performed with the Fania All-Stars at Madison Square Garden, then appeared on their 1974 album, Latin-Soul-Rock, and after that took a break. In 1978, the first Jorge Santana solo album emerged as a self-titled affair with most of the songs co-written with Malo-alum, Richard Bean who also handled lead vocal duties.

Latin rock legend’s late ’70s solo albums remastered. Liner notes feature new interviews with Jorge Santana and Richard Bean. Features the hit “Love The Way.” Latin rock pioneer Jorge Santana’s musical journey began right after high school when he joined the popular San Francisco nine-piece, horn-driven band, the Malibus. The Malibus added the 17-year-old guitarist and morphed into Malo by 1971. Their self-titled debut album was issued in 1972, yielding the Top Twenty hit, “Sauvecito.” Malo continued to evolve over the course of their four albums for Warner Bros. with a changing cast of members passing through their ranks including keyboardist Richard Kermode formerly of Janis Joplin’s Kozmic Blues Band, singer/founders Arcelio Garcia and Richard Bean, and three members of the band, Naked Lunch, among others. After Malo’s fourth Warner Bros. album Ascención was released, Santana performed with the Fania All-Stars at Madison Square Garden, then appeared on their 1974 album, Latin-Soul-Rock, and after that took a break. In 1978, the first Jorge Santana solo album emerged as a self-titled affair with most of the songs co-written with Malo-alum, Richard Bean who also handled lead vocal duties. The song “Love The Way” was the breakout single, and the album made it onto the Black Album charts. The following year the Allen Toussaint-produced, It’s All About Love was released and featured songs mostly from the pen of either Toussaint or Santana. Now for the first time, the two Jorge Santana albums are combined on a single disc, remastered, with liners notes by Bill Kopp featuring new interviews with both Jorge Santana and Richard Bean about these post-Malo solo efforts.

Santana Arriving at the twilight of the 1960s, Santana were psychedelic pioneers who ushered Latin rock into the mainstream with their first three albums: Santana, Abraxas, and Santana III. Thanks to their appearance at Woodstock, their eponymous album was a smash hit right out of the gate, with its single "Evil Ways" making it into the Billboard Top Ten in 1969. They remained at the top of the charts until 1973, when leader and namesake guitarist Carlos Santana began exploring esoteric, spiritual jazz fusion on his own. Carlos may have wandered away from the band who shared his name, but he always returned to the group, sustaining them through years both productive and fallow.

Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is an American musician of Mexican descent, a virtuoso guitarist and winner of numerous Grammy awards, who rose to prominence in the late 1960s and 1970s with such classic numbers as "Black Magic Woman". In 1999, the musician unexpectedly returned to the top of the charts with the album "Supernatural", which contained the super hits "Smooth" and "Maria Maria".

Santana Arriving at the twilight of the 1960s, Santana were psychedelic pioneers who ushered Latin rock into the mainstream with their first three albums: Santana, Abraxas, and Santana III. Thanks to their appearance at Woodstock, their eponymous album was a smash hit right out of the gate, with its single "Evil Ways" making it into the Billboard Top Ten in 1969. They remained at the top of the charts until 1973, when leader and namesake guitarist Carlos Santana began exploring esoteric, spiritual jazz fusion on his own. Carlos may have wandered away from the band who shared his name, but he always returned to the group, sustaining them through years both productive and fallow.

This 34-track collection captures all sides of the man, from his dazzling early recordings ( Black Magic Woman; Oye Como Va; Soul Sacrifice from Woodstock) through collaborations with John Lee Hooker and Vernon Reid (unreleased!), to his interpretations of such hallowed jazz fare as In a Silent Way and Naima . He's a guitar legend; here's why.

Arriving at the twilight of the 1960s, Santana were psychedelic pioneers who ushered Latin rock into the mainstream with their first three albums: Santana, Abraxas, and Santana III. Thanks to their appearance at Woodstock, their eponymous album was a smash hit right out of the gate, with its single "Evil Ways" making it into the Billboard Top Ten in 1969. They remained at the top of the charts until 1973, when leader and namesake guitarist Carlos Santana began exploring esoteric, spiritual jazz fusion on his own.

Arriving at the twilight of the 1960s, Santana were psychedelic pioneers who ushered Latin rock into the mainstream with their first three albums: Santana, Abraxas, and Santana III. Thanks to their appearance at Woodstock, their eponymous album was a smash hit right out of the gate, with its single "Evil Ways" making it into the Billboard Top Ten in 1969.