Carlos Santana. Carlos Santana

Carlos Santana during a concert in 2005

Santana's record sales in the 1990s were very low.^{[citation needed]} Toward the end of the decade, he was without a contract. However, Arista Records' Clive Davis, who had worked with Santana at Columbia Records, signed him and encouraged him to record a star-studded album with mostly younger artists. The result was 1999's Supernatural, which included collaborations with Everlast, Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, Eric Clapton, Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean, Cee-Lo, Maná, Dave Matthews, K. C. Porter, J. B. Eckl, and others.

However, the lead single was what grabbed the attention of both fans and the music industry. "Smooth", a dynamic cha-cha stop-start number co-written and sung by Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, was laced throughout with Santana's guitar fills and runs. The track's energy was immediately apparent on radio, and it was played on a wide variety of station formats. "Smooth" spent twelve weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming in the process the last #1 single of the 1990s. The music video, set on a hot barrio street, was also very popular. Supernatural reached number one on the US album charts and the follow-up single, "Maria Maria", featuring the R&B duo The Product G&B, also hit number one, spending ten weeks there in the spring of 2000. Supernatural eventually sold over 15 million copies in the United States, making it Santana's biggest sales success by far.

Carlos Santana, alongside the classic Santana lineup of their first two albums, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. He performed "Black Magic Woman" with the writer of the song, Fleetwood Mac's founder Peter Green. Green was inducted the same night.

In 2000 Supernatural won nine Grammy Awards (eight for Santana personally), including Album of the Year, Record of the Year for "Smooth", and Song of the Year for Thomas and Itaal Shur. Santana's acceptance speeches described his feelings about music's place in one's spiritual existence. Later that year at the Latin Grammy Awards he won three awards including Record of the Year. In 2001, Santana's guitar skills were featured in Michael Jackson's song "Whatever Happens", from the album Invincible.

In 2002, Santana released Shaman, revisiting the Supernatural format of guest artists including P.O.D. and Seal. Although the album was not the runaway success its predecessor had been, it produced two radio-friendly hits. "The Game of Love" featuring Michelle Branch, rose to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent many weeks at the top of the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and "Why Don't You & I" written by and featuring Chad Kroeger from the group Nickelback (the original and a remix with Alex Band from the group The Calling were combined towards chart performance) which reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100. "The Game of Love" went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

In early August 2003, Santana was named fifteenth on Rolling Stone magazine's "List of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".

On April 21th, 2005, Santana was honored as a BMI Icon at the 12th annual BMI Latin Awards. Santana was the first songwriter designated a BMI Icon at the company's Latin Awards. The honor is given to a creator who has been "a unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers." ^[8]

In 2005, Herbie Hancock approached Santana to collaborate on an album again using the Supernatural formula. Possibilities was released on August 30, 2005, featuring Carlos Santana and Angélique Kidjo on "Safiatou". Also, in 2005, the fellow Latin star Shakira invited Santana to play soft rock guitar ballad Illegal on her second English-language studio album Oral Fixation Vol. 2.

Santana's 2005 album All That I Am consisting primarily of collaborations with other artists; the first single, the peppy "I'm Feeling You", was again with Michelle Branch and The Wreckers. Other musicians joining the mix this time included Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Kirk Hammett from Metallica, hip-hop/reggae star Sean Paul and R&B singer Joss Stone. In April and May 2006, Santana toured Europe, where he promoted his son Salvador Santana's band as his opening act.

In 2007, Santana appeared, along with Sheila E. and José Feliciano, on Gloria Estefan's album 90 Millas, on the single "No Llores". He also teamed again with Chad Kroeger for the hit single "Into the Night".

In 2008, Santana started working with his long-time friend, Marcelo Vieira, on his solo album Marcelo Vieira's Acoustic Sounds, which is due to be released at the end of the year. It features tracks such as "For Flavia" and "Across the Grave", the latter featuring heavy melodic riffs by Santana.

Carlos Santana performed at the 2009 American Idol Finale with the top 13 finalists, which starred many acts such as KISS, Queen and Rod Stewart. On July 8, 2009, Carlos Santana appeared at the Athens Olympic Stadium in Athens with his 10-member all-star band as part of his "Supernatural Santana – A Trip through the Hits" European tour. On July 10, 2009, he also appeared at Philip II Stadium in Skopje. With 2.5 hours concert and 20 000 people, Santana appeared for the first time in that region. "Supernatural Santana – A Trip through the Hits" is currently playing at The Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas, where it will play through the end 2009.

Santana is featured as a playable character in the music video game Guitar Hero 5. A live recording of his song "No One To Depend On" is included in game, which was released on September 1, 2009.^[9]

Carlos recently opened a chain of upscale Mexican restaurants called "Maria Maria". It is a combined effort with Chef Roberto Santibanez. They are located in Tempe Arizona, Mill Valley (now closed), Walnut Creek, and Danville, California, Austin, Texas, and Boca Raton Florida.^[10]

Around the age of 8, Santana "fell under the influence" of blues performers like B.B. King and John Lee Hooker.^[11] He also credits Jimi Hendrix, Mike Bloomfield and Peter Green as important influences; he considered Bloomfield a direct mentor, writing of a key meeting with Bloomfield in San Francisco in the foreword he wrote to a biography of Bloomfield, Michael Bloomfield: If You Love These Blues-An Oral History in 2000.^[12]

Santana performing in 2000

Santana played a red Gibson SG Special with P-90 pickups at the Woodstock festival. From 1976 until 1982, his main guitar was a Yamaha SG 175B and sometimes a white Gibson SG Custom with 3 open coil pick-ups. In 1982 he started to use a custom made PRS guitar, which became his main instrument around 1988. Santana currently uses a Santana II model guitar using PRS Santana III pickups with nickel covers and a tremolo, with .009-.042 gauge D'Addario strings.^[13] Santana's guitar necks and fretboards are constructed out of a single solid piece of Brazilian Rosewood,^[14] this helps create the smooth, singing, glass-like tone that he is famous for.

Carlos Santana also uses a classical guitar, the Alvarez Yairi CY127CE with Alvarez tension nylon strings.^[15]

Santana does not use many effects pedals. His PRS guitar is connected to a Mu-Tron wah wah pedal (or, more recently, a Dunlop 535Q wah) and a T-Rex Replica delay pedal,^[16][17] then through a customized Jim Dunlop amp switcher which in turn is connected to the different amps or cabinets.

Previous setups include an Ibanez Tube Screamer^[18] right after the guitar.

In the song "Stand Up" from the album Marathon, Santana uses a Heil talk box in the guitar solo.

The Santana lead guitar tone is produced by a humbucker equipped guitar (Gibson/Yamaha/PRS) into a small but effective preamp (consisting of Gain & Master Volume controls) for the Mesa Boogie [ref. as above]. He also literally put the Boogie in Mesa Boogie: 'Santana exclaimed to Smith, "Shit, man. That little thing really Boogies!" It was this statement that brought the Boogie name to fruition.'

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1. 
   ^ ^{a b} "Welcome to the Pacific Coast Immigration Museum". learn.pacificcoastimmigration.org. http://learn.pacificcoastimmigration.org/notable/profiles/csantana.html. Retrieved 2010-10-19. 
   
2. 
   ^ Posted Sep 18, 2003 12:00 AM (2003-09-18). "''The 100 Greatest Guitar players of All Time''; ''Rolling Stone''". Rollingstone.com. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5937559/the_100_greatest_guitarists_of_all_time. Retrieved 2010-03-13. ^{[dead link]}
   
3. 
   ^ "Santana received 10 Grammy Awards and 3 Latin Grammy Awards". allmusic. 1999. http://allmusic.com/artist/santana-p13645/charts-awards/grammy-awards. Retrieved 2010-10-20. 
   
4. 
   ^ Javier Batiz
   
5. 
   ^ ^{a b} Ruhlmann, William (2003). "Carlos Santana > Biography". allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:gjfpxqrgldte~T1. Retrieved 2009-06-25. 
   
6. 
   ^ Shapiro, Marc, “Carlos Santana: Back on Top”, pages 57-58, St. Martin’s Press, ISBN 0-312-26904-8, 2000.
   
7. 
   ^ Dean Goodman (12 July 2010). "Carlos Santana proposes onstage to girlfriend" (in English). Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66B6QG20100712. Retrieved 8 November 2010. 
   
8. 
   ^ "Artists Announced for Tribute to Carlos Santana at BMI Latin Awards in Las Vegas". bmi.com. http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/234386. Retrieved 2010-09-15. 
   
9. 
   ^ "Carlos Santana Grooves in Guitar Hero 5, which included the song black magic woman". idiomag. 2009-07-21. http://www.idiomag.com/peek/92605/carlos_santana. Retrieved 2009-07-24. 
   
10. 
    ^ Ella Lawrence (2010-01-28). "Carlos Santana opens Maria Maria in Danville". San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/28/DD601BK06R.DTL. 
    
11. 
    ^ "Carlos Santana". Nndb.com. http://www.nndb.com/people/555/000022489/. Retrieved 2010-03-13. 
    
12. 
    ^ "Carlos Santana Influences". Dougpayne.com. 1977-04-23. http://www.dougpayne.com/carlos.htm. Retrieved 2010-03-13. 
    
13. 
    ^ "Santana – Musician's Corner – Blue Guitar". Santana.com. http://santana.com/musicianscorner/guitars/blue.html. Retrieved 2010-03-13. 
    
14. 
    ^ "Santana – Musician's Corner – Red Guitar". Santana.com. http://santana.com/musicianscorner/guitars/red.html. Retrieved 2010-03-13. 
    
15. 
    ^ "Santana – Musician's Corner – Acoustic Guitar". Santana.com. http://santana.com/musicianscorner/guitars/acoustic.html. Retrieved 2010-03-13. 
    
16. 
    ^ His rig can be seen in a magazine article cited at T-Rex's website
    
17. 
    ^ "Carlos Santana Spreads the Gospel of Tone" by Darrin Fox, Guitar Player Magazine, June edition 2005.
    
18. 
    ^ Overview of Santana's old effects setup.
    

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  Soul Sacrifice; The Carlos Santana Story Simon Leng 2000
  
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  Space Between The Stars Deborah Santana 2004
  
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  Rolling Stone "The Resurrection of Carlos Santana" Ben Fong Torres 1972
  
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  New Musical Express "Spirit of Santana" Chris Charlesworth November 1973
  
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  Guitar Player Magazine 1978
  
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  Rolling Stone "The Epic Life of Carlos Santana" 2000
  
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  Santana I – Sony Legacy Edition: liner notes
  
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  Abraxas – Sony Legacy Edition: liner notes
  
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  Santana III – Sony Legacy edition: liner notes
  
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  Viva Santana – CBS CD release 1988; liner notes
  
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  Power, Passion and Beauty – The Story of the Legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra Walter Kolosky 2006
  
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  Best of Carlos Santana – Wolf Marshall 1996; introduction and interview
  

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  Chipley Slavicek, Louise. Carlos Santana, Chelsea House Publications or Facts on File, 2006, 119 p., ISBN 0-7910-8844-8
  
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  Leng, Simon. Soul Sacrifice: The Santana Story, Firefly-S.A.F. Publishing, 2000, 224 p., ISBN 0-946719-29-2. Republ. as Santana, Catedra, 2002, ISBN 84-376-1947-5
  
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  McCarthy, Jim; Ron Sansoe, Ron, foreword by Carlos Santana. Voices of Latin Rock: The People and Events That Created This Sound, Omnibus Press, 2004 and Hal Leonard Publishing, 2005, 316 p., ISBN 0-634-08061-X
  
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  Miller, Hal; Santana Debbie; Faulkner, John (ed.), w/ a foreword by Bill Graham. Santana: A Retrospective of the Santana Band's Twenty Years in Music, San Francisco Mission Cultural Center, 1987 or 1988, 50p., no ISBN. Includes a 4-p genealogical tree w/ the members's name for every Santana band from 1966.
  
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  Molenda, Michael (ed.). Guitar Player Presents Carlos Santana, Backbeat Books, 2010, 124 p., ISBN 978-0-87930-976-3
  
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  Remstein, Henna. Carlos Santana (Latinos in the Limelight), Chelsea House Publications, 2001, 64 p., ISBN 0-7910-6473-5
  
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  Shapiro, Marc. Carlos Santana: Back on Top, St-Martin's Press, 2000 and 2002, 288 p., ISBN 0-312-28852-2
  
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  Sumsion, Michael. Maximum Santana: The Unauthorized Biography of Santana, Chrome Dreams, 2003, ISBN 1-84240-107-6. A CD-audio biog
  
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  Weinstein, Norman. Carlos Santana: A Biography, Greenwood Press, 2009, 152 p., ISBN 978-0313354205
  
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  Woog, Adam. Carlos Santana: Legendary Guitarist, Lucent Books, 2006, 104 p., ISBN 1-59018-972-8
  

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Carlos Santana

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  Official website
  
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  Milagro Foundation
  
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  2006 Carlos Santana Interview
  
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  Concerts online at Wolfgang's Vault
  
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  Santana's Gear