1924 Grace Brim*
1947 Carlos Santana*
1952 Steve Freund*
1974 Bonny B. Bluesman*
1998 Golden "Big" Wheeler+
Happy Birthday
Grace Brim *20.07.1924
b. 20 July 1924, Biscoe, Arkansas, USA, d. 15 June 1999, Gary, Indiana, USA. One of the few female musicians active on the post-war Chicago blues scene, Brim appeared with her husband John Brim’s group, the Gary Kings. At her first recording session in 1950, she played harmonica and sang, demonstrating a pleasant, though not especially expressive, vocal style. Later she took to the drums, although on at least one record she also sang and played harmonica. Some records appeared under her own name, some as Mrs John Brim, but mostly she played a subordinate role on John’s records, and can be heard lending very solid support on his fine topical blues, ‘Tough Times’, with Eddie Taylor and Jimmy Reed. She continued to play for many years, both with her husband and with other groups, and they appeared together on a single in the 70s.
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/grace-brim-mn0000161795/biography
John Brim & His Combo "Mean Man Blues" (w/ Grace Brim) - Fortune Records
Steve Freund *20.07.1952
Steve Freund (born July 20, 1952, Brooklyn, New York City, New York[1]) is an American blues guitarist, singer, bandleader and record producer. Freund has toured throughout the United States (including stops in New York and Chicago). He is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he is best known.
Freund came from a musical background; his mother played classical piano. He moved to Chicago in 1976.[1] He appeared at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 2005, the Chicago Blues Festival in 2007, and many other major festivals worldwide.
Bonny B. Bluesman *20.07.1974
Bonny B. (born Su Pheaktra Bonnyface Chanmongkhon, July 20, 1974, Cambodia) is a Cambodian-French blues musician and harmonica player.[1]
Life
In 1978, his family fled Cambodia pursued by the Khmer Rouge, he and his family took refuge in the jungle near the Thai border.[1] After three days and three nights running, and with no food, they finally found safety in Thailand. In 1979, with the help of Catholic sisters, the family arrived in Fribourg (Switzerland) and asks for political asylum . He started school in 1980, and fought to be accepted and to find a place in the community.
It is from 1988 to 1991, when he was in high school, that he started to like the harmonica and country music, "this time I copied and listened to many country CDs." One day, the school organizes a day of entertainment, "they hired two bluesmen including one playing the harmonica and the blues came like that. My first CDs were by John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters and Little Walter, Jimmy Reed, Otis Rush, and all the old black bluesmen of the 50s. " Leaving the school, from 1992 to 1995 Bonny trained in making pastries and candy, an activity that will allow him to support himself, but the music is playing an increasingly important in his life.
In 1992 he formed his first band "Bonny B. and Spirit of the Blues" and they played their first gig two months after they met. Then followed "Born To Blues" in 1994, "Bonny B. Blues Band" in 1996 and "Bonny B. Band" in 1998. On the side, he also played in a duo with his brother Michael on guitar. He was also engaged as a sideman with, among others, Tom Cat Blake, JC Little, Kevin Flynn. With these various formations, he plays 50 to 100 concerts a year in Switzerland and abroad.
In 1994 he opened a school for harmonica and singing. In May 1998, Bonny decides to go to Chicago in search of the blues, "I had to travel there as a pilgrimage." Speaking almost no English, he was no impressed so far and finds himself "jamming" with Louisiana Red, Buddy Guy, Jimmy Johnson, Kenny Neal, John Primer, Bernard Allison or at clubs such as the legendary Blue Chicago, The Buddy Guy's Legend or Koko Taylor's. Short of money, he played in bars and on the streets of Chicago to pay for his return ticket.
Also in 1999, Bonny decided to record an album. He teamed up with his old friend, drummer Sal Lombardo, and with guitarist Laurent Poget. This collaboration will result in the album "CAMBODIA", released in Switzerland in March 2000. March 2001, he released the album in Europe on Dixie Frog in the name of "Something's Wrong." It is also found in several blues compilations (notably "Levis, Blues 2002 compilation"). In 2002, Bonny B. worked with several American artists like Vic Pitts, Michael J. Robinson, Jesse James King, Sugar Blue, Mark Woodward, Napoleon Washington. In March 2003, he released his second album, "If This Is Life" and signed with the famous label Universal Music and its sponsor "Hohner Harmonica." "We told him that he is one of the best harmonica players and singers from Switzerland. Bonny B. has no equal to breathe the warmth of blues concerts in Switzerland or abroad."
In October 2004, Bonny B. reached the rate of 120 concerts per year. He signed his 1000th contract and then traveled throughout Switzerland. In the Spring of 2005, he released his third album "I Got The Blues" under the Dixie Frog label and Hard Board. In 2005, he released his debut album "CAMBODIA" ("Something's Wrong") in the U.S. and Canada with the Dixie Frog label. Claude Nobs discovered the last album by Bonny B. and asks him to play at the Montreux Jazz Festival with Alice Cooper. On the side, he decided to explore the blues in public schools, secondary and colleges throughout western Switzerland, as part of educational concerts on the history and evolution of the blues. 2006 : Bonny B. planned to open a school in Cambodia for underprivileged children, financed by the sale of his latest album and concert support.
2007: during his tour "James Brown Tour" (press nicknamed the "Asian James Brown"), Bonny B. changed the name of the artist, he called himself Bonny B. Brown to honor one of its masters. . November 2007, the start of construction of the school in Cambodia. Bonny B. has garnered support for his concerts to the sum of 35 000 Swiss Francs to complete the project. 2008: Bonny B. was hired as manager for harmonica workshops (by Hohner Harmonica) in all its music stores in Switzerland. He formed his first Gospel Choir of the IRF-GOSPEL SINGERS and organizes Gospel Singing on Stage GIEZ. Bonny B. was hired as a teacher at the harmonica blues school ETM in Geneva .
2009: February 28, Bonny B. embarked on a bet to become the only harmonica player in the world to play the harmonica for 24 hours non-stop for the Guinness World Records . All this was to raise money for his school in Cambodia. Bonny B. Blues Club opened its first in Fribourg where he organized Blues concerts with American artists.
2010 : Bonny B. Blues Club opens its second, the "Rock Bottom Blues & Jazz Club" in Giez in collaboration with Fabienne Decker. In March Bonny B. recorded his 8th album which was produced in collaboration with Bob Margolin . He created a Blues Festival in Giez from the 10-11-12 of September.
2011 : Tours with the first edition of the BLUES LEGEND TOUR with Finis Tasby-Bob Margolin-Dave Riley- Bob Stroger. He releases a new album, BONNY B. "Live at Blues Club Fribourg".
Bonny B. I'm a Bluesman RSR Radio Paradiso
Carlos Santana *20.07.1947
Carlos Augusto Santana Alves (* 20. Juli 1947 in Autlán de Navarro, Jalisco, Mexiko) ist ein US-amerikanischer[1] Musiker und Gitarrist mexikanischer Herkunft, der durch seine Musikrichtung des Latin Rock die Rockmusik um eine Variante erweitert hat.Werdegang als Musiker
Bereits als Vierjähriger erhielt Carlos Santana Geigenunterricht von seinem Vater. 1955, mit dem Aufkommen des Rock ’n’ Roll, wechselte er zur Gitarre. Im selben Jahr zog seine Familie nach Tijuana, wo Carlos Santana in diversen Clubs spielte.
1960 zog seine Familie nach San Francisco. Carlos folgte erst ein Jahr später und verdiente sich seinen Unterhalt in Striptease-Clubs. Seine Vorbilder waren unter anderem Gábor Szabó, Bola Sete und Wes Montgomery. In San Francisco angekommen lernte er bald Gleichgesinnte kennen und gründete 1965 mit Gregg Rolie, Gus Rodriguez, Michael Carabello und Danny Haro die Santana Blues Band. Angeblich wurde der Name nur gewählt, weil die lokale Musikergewerkschaft verlangt habe, dass jede Band einen Kopf haben müsse. Ebenfalls 1965 wurde Santana eingebürgert.[1] Schnell wurde die Band in San Francisco und Umgebung wegen ihres unverwechselbaren Stils, einer Mischung aus Rock ’n’ Roll, Blues und lateinamerikanischen Rhythmen, bekannt. Sie erschufen damit den Latin Rock.
Ende September 1968 wurde Santana am letzten Abend als Ersatz für den erkrankten Mike Bloomfield zu den Live Adventures von Al Kooper ins Fillmore West eingeladen. Mit dem Titel Sonny Boy Williamson (Jack Bruce/Paul Jones) wurde Santanas Gitarrenspiel dadurch erstmals live dokumentiert.
1969 wurde die erste LP Santana aufgenommen. Anschließend tourte die Band, die inzwischen zu einem Sextett angewachsen war, durch die USA, wo sie besonders durch einen Auftritt im August beim Woodstock-Festival bekannt wurde. Für den Woodstock-Film wurde später ihr sehr expressives Stück Soul Sacrifice ausgewählt. Im selben Monat erschien das Debütalbum, das es bis in die Top 5 der US-amerikanischen Albumcharts schaffte, in denen es sich über zwei Jahre halten konnte; es wurde über zwei Millionen Male verkauft. Darauf enthalten ist auch der Top-40-Single-Titel Jingo (eine Cover-Version eines 1959 von Babatunde Olatunji aufgenommenen nigerianischen Stücks) und der Top-10-Single-Titel Evil Ways.
Das zweite Album der Band, Abraxas (vom September 1970), enthält die Klassiker Samba Pa Ti, Oye Como Va (von Tito Puente) (Top 10) und Black Magic Woman (von Peter Green) (Top 5). Dieses Album, von dem schließlich 4 Millionen Exemplare verkauft wurden, erreichte die Spitze der Charts. Ende des Jahres wurde die Band durch den jungen Gitarristen Neal Schon (* 1954) zu einem Septett erweitert.
Im September 1971 wurde Santana III veröffentlicht, auf dem viele Gastmusiker, wie z. B. der Perkussionist Coke Escovedo, der bei allen Liedern mitspielt, zu hören sind. Mit zwei Millionen verkauften Exemplaren erreichte auch dieses Werk die Spitze der Charts. Ausgekoppelt wurden die Top-10-Single Everybody's Everything und die Top-20-Single No One to Depend On. Nach der Tournee, die die Herausgabe des Albums begleitete, trennte sich die Band. Carlos Santana behielt das Recht am Bandnamen.
1972 brachte er nach einer Tour zusammen mit Buddy Miles ein Livealbum heraus und vereinte die Band wieder, um das vierte Album Caravanserai aufzunehmen. Von der alten Besetzung waren Shrieve, Areas, Rolie und Schon dabei; die beiden letzteren verließen die Band im Jahr darauf, um Journey zu gründen. Das Album erschien im September, erreichte die Top 5, erhielt Platin und war für einen Grammy nominiert.
1972 entwickelte Santana Interesse für die Fusion-Band Mahavishnu Orchestra des Gitarristen John McLaughlin. Dieser machte ihn mit seinem Guru Sri Chinmoy bekannt, der ihn 1973 als Jünger akzeptierte. Santana erhielt den Namen Devadip, was „Leuchte, Licht und Auge Gottes“ bedeutet. Santana und McLaughlin spielten das Album Love, Devotion, Surrender mit den Mitgliedern der Santana Band und dem Mahavishnu Orchestra ein, verstärkt durch Perkussionist Don Alias und Organist Larry Young, die beide 1969 auf Miles Davis' Klassiker Bitches Brew gespielt hatten.
Weitere Alben folgten, aber auch neue Mitglieder in der Band.
Im Frühjahr 1987 trat die Santana Band gemeinsam mit Buddy Miles mit ihrem Freedom-Konzert (Titel des gleichnamigen Albums) im Palast der Republik in Ost-Berlin auf, wo sie euphorisch gefeiert wurden. Die Fans (meist aus der Blueser- oder Kundenszene) standen schon 48 Stunden vorher an, um eine der wenigen frei verfügbaren Eintrittskarten zu bekommen. Zwei Drittel der Karten waren für staatsnahe Bürger reserviert.
Mit der Zeit blieb der Erfolg der Band aus, ebenso ließen die Soloambitionen von Carlos Santana nach. Dennoch blieb er ein begehrter Gastmusiker.
1989 erhielt er seinen ersten Grammy für das Album Blues for Salvador.
1998 wurde Carlos Santana mit weiteren Bandkollegen in die Rock and Roll Hall of Fame aufgenommen.[2]
1999 gelang ihm mit seiner Band ein Comeback. Das Album Supernatural wurde ein weltweiter Erfolg und Santana erhielt bei der Grammy-Verleihung des Jahres 2000 acht Auszeichnungen, was bis dahin nur Michael Jackson 1984 mit Thriller erreicht hatte. Danach erhielt Santana als Bandleader und Solokünstler zahlreiche weitere Musikpreise. Auf Supernatural wirkten unter anderem Rob Thomas (matchbox twenty), Wyclef Jean, Eagle-Eye Cherry, Everlast, Maná, Lauryn Hill, Dave Matthews und Eric Clapton mit. Es folgte 2002 das Album Shaman, auf dem P.O.D., Seal, Dido und Michelle Branch als Gastmusiker zu hören sind.
Am 28. Oktober 2005 erschien All That I Am mit Musikern wie Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), Big Boi (OutKast), Mary J. Blige, will.i.am, Los Lonely Boys, Sean Paul, Joss Stone, Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Robert Randolph und The Wreckers. Die erste Single-Auskoppelung, Just Feel Better (feat. Steven Tyler), stammt aus der Feder von Damon Johnson, derzeit Gitarrist bei Alice Cooper und Frontman der Band Slave To The System. Live stellte Santana diesen Song in Deutschland am 6. November 2005 in der Samstag-Abend-Show Wetten, dass..? vor. Anstelle von Steven Tyler übernahm dabei der Sänger der US-amerikanischen Hard-Rock-Band Silvertide, Walt Lafty, den Gesangspart.
Auf der Europa-Tournee 2006 wurde Carlos Santana von seinem Sohn Salvador Santana und dessen Gruppe begleitet. Im Juli 2006, als in Montreux das 40-Jahre-Jubiläum des Jazzfestivals gefeiert wurde, wirkten Carlos Santana und seine Band an drei Abenden als Gastgeber und beglückten das Publikum mit musikalischen Themenreisen in den Blues (My Blues is deep), in die afrikanische Musik (Beat of my drum) und mit einem Abend, an dem Tower of Power, Beverley Knight, Herbie Hancock und viele andere Künstler mitwirkten.
Equipment, Technik
Santana bevorzugt E-Gitarren mit zwei Tonabnehmern. Früher waren es Gibson SG mit P90-Pickups, wie auch auf den Aufnahmen seines ersten Albums zu sehen ist, später spielte er eine Yamaha SG 2000 und eine Yamaha PF3000, auf Konzertmitschnitten ist er auch mit einer Fender Stratocaster zu sehen. 1981 stieß er auf PRS. Paul Smith baute für ihn nach seinen Vorgaben ein Modell, das bis heute bereits vier Versionen durchlaufen hat. Die Gitarren besitzen eine etwas kürzere Mensur von 24,5 Zoll statt der bei PRS üblichen 25 Zoll und sind als Custom-Modell von PRS für jedermann erhältlich.
Als Verstärker benutzt er einen alten Mesa Boogie Mark 1 Red-Head, zwei Dumble Overdrive und einen Dumble Steel String. Bei allen seinen Verstärkern handelt es sich um Röhrenamp-Heads. Als Boxen werden zwei 12-Zöller und zwei 4×12-Zöller von Mesa Boogie benutzt.
Santana spielt sowohl mit den Fingern als auch mit einem Plektrum (auch innerhalb eines Stückes). Dies ist sehr gut bei dem Stück "Samba pa ti" zu sehen und zu hören.
Privates
Zwischen 1973 und 1982 schloss sich Santana auf der spirituellen Suche dem indischen Guru Sri Chinmoy an und fand hier sein Lebensmotto: Wir sind alle eins.
Santana heiratete 1973 Deborah King, die Tochter des Blues-Musikers Saunders King. Sie haben zusammen drei Kinder; Salvador (* 1983), Stella (* 1984) und Angelica (* 1989). Mit seiner Frau engagierte sich Santana ab Anfang der 1990er Jahre in einer christlichen Gemeinde. Die Ehe wurde 2007 nach 34 Jahren geschieden.[3]
Gemeinsam hatten sie sich seit Jahrzehnten auch im sozialen Bereich engagiert. Mitte der 90er Jahre gründeten sie mit der Milagro Foundation eine gemeinnützige Stiftung, die sich dafür einsetzt, dass benachteiligte Menschen eine Schulbildung erhalten. Für ihr Engagement wurden sie mit zahlreichen Ehrungen bedacht. So ernannte zum Beispiel die Stadtverwaltung von San Francisco den 6. Juni im Jahr 1987 zum Santana-Tag.
Am 9. Juli 2010 gaben Santana und Cindy Blackman auf einem Konzert seiner Universal Tone Tour in Chicago ihre Heirat bekannt.[4] Die Hochzeit fand am 21. Dezember auf Maui statt.
Carlos Santana About this sound audio (help·info) (born July 20, 1947) is a Mexican and American musician who first became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered a fusion of rock and Latin American music. The band's sound featured his melodic, blues-based guitar lines set against Latin and African rhythms featuring percussion instruments such as timbales and congas not generally heard in rock music. Santana continued to work in these forms over the following decades. He experienced a resurgence of popularity and critical acclaim in the late 1990s. In 2003 Rolling Stone magazine listed Santana at number 15[2] on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.[3] He has won 10 Grammy Awards and three Latin Grammy Awards.[4]Biography
Early life
Santana was born in Autlán de Navarro, Jalisco, Mexico. He learned to play the violin at age five and the guitar at age eight under the tutelage of his father, a mariachi musician. His younger brother, Jorge Santana, would also become a professional guitarist. Young Carlos was heavily influenced by Ritchie Valens at a time when there were very few Latinos in American rock and pop music. The family moved from Autlán de Navarro to Tijuana, the city on Mexico's border with California, and then San Francisco. Carlos stayed in Tijuana but later joined his family in San Francisco, graduating from James Lick Middle School, and in 1965 from Mission High School. Carlos was accepted at California State University, Northridge, and Humboldt State University, but chose not to attend college.
Early career
"The '60s were a leap in human consciousness. Mahatma Gandhi, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Che Guevara, Mother Teresa, they led a revolution of conscience. The Beatles, the Doors, Jimi Hendrix created revolution and evolution themes. The music was like Dalí, with many colors and revolutionary ways. The youth of today must go there to find themselves."
– Carlos Santana[5]
He got the chance to see his idols (most notably B.B. King) perform live in San Francisco. He was also introduced to a variety of new musical influences, including jazz and folk music, and witnessed the growing hippie movement centered in San Francisco in the 1960s. After several years spent working as a dishwasher in a diner and busking for spare change, Santana decided to become a full-time musician. In 1966 he gained prominence due to a series of accidental events, all happening on the same day. Santana was a frequent spectator at Bill Graham's Fillmore West. During a Sunday matinee show, Paul Butterfield was slated to perform there but was unable to do so as a result of being intoxicated. Graham assembled an impromptu band of musicians he knew primarily through his connections with Butterfield's band and with the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, but he had not yet chosen all the guitarists. Santana's manager, Stan Marcum, immediately suggested to Graham that Santana join the impromptu band and Graham agreed. During the jam session, Santana's guitar playing and solo gained the notice of both the audience and Graham.[6] During the same year, Santana formed the Santana Blues Band, with fellow street musicians David Brown (bass guitar), Marcus Malone (percussion) and Gregg Rolie (lead vocals, Hammond Organ B3).[7]
With their highly original blend of Latin-infused rock, jazz, blues, salsa and African rhythms, the band (which quickly adopted their frontman's name, Santana) gained an immediate following on the San Francisco club circuit. The band's early success, capped off by a memorable performance at Woodstock in 1969, led to him signing a recording contract with Columbia Records, then run by Clive Davis.
Santana
Record deal, Woodstock breakthrough and height of success: 1969–72
Santana was signed by CBS Records and went into the studio to record their first album. They were not satisfied with the release and decided changes needed to be made. This resulted in the dismissal of drummer Bob Livingston. Santana replaced him with Mike Shrieve, who had a strong background in both jazz and rock. Percussionist Marcus Malone was forced to quit the band due to involuntary manslaughter charges, and the band re-enlisted Michael Carabello. Carabello brought with him percussionist Jose Chepito Areas, who was already well known in his country, Nicaragua, and, with his skills and professional experience, was a major contributor to the band.
Bill Graham, a Latin Music aficionado, had been a fan of the band from its inception, and arranged for them to appear at the Woodstock Music and Art Festival before their debut album was even released. They were one of the surprises of the festival; their set was legendary and later the exposure of their eleven-minute instrumental "Soul Sacrifice" in the Woodstock film and soundtrack album vastly increased their popularity. Graham also gave the band some key advice to record the Willie Bobo song "Evil Ways", as he felt it would get them radio airplay. Their first album, Santana, was released in August 1969 and became a huge hit, reaching #4 on the U.S. album charts, with the catchy single "Evil Ways" reaching number nine on the Billboard Hot 100.[citation needed]
Santana performing in Hamburg in November 1973
In 1969, the band's performance at the Woodstock festival introduced them to an international audience and garnered critical acclaim, although the band's sudden success put pressure on the group, highlighting the different musical directions in which Rolie and Santana were starting to go. Rolie, along with some of the other band members, wanted to emphasize a basic hard rock sound which had been a key component in establishing the band from the start. Santana, however, was increasingly interested in moving beyond his love of blues and rock and wanted more jazzy, ethereal elements in the music, which were influenced by his fascination with Gábor Szabó, Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders, and John Coltrane, as well as his growing interest in spirituality. At the same time, Chepito Areas was stricken with a near-fatal brain hemorrhage, and Santana hoped to continue by finding a temporary replacement (first Willie Bobo, then Coke Escovedo), while others in the band, especially Michael Carabello, felt it was wrong to perform publicly without Areas. Cliques formed, and the band started to disintegrate.
Consolidating the interest generated by their first album, and their highly acclaimed live performance at the Woodstock Festival in August 1969, the band followed up with their second album, Abraxas, in September 1970. The album's mix of rock, blues, jazz, salsa and other influences was very well received, showing a musical maturation from their first album and refining the band's early sound. Abraxas included two of Santana's most enduring and well-known hits, "Oye Como Va", and "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen". Abraxas spent six weeks at #1 on the Billboard chart at the end of 1970.[8] The album remained on the charts for 88 weeks and was certified 4x platinum in 1986.[9] In 2003 the album was ranked number 205 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[10]
Teenage San Francisco Bay Area guitar prodigy Neal Schon was asked to join the band in 1971, in time to complete the third album, Santana III. The band now boasted a powerful dual-lead-guitar act that gave the album a tougher sound. The sound of the band was also helped by the return of a recuperated Chepito Areas and the assistance of Coke Escovedo in the percussion section. Enhancing the band's sound further was the support of popular Bay Area group Tower of Power's horn section, Luis Gasca of Malo, and other session musicians which added to both percussion and vocals, injecting more energy to the proceedings. Santana III was another success, reaching #1 on the album charts, selling two million copies, and yielding the hits "Everybody's Everything" and "No One to Depend On".
New Year's Eve 1976 at the Cow Palace in San Francisco
Tension between members of the band continued, however. Along with musical differences, drug use became a problem, and Santana was deeply worried that it was affecting the band's performance. Coke Escovedo encouraged Santana to take more control of the band's musical direction, much to the dismay of some of the others who thought that the band and its sound was a collective effort. Also, financial irregularities were exposed while under the management of Stan Marcum, whom Bill Graham criticized as being incompetent. Growing resentments between Santana and Michael Carabello over lifestyle issues resulted in his departure on bad terms. James Mingo Lewis was hired at the last minute as a replacement at a concert in New York City. David Brown later left due to substance abuse problems. A South American tour was cut short in Lima, Peru, due to student protests against U.S. governmental policies and unruly fans. The madness of the tour convinced Santana that changes needed to be made in the band and in his life.[citation needed]
In January 1972, Santana, Schon, Escovedo, and Lewis joined former Band of Gypsys drummer, Buddy Miles, for a concert at Hawaii's Diamond Head Crater, which was recorded for the album Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live!. The performance was erratic and uneven, but the album managed to achieve gold-record status on the weight of Santana's popularity.
Caravanserai
In early 1972, Santana and the remaining members of the band started working on their fourth album, Caravanserai. During the studio sessions, Santana and Michael Shrieve brought in other musicians: percussionists James Mingo Lewis and Latin-Jazz veteran, Armando Peraza replacing Michael Carabello, and bassists Tom Rutley and Doug Rauch replacing David Brown. Also assisting on keyboards were Wendy Haas and Tom Coster. With the unsettling influx of new players in the studio, Gregg Rolie and Neal Schon decided that it was time to leave after the completion of the album, even though both contributed to the session. Rolie returned home to Seattle, and later became a founding member of Journey (which Schon would later join as well).
When Caravanserai did emerge in 1972, it marked a strong change in musical direction towards jazz fusion. The album received critical praise, but CBS executive Clive Davis warned Santana and the band that it would sabotage the band's position as a "Top 40" act. Nevertheless, over the years, the album would achieve platinum status. The difficulties Santana and the band went through during this period were chronicled in Ben Fong-Torres' Rolling Stone 1972 cover story "The Resurrection of Carlos Santana".
Santana met Deborah King, whom he later married in 1973. She is the daughter of late blues singer and guitarist Saunders King. They have three children: Salvador, Stella and Angelica. Together with wife Deborah, Santana founded a not-for-profit organization, the Milagro ("Miracle") Foundation, which provides financial aid for educational, medical, and other needs.
Shifting styles and spirituality: 1972–79
In 1972, Santana became interested in the pioneering fusion band The Mahavishnu Orchestra and its guitarist, John McLaughlin. Aware of Santana's interest in meditation, McLaughlin introduced Santana, and his wife Deborah, to his guru, Sri Chinmoy. Chinmoy accepted them as disciples in 1973. Santana was given the name Devadip, meaning "The lamp, light and eye of God". Santana and McLaughlin recorded an album together, Love, Devotion, Surrender (1973) with members of Santana and The Mahavishnu Orchestra, along with percussionist Don Alias and organist Larry Young, who both had made appearances on Miles Davis' classic album Bitches Brew in 1969.
In 1973, Santana, having obtained legal rights to the band's name, Santana, formed a new version of the band with Armando Peraza and Chepito Areas on percussion, Doug Rauch on bass, Michael Shrieve on drums, and Tom Coster and Richard Kermode on keyboards. Santana later was able to recruit jazz vocalist Leon Thomas for a tour in Japan on July 3 and 4, 1973, which was recorded for the live, sprawling, high-energy triple vinyl LP fusion album Lotus (1974). CBS records would not allow its release unless the material was condensed. Santana did not agree to those terms, and Lotus was available in the U.S. only as an expensive, imported, three-record set. The group later went into the studio and recorded Welcome (1973), which further reflected Santana's interests in jazz fusion and his increasing commitment to the spiritual life of Sri Chinmoy.
A collaboration with John Coltrane's widow, Alice Coltrane, Illuminations (1974), followed. The album delved into avant-garde esoteric free jazz, Eastern Indian and classical influences with other ex-Miles Davis sidemen Jack DeJohnette and Dave Holland. Soon after, Santana replaced his band members again. This time Kermode, Thomas and Rauch departed from the group and were replaced by vocalist Leon Patillo (later a successful Contemporary Christian artist) and returning bassist David Brown. He also recruited soprano saxophonist, Jules Broussard for the lineup. The band recorded one studio album Borboletta, which was released in 1974. Drummer Leon "Ndugu" Chancler later joined the band as a replacement for Michael Shrieve, who left to pursue a solo career.
By this time, Bill Graham's management company had assumed responsibility for the affairs of the group. Graham was critical of Santana's move into jazz and felt he needed to concentrate on getting Santana back into the charts with the edgy, streetwise ethnic sound that had made them famous. Santana himself was seeing that the group's direction was alienating many fans. Although the albums and performances were given good reviews by critics in jazz and jazz fusion circles, sales had plummeted.
Santana, along with Tom Coster, producer David Rubinson, and Chancler, formed yet another version of Santana, adding vocalist Greg Walker. The 1976 album Amigos, which featured the songs "Dance, Sister, Dance" and "Let It Shine", had a strong funk and Latin sound. The album received considerable airplay on FM album-oriented rock stations with the instrumental "Europa (Earth's Cry Heaven's Smile)" and re-introduced Santana to the charts. In 1976 Rolling Stone ran a second cover story on Santana entitled "Santana Comes Home".
The albums conceived through the late 1970s followed the same formula, although with several lineup changes. Among the new personnel who joined was current percussionist Raul Rekow, who joined in early 1977. Most notable of the band's commercial efforts of this era was a version of the 1960s Zombies hit, "She's Not There", on the 1977 double album Moonflower.
The relative success of the band's albums in this era allowed Santana to pursue a solo career funded by CBS. First, Oneness: Silver Dreams – Golden Reality, in 1979 and The Swing of Delight in 1980, which featured some of his musical heroes: Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and Tony Williams from Miles Davis' legendary 1960s quintet.[citation needed]
The pressures and temptations of being a high-profile rock musician and requirements of the spiritual lifestyle which guru Sri Chinmoy and his followers demanded were in conflict, and imposed considerable stress upon Santana's lifestyle and marriage. He was becoming increasingly disillusioned with what he thought were the unreasonable rules that Chinmoy imposed on his life, and in particular with his refusal to allow Santana and Deborah to start a family. He felt too that his fame was being used to increase the guru's visibility. Santana and Deborah eventually ended their relationship with Chinmoy in 1982.
The 1980s
More radio-friendly singles followed from Santana and the band. "Winning" in 1981 (from Zebop) and "Hold On" (a remake of Canadian artist Ian Thomas' song) in 1982 both reached the top twenty. After his break with Sri Chinmoy, Santana went into the studio to record another solo album with Keith Olson and legendary R&B producer Jerry Wexler. The 1983 album Havana Moon revisited Santana's early musical experiences in Tijuana with Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love" and the title cut, Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon". The album's guests included Booker T. Jones, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Willie Nelson and even Santana's father's mariachi orchestra. Santana again paid tribute to his early rock roots by doing the film score to La Bamba, which was based on the tragically short life of rock and roll legend Ritchie Valens and starred Lou Diamond Phillips.
Although the band had concentrated on trying to produce albums with commercial appeal during the 1980s, changing tastes in popular culture began to reflect in the band's sagging record sales of their latest effort Beyond Appearances (1985). In 1985, Bill Graham had to once again pull strings for Santana to convince principal Live Aid concert organizer Bob Geldof to allow the band to appear at the festival.[citation needed] The group's high-energy performance proved they were still a top concert draw the world over despite their poor performance on the charts. Santana regained a great deal of respect in both jazz and rock circles, with Prince and guitarist Kirk Hammett of Metallica citing him as an influence.
The band Santana returned in 1987 with a new album Freedom.
L to R: Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Santana in Hamburg, May 1984
Growing weary of trying to appease record company executives with formulaic hit records, Santana took great pleasure in jamming and making guest appearances with notables such as the jazz fusion group Weather Report, jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, Blues legend John Lee Hooker, Frank Franklin, Living Colour guitarist Vernon Reid, and West African singer Salif Keita. He and Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead later recorded and performed with Nigerian drummer Babatunde Olatunji, who conceived one of Santana's famous 1960s drum jams, "Jingo". In 1988 Santana organized a reunion with past members from the Santana band for a series of concert dates. CBS records released a 20-year retrospective of the band's accomplishments with Viva Santana! double CD compilation. That same year Santana formed an all-instrumental group featuring jazz legend Wayne Shorter on tenor and soprano saxophone. The group also included Patrice Rushen on keyboards, Alphonso Johnson on bass, Armando Peraza and Chepito Areas on percussion, and Leon "Ndugu" Chancler on drums. They toured briefly and received much acclaim from the music press, who compared the effort with the era of Caravanserai (1972). Santana released another solo record, Blues for Salvador (1987), which won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.
In 1990, Santana left Columbia Records after twenty-two years and signed with Polygram. The following year he made a guest appearance on Ottmar Liebert's album, Solo Para Ti (1991), on the songs "Reaching out 2 U" and on a cover of his own song, "Samba Pa Ti". In 1992 Santana hired jam band Phish as his opening act.
Return to commercial success
Santana kicked off the 1990s with a new album Spirits Dancing in the Flesh in 1990. This was followed by Milagro in 1992, a live album Sacred Fire in 1993 and Brothers (a collaboration with his brother Jorge and nephew Carlos Hernandez) in 1994. But sales were relatively poor. Santana toured widely over the next few years but there were no further new album releases, and eventually he was even without a recording 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 Green, 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 as an individual, 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 21, 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."[11]
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, fellow Latin star Shakira invited Santana to play the soft rock guitar ballad "Illegal" on her second English-language studio album Oral Fixation Vol. 2.
Santana's 2005 album All That I Am consists 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 artist/songwriter/producer will.i.am and guitarist/songwriter/producer George Pajon, 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". He also played guitar in Eros Ramazzotti's hit Fuoco nel fuoco from the album e²
In 2008, Santana was reported to be working with his longtime friend, Marcelo Vieira, on his solo album Acoustic Demos, which was released at the end of the year. It features tracks such as "For Flavia" and "Across the Grave", the latter said to feature 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, Macedonia. With a 2.5-hour long concert and 20 000 people, Santana appeared for the first time in that region. "Supernatural Santana – A Trip through the Hits" was played at The Hard Rock hotel in Las Vegas, where it was played through 2011.
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.[12] More recently, in 2011, three Santana songs were offered as downloadable content (DLC) for guitar learning software Rocksmith: "Oye Como Va", "Smooth", and "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen".
Santana, since 2007, has opened a chain of upscale Mexican restaurants called "Maria Maria". It is a combined effort with Chef Roberto Santibañez. They are located in Tempe, Arizona; Mill Valley (now closed), Walnut Creek, Danville and San Diego; Austin, Texas; and Boca Raton, Florida.[13]
In 2012, Santana released an album Shape Shifter consisting of mostly instrumental tracks.
On May 6, 2014, his first ever Spanish language album[14] Corazón was released.
Influences
Around the age of eight, Santana "fell under the influence" of blues performers like B.B. King, Javier Bátiz, and John Lee Hooker.[15] Gábor Szabó's mid-1960s jazz/gypsy guitar work also strongly influenced Santana's playing. Indeed, Szabó's composition "Gypsy Queen" was used as the second part of Santana's 1970 treatment of Peter Green's composition "Black Magic Woman", almost down to identical guitar licks. Santana's 2012 instrumental album Shape Shifter includes a song called "Mr. Szabo", played in tribute in the style of Gábor Szabó. Santana also credits Jimi Hendrix, Mike Bloomfield, Hank Marvin 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.[16]
Equipment
Guitars and effects
Santana played a red Gibson SG Special with P-90 pickups at the Woodstock festival. During the time between the release of Abraxas and Santana III (1970–1972), he used different Gibson Les Pauls and a Black Gibson SG Special. From 1976 until 1982 his main guitar was a Yamaha SG 175B, and sometimes a white Gibson SG Custom with 3 single coil pick-ups. In 1982 he started to use a custom made PRS Custom 24 guitar. In 1988 PRS Guitars began making Santana signature model guitars, which Santana has played through its various iterations ever since (see below).
Santana currently uses a Santana II model guitar fitted with PRS Santana III nickel covered pickups, a tremolo bar, and .009-.042 gauge D'Addario strings. He also plays a PRS Santana Multidimensional (MD)[17] The Santana guitars feature necks made of a single piece of mahogany topped with Rosewood fretboards (some feature highly sought-after Brazilian Rosewood[18]). This helps create the smooth, singing, glass-like tone for which he is known.
Santana Signature Models:
PRS Santana I "The Yellow"(1988)
PRS Santana II "Supernatural" (1999)
PRS Santana III (2001)
PRS Santana SE (2001)
PRS Santana SE II (2003)
PRS Santana Shaman SE-Limited Edition (2003)
PRS Santana MD "The Multidimensional" (2008)
PRS Santana Abraxas SE-Limited Edition (2009)
PRS Santana SE "The Multidimensional" (2011)
Santana also uses a classical guitar, he used the Alvarez Yairi CY127CE with Alvarez tension nylon strings,[19] in the last years from 2009 he uses custom made, semi-hollow Toru Nittono's "Model-T" Jazz Electric Nylon.[20]
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[21] and a T-Rex Replica delay pedal.[21][22] 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[23] right after the guitar. He is also known to have used an Electro Harmonix Big Muff distortion for his famous sustain. In the song "Stand Up" from the album Marathon (1980), Santana uses a Heil talk box in the guitar solo. He has also used the Audiotech Guitar Products 1x6 Rack Mount Audio Switcher in rehearsals for the 2008 "Live Your Light" tour.
Santana uses two different guitar picks: the large triangular Dunlop he has used for so many years, and the V-Pick Freakishly Large Round.
Amplifiers
Carlos Santana's distinctive guitar tone is produced by PRS Santana signature guitars plugged into multiple amplifiers. The amps consist of a Mesa Boogie Mark I, Dumble Overdrive Reverb and more recently a Bludotone amplifier. Santana compares the tonal qualities of each amplifier to that of a singer producing head/nasal tones, chest tones, and belly tones. A three-way amp switcher is employed on Carlos's pedal board to enable him to switch between amps. Often the unique tones of each amplifier are blended together, complementing each other producing a richer tone.
He also put the "Boogie" in Mesa Boogie. Santana is credited with coining the popular Mesa amplifier name when he tried one and exclaimed, "That little thing really Boogies!"[24]
Specifically, Santana combines a Mesa/Boogie Mark I head running through a Boogie cabinet with Altec 417-8H (or recently JBL E120s) speakers, and a Dumble Overdrive Reverb and/or a Dumble Overdrive Special running through a Brown or Marshall 4x12 cabinet with Celestion G12M "Greenback" speakers, depending on the desired sound. Shure KSM-32 microphones are used to pick up the sound, going to the PA. Additionally, a Fender Cyber-Twin Amp is mostly used at home.
During his early career Santana used a GMT transistor amplifier stack and a silverface Fender Twin. The GMT 226A rig was used at the Woodstock concert as well as during recording Santana's debut album. During this era Santana had also began to use the Fender Twin, which was also used on the debut and proceedingly at the recording sessions of Abraxas.
Personal life
Carlos Santana became a naturalized US citizen in 1965.[25]
On October 19, 2007, his wife of 34 years, Deborah Santana, filed for divorce citing "irreconcilable differences".[26]
Carlos Santana became engaged to drummer Cindy Blackman, after proposing to her during a concert of the Universal Tone Tour at Tinley Park in Chicago, Illinois, on July 9, 2010. The two were married in December 2010.[27][28] They currently live in Las Vegas.
Carlos Santana et Buddy Guy - Montreux Jazz Festival
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - I've Got My Mojo Working (From "Blues at Montreux 2004")
Jam Session at Montreux (Carlos Santana,Buddy Guy,Bobby Parker & Nile Rodgers)
R.I.P.
Golden "Big" Wheeler +20.07.1998
Golden "Big" Wheeler (December 15, 1929 – July 20, 1998)[2] was an American Chicago blues and electric blues singer, harmonicist and songwriter. He released two albums in his lifetime, and is best known for his recordings of the songs "Damn Good Mojo" and "Bone Orchard". He worked with the Ice Cream Men and Jimmy Johnson, and was the brother of fellow blues musician, James Wheeler.
He was born Golden Wheeler in Baconton, Georgia. Wheeler left Georgia in 1941 and settled in Chicago, Illinois, in July 1954, where he befriended Little Walter.[3] His enthusiasm for playing the harmonica began when he was working as a taxicab driver.[1] One of his regular customers was the harmonica player Buster Brown, who later went on to have a hit record with "Fannie Mae" in 1960.[1] Wheeler fronted his own band by 1956, although he was a part-time musician, having to work for years as an auto mechanic to help raise his family.[1][3]
In 1993, Wheeler released his first album, Bone Orchard, where he was backed by a local outfit, the Ice Cream Men. Released by Delmark Records (Delmark 661), it recreated a 1950s feel with a double guitar and drum backing, with no bass guitar.[1][3] The Ice Cream Men comprised Johnny Burgin and Dave Waldman (guitars), plus Steve Cushing (drums). The album was produced by Robert G. Koester.[4]
His next issue was Jump In (1997), where his backing included a fuller sound incorporating his brother, James Wheeler, on guitar.[1][3] As well as the Wheeler brothers, other musicians utilised on the album were Baldhead Pete (drums), Allen Batts (piano) and Bob Stroger (bass), with Koester again producing the overall set.[5]
Golden "Big" Wheeler died of heart failure in Chicago in July 1998, at the age of 68.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_%22Big%22_Wheeler
Golden "big" Wheeler - Chicago Winter Weather Blues
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