There are precious few guitarists who, with a single note or a single lick, you can immediately identify. One of them turns 77 today, Carlos Devadip Humberto Santana Barragan. His father, a mariachi musician, taught him violin at five and guitar at eight. But his big break came with a coin flip.
In early 1969, Michael Lang and Artie Kornfeld were trying to put together a rock festival. Their sum experience: Michael Lang had helped produce 1968’s Miami Pop Festival, a two-day event with just over 25,000 people. So, these guys were in way over their heads for a massive three-day music fest. What to do? Get help from the biggest name in concert promotions at the time, Bill Graham. (For those keeping score, that’s four Jews responsible for the seminal musical event of the era: Lang, Kornfeld, Graham, and Yasgur.) Bill said he would help put on the festival under one condition: one of the bands he managed had to be included. Lang agreed and it came down to either Santana or It’s a Beautiful Day performing. Bill flipped a coin and Santana got the 45-minute slot. (For the record, I believe Santana was the right choice.)
Following their performance at Woodstock, Santana’s released their eponymous debut. The next year, they released the groundbreaking Abraxas with covers of Peter Green’s Black Magic Woman and Tito Puente’s Oye Como Va leading to national fame. The band would have a rough patch after Rolie (who we get to see on RLC XII!) and Schon left to form Journey but Carlos continued to make quality records during the ‘70s and ‘80s, including his collaborations with John McLaughlin and Buddy Miles, even if they didn’t sell. Of course, his popularity exploded with the release of the star-studded Supernatural which went to number one in eleven countries on its way to being one of the biggest-selling albums ever. It also won nine Grammy Awards, breaking MJ’s previous record of eight with Thriller. Carlos has been riding that rejuvenated wave ever since.
Happy birthday to the man who introduced me, along with many of you, to an intoxicating mixture of Latin rhythms mixed with blues guitar.
One other event cannot be overlooked that happened on this date, my friends. On July 20,1969, our species, humankind, set foot for the first time on terrain not of this planet. For those old enough to remember, but too young to have celebrated the end of WW II, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s steps filled us with American pride in ways we hadn’t felt before and needed so badly after the horrors of 1968.
Space. The final frontier, indeed.