Customer Reviews

Roots

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Roots is not as good as the first three Santana albums, it's not as good as Abraxas Pool or even Gringo but it's close. It sounds more like Santana (the group) than anything Carlos has done lately.
Please Carlos call Gregg and Neal and Chepito and put the band back together !
Gregg Rollie is the most underappreciated man in rock. He left the best incarnation of Santana to form Journey and eventually left to form Storm and do some great solo stuff, the best of which was Gringo. Roots is no Abraxas but it's as close as we'll get for now.

The name is appropriate as this sounds like a old Santana
record.  Having Mike Carabello (original Santana conga
player) and Alphonso Johnson (who Played on "Blues
for Salvador") doesn't hurt.  Dave Amato on guitar is doing
a pretty good Carlos imitation on guitar.  His playing
on the instrumental "Domingo" is really nice.   Neal Schon shows up on one track with some Signature Journey leads.
But It is the percussion section with Mike and Ron Wikso on drums and Adrian Areas on Timabales that really drive the record.  Alphonso is wonderful also. He really leads the groove on "Let it slide".  Gregg sounds great on Vocals and keys. He plays a wonderful Hammond B3 solo on "Give it to me"  his vocal on "Ordinary Man" is really sweet and glides over the bossa nova rhythms. His voice sounds really good.  Glad to have him back making great music.

If you dig early Santana, you owe to yourself to
get this record, turn up your sub woofer, crank it
up and dance your...off.  I had a hard time
making breakfast this morning because I
could not stop dancing!

This is a wonderful CD.

The new Roots record has been picked as the "hit record of the summer" by Cottage Views Classic Rock News. Who is Gregg Rolie, you say? Gregg Rolie is the lead singer, keyboardist that co-founded Santana. He is the singer who founded Journey (and wisely departed when Steve Perry began to sugarcoat the group). Gregg Rolie has been fine tuning his writing skills and has returned to the scene by writing and arranging the kind of latin rhythms that first brought him to our attention. Roots is a combination of Santana, Gipsy Kings and Gregg Rolie. Songs on the album "Give It To Me", Con Todo Mi Corazon, Breakin My Heart are each capable of being hits on radio. You'll want to listen to them and for that matter, the whole album, again and again. "Roots is the kind of album that sounds like beams of sunlight cutting through low riding clouds in a blue summer sky", says Michael Cimino of Cottage Views. Dig it!

Terrific album by Gregg Rolie who is the voice of such classics
as Black Magic Woman and Evil Ways. Ron Wikso (The Storm, Foreigner, Cher, David Lee Roth, World Classic Rockers)is one of the country's best drummers and adds his talents to this
winning effort.

Buy it - you'll enjoy it. :-)

The guy that wrote that Roots is crap must have crap on the brain. Roots is a GREAT release for any artist. The guitar works is excellent with Neal playing. The songs are just a bit more mature than things Greg has done in the past. Nobody would like to see a great songwriter like Greg to repeat the music he did in the past; he is an artist and artists create. I would tell anybody who has been a fan of Greg to get the CD, just expect more unplugged guitar work than previous efforts.

I think Gregg Rolie is a fantastic song writer and musician.
From Santana to Journey this guy has made his mark on the music industry and continues to do so with this album. FORGET WHAT THOSE OTHER LOSERS SAY!!! This is a great album and a must for those long time Gregg Rolie fans.

An all round excellent album. In the same vein as Gregg's work with Neal Schon on Abraxas Pool. Fans of Santana's early work will love it. Gregg Rolie fans will definitely not be disappointed. Buy it before it's gone.

This is a fantastic album if you are a fan of Gregg's Santana efforts or the Abraxas Pool. Lots of Latin rhythms and memorable riffs. Gregg is joined on this album by bandmate Alphonso Johnson from Abraxas Pool/Santana and Storm bandmate Ron Wikso. Furthering the Santana connection are Michael Carabello and Adrian Areas(son of Chepito) Also some great guitar work from Dave Amato(REO, Ted Nugent). Neal Schon even makes an appearance on "Breakin' My Heart." Check out "Give It To Me" and "Love Is Everything." These are just asking for airplay. I got the pleasure of seeing Gregg recently play live at a promotion for this new album and I was not disappointed..he even threw in a couple Santana numbers!

When someone submits a review that slanders and demeans, you can rest assured there is a hidden agenda. They are a disgruntled minority. Their opinions are negative and are designed to demean. Move away from them the same way you do from any other nasty object that may cross your path.
Gregg Rolie contributed in a big way to our music culture. He was and is a part of the "brand name" Santana.... a co-founder. He was there and his contribution to the original band is measured by the hits. Oye Como Va, No One To Depend On, Evil Ways, Black Magic Woman.... and more.
Roots is a great album and a tribute to his tenure with Santana.
Where are the deeds and contributions of those who can so easily slander?

This "Jarrett" has absolutely no idea what he is talking about. Roots is exactly what its title suggests: An extension of the Santana idiom (and the recent, fabulous Abraxas Pool CD), where Gregg & his original Santana compatriots simply continued from Santana I - III, instead of Carlos' 90-degree turn into fusion with Caravanserai.

Ol' Jarrett should read the Santana Legacy Edition booklet and educate himself. As the essay quite correctly establishes, Gregg was a massive influence on the original Santana band. If Gregg chooses to continue to explore an established, successful musical idiom, especially one that he was such a major influence of, why is that a problem? His playing and vocals are as strong as ever, and Roots is as enjoyable as all the Santana albums he contributed to.

Gregg's enormous contributions to Santana, Journey, and rock in general, IMHO, have always been under-appreciated. This CD, and especially Gregg, certainly don't deserve such inane and vapid criticism.