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39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Primarily for Latter-Day Fans, October 21, 2007
Imagine if Capitol Records put out an ULTIMATE BEATLES collection, but didn't include anything from A HARD DAY'S NIGHT through SGT PEPPER. That's what ULTIMATE SANTANA feels like. There are six tracks from their classic first three albums: SANTANA (1969), ABRAXAS (1970) and SANTANA III (1971). Then (except for "Europa" from 1976's AMIGOS), none of the remaining tracks date back any further than 1999's SUPERNATURAL. In fact, more than half of the tracks on this collection come from Santana's "comeback" period when the band released three star-studded albums including SUPERNATURAL, SHAMAN (2002) and ALL THAT I AM (2005).
Longtime fans will be better served by 1998's single-disc THE BEST OF SANTANA or 2002's double-disc THE ESSENTIAL SANTANA. This latest collection is principally targeted for Santana's latter-day fans. There are flashes of brilliance with the big name cameos ("Smooth," for example, was a huge hit for a reason--it's a damn good song), but overall they pale in comparison to the band's seminal Seventies' work. If you're interested in Santana's work over the past decade (but don't want to purchase their last three albums), this does a nice job of catching you up.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Latin Guitar King, December 19, 2007
The love affair with Latin music in the United States and internationally has ebbed and flowed from the craze for Cuban Mambo in the 1940s and 50s to the widespread popularity of Latin tropical and pop acts today.
Santana, as a musician and arranger, is a pivotal figure in this history and he has been an ambassador to the world of Latin American musical culture. In the 1960s and 70s, Santana's pioneering guitar arrangements, rooted in the Latin American traditions that were flowering at the time (for a beautiful example of traditional Latin American guitar virtuosity, see: Puerto Plata: Mujer de Cabaret), brought Latin music into the pop mainstream. Santana's fusion of typical Latin American rhythms with edgy US rock inspired generations and helped begin the Latin rock movement (inspiring the likes of legendary Manu Chao: Clandestino).
Today Santana continues to work tirelessly to secure the place of Latin music in popular culture, collaborating with the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Steve Tyler (Aerosmith). Ironically (or perhaps mystically as Carlos would see it) while Santana in his youth broke with tradition by encouraging these musical fusions, his is now a voice of tradition within them.
This compilation of 18 masterful songs, some of them never before released, ranging from the beginning of Santana's career until today, is fitting and deserving tribute to an artist who has contributed so much to the world of music. As one would expect with a Santana release, the cover artwork provides plenty for the eye to contemplate as the ear listens.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good--But Heavy on Recent Stuff, October 19, 2007
The new 'greatest' by Santana sounds outstanding--crystal-clear and pulsing with energy and sound. The standards are on here, and they sound great. However, I do not think this collection represents the best of Santana. There is too much of his newer (collaborative) material, and while I enjoy the new songs, they are not as strong as his early music. While this is ultimately a satisfying album, I would not consider it the definitive collection of the Great Carlos Santana's works.
Four stars. Good, not great.
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