Essential Santana [Limited Edition][Original recording remastered]

Santana

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 22, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Limited Edition, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00006FI96
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,589 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  Music > Rock > Rock Guitarists > Guitar Gods

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Guitar hero, world-music pioneer, and Latin-rock superstar--Carlos Santana embodies them all on this 33-track double-disc anthology of the legend's first 20 years in music. Yet none of those labels seem to capture the true musical essence of the mercurial, Mexican-born icon. Literally from the very beginning here (the furiously rhythmic 1969 reworking of Nigerian star Babatunde's Olatunji's "Jingo"), Santana cuts his own rewarding and peculiar swath across rock history, whether giving similar "Jingo" treatment to Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va" or infusing the meat-and-potatoes R&B of "Everybody's Everything" with his emotional soloing. While that familiar, warm guitar tone adds compelling new dimensions to covers of staples like the Zombies' "She's Not There" and the Classics IV's "Stormy," as well as to the string of '80s hits also included here, it's the sense of spiritual freedom he gives tracks like Joe Zawinul's "In a Silent Way" and the gorgeous, understated "Europa" that seem his greatest legacy. And lest anyone thought the pop affectations of the Grammy-winning Supernatural a fluke, there are plenty of reminders in the set's second half (the joyous funk of "Vera Cruz," his bluesy duet with John Lee Hooker, "The Healer") to remind us that Santana's commercial timing has oft been as masterful as his fleet-fingered soloing. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Anthology of Columbia material 1969-1989, November 6, 2002

By	J. E FELL "boogaloojef" (Carterville, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This new 2 cd set from Santana is a good value. It is probably aimed at fans only aware of Carlos Santana's last two guest filled albums. It is a pretty handy set though. The material is from his tenure at Columbia records from 1969-1989. The set illustrates Santana's varied influences from latin, blues, rock, and jazz. The first disc contains material from the first and best incarnation of his band which featured Gregg Rolie on keyboards and vocals, Michael Shrieve on drums, Neal Schon on second guitar and the standard for Santana, a fiery latin percussion section. The material for this classic period includes a cover of Willie Bobo's (a big early influence) "Evil Ways", "Soul Sacrifice" and a medley of Peter Green's "Black Magic Woman" and Gabor Szabo's "Gypsy Queen". The Latin "Oye Como Va" and "No One To Depend On" based on another Willie Bobo song are notable. The live version of Miles Davis' jazz/fusion classic "In A Silent Way" is worth the price of the set alone. Material from Santana's team up with jazz/fusion guitarist John McLaughlin is also included. However, a number of essential cuts like "Persuasion", a cover of jazz saxophonist Gene Ammon's "Jungle Strut", and early instrumentals "Incident At Neshabur" and the great "Song Of The Wind" are omitted.

The second disk begins his transition to more single oriented material. It is beneficial in that it summarizes the better material from some of his weaker albums. The second disk includes covers the the Zombies' "She's Not There", Buddy Holly's "Well Alright" via Blind Faith, and Russ Ballard's "Winning". A rare live version of the Latin workout "Dance Sister Dance" and rockers like "Open Invitation" and "All I Ever Wanted" also make the cut. However, cuts like "Europa", "Aqua Marine" and "Blues For Salvador" show why Carlos Santana's Mike Bloomfield influenced guitar playing is highly admired. Not only can he play fast and flashy when necessary but he also has good sense of when to play slower and invoke real feeling in his playing. Last but not least is a duet with blues icon John Lee Hooker on "The Healer". The second disk is only 74 minutes long so another song or two could have been added to the set.

The set provides a good introduction to those curious about Santana's earlier work. The second disk summarizes some his singles from his spottier late seventies and eighties albums. While his first three albums are essential this set successfully shows the varied styles and influences of the latin/rock pioneer Carlos Santana.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Everybody's Everything, November 18, 2002

By	"btomarra" (Little Rock, AR United States) - See all my reviews

This is another in Sony Legacy's Essential Series. Usually these are 33 tracks on 2 CDs. This was billed as "Chosen by Carlos himself." Curiously, the song selection, edits, and mixes are the same as a 2 CD Sony import The Ultimate Collection (SONYTV47CD). The only advantage is that Aqua Marine, She's Not There, and Soul Sacrifice (single edits on the import) are restored to full length on this.

All I Ever Wanted is a single edit, as well as Nowhere to Run and Hold On that appeared two years ago on the import. Since the second disc clocks in at exactly 74 minutes (where the first disc clocks in at 78.50) one wonders why edits were used in the first place.

On the subject of edits, No One to Depend On has its 9 second spoken intro cut off. The import had the song intact. Also Havana Moon goes unrepresented on this Essential collection, yet Beyond Appearances, one of Santana's worst albums, IS represented.

The collection also gives improper weight to the albums. Abraxas is weighted the same as Marathon and Inner Secrets (clearly two inferior albums) and Caravanserai (which Carlos describes in the notes on the 1995 box set as the equal to Abraxas) is given the same weight as Beyond Appearances (only one song).

Where is Song of the Wind, Se a Cabo, and Persuasion.

So, another multidisc collection which solves some problems of the imports but creates new ones. Still, it does have In A Silent Way, one plus.

Of all the 2 CD collections out there, the nod goes to Ultimate (SONYTV47CD). If you don't mind some of the single edits, it represents more albums, and has a more thorough selection.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Essential tracks, and perhaps a few not-so crucial ones..., October 22, 2002

By	J. Lund "jazzbrat" (SoCal, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

As is the case quite often this year with classic pop artists, two-disc sets offer an attractive middle-ground alternative from a one-disc anthology or a bulky boxed-set overview of an artist's career. Some artists find it difficult to fill one CD with quality material, while others seem shortchanged by such a brief overview. Santana's single-disc best-of from several years ago managed to present most of the obvious choices, and is the recommended option if the potential buyer really only wants a handful of the classic cuts. However, if you want to dig a little deeper into Santana's career without loading up on a lot of the original albums, then ESSENTIAL is the best option...you get the hits plus enough quality extra cuts to get a fuller context of the first several decades of Santana's career.

The one-disc set was weighted towards the hits, some of which veered away from Santana's musical identity without much in return (e.g., such classic rock covers as WELL ALL RIGHT). While such tracks are also heard here, two CDs provide a much more artistically satisfying selection of Santana`s many ambitious recordings (including a live version of IN A SILENT WAY/IT'S ABOUT THAT TIME) and other jazz-tinged instrumental performances that stretch Carlos' vision into fresh, timeless areas. I rated this CD four-stars because of the mid-career tracks on disc two that fall into the generic, "album-oriented-rock" (AOR) sound of that era. If you like this style, the inclusion of these cuts will suit you just fine, but for the rest of us they seem dated and lacking Carlos' stylistic fingerprints. One thing I would have liked is personnel listings in the liner notes (at least the vocalists). This is a minor gripe, though...more than compensated by the outstanding sound quality (the best remastering yet on these tracks).