Abraxas (album)

Abraxas
Studio album by Santana
Released	September 1970
Recorded	April 18–May 2, 1970
Genre	Latin rock
Length	37:18
Label	Columbia
Producer	Fred Catero and Carlos Santana
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Robert Christgau (C+) link Rolling Stone (not rated) link
Santana chronology
Santana (1969) Abraxas (1970) Santana (III) (1971)

Abraxas is the second album by Santana, the popular latin rock n' roll group named after lead guitarist Carlos Santana. Consolidating their live success at the Woodstock Festival 1969, and the interest generated by their first album, Santana, the band took some time to issue this follow-up. Released in September 1970, the album's mix of salsa, blues, rock and roll, jazz and other influences made it a classic that defined Santana's early sound, and showed a musical maturation from their first album. Often considered Santana's greatest album, it drew widespread appeal for its mixture of latin influences with familiar rock and roll themes such as overdriven electric guitar, organ and heavy drums. The album also demonstrates Santana's stylistic versatility, including tracks such as "Samba pa Ti" (a classic slow-burning, seductive piece)^[1] and "Incident at Neshabur", both being instrumentals. The latter has several rhythm and time signature changes consistent with its jazz feel. Latin percussion — congas, bongos and timbales, as well as a conventional rock drum setup, make this Santana's first foray into true Latin rhythm. In 2003, the album was ranked number 205 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The album achieved number 7 in the UK album charts[1] The title of the album comes from a line from Herman Hesse's book Demian:

"We stood before it and began to freeze inside from the exertion. We questioned the painting, berated it, made love to it, prayed to it: We called it mother, called it whore and slut, called it our beloved, called it Abraxas..."

In 1998 Sony published a remastered version, which included three previously unreleased live tracks: "Se A Cabo", "Toussaint L'Ouverture" and "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen," recorded at the Royal Albert Hall in April 18, 1970. The album's cover features the 1961 painting Annunciation, by Mati Klarwein.

Track listing

1. "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts" (Carabello) – 4:48
2. "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen" (Green/Szabo) – 5:24
3. "Oye Como Va" (Puente) – 4:19
4. "Incident at Neshabur" (Gianquinto/Santana) – 5:02
5. "Se A Cabo" (Areas) – 2:51
6. "Mother's Daughter" (Rolie) – 4:28
7. "Samba Pa Ti" (Santana) – 4:47
8. "Hope You're Feeling Better" (Rolie) – 4:07
9. "El Nicoya" (Areas) – 1:32
10. "Se A Cabo" (1998 Edition) – 3:47
11. "Toussaint L'Ouverture" (1998 Edition) – 4:52
12. "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen" (1998 Edition) – 4:57

Singles

• 1970 - "Black Magic Woman"
• 1971 - "Oye Como Va"
• 1971 - "Hope You're Feeling Better"

Personnel

• Michael Shrieve – Drums
• José Chepitó Areas – Percussion, Conga, Timbales
• Gregg Rolie – Keyboards, Vocals
• David Brown – Bass, Guitar (Bass), Engineer
• Mike Carabello – Percussion, Conga
• Fred Catero – Producer
• John Fiore – Engineer
• Alberto Gianquinto – Piano
• Mati Klarwein – Illustrations
• Rico Reyes – Percussion
• Carlos Santana – Guitar, Vocals, Producer
• Robert Venosa – Artwork, Graphic Design