At 5 years old, Carlos Santana received his first guitar from his father, who himself was a Mariachi violinist. Twenty years later the band 'Santana' comes into existence. The band pioneered a fusion of rock, blues, jazz and Latin American influences. Rising to fame on the Woodstock stage in 1969, Santana had its fair share of turbulence. However, its ability to consistently maintain a dedicated fanbase and produce popular songs, even after the turn of the century, speaks volumes to the band’s constant innovative approach. Now, instead of reading some reconstituted biographical timeline, let’s make this more interactive.
For the sake of brevity, I’ll detail the band’s five most popular songs (according to Spotify), though, should you enjoy these five, I certainly implore you to explore more.
5. Corazón Espinado
Literally translated to “thorned heart”, this song speaks of a broken heart and the pains of a breakup. The song, of course, has incredible guitar solos with a riff very derivative of Eric Clapton’s Layla (though why not take inspiration from one of the best riffs of all time?). The song starts with a “montuno”: a syncopated, two-beat pattern repeatedly played by the pianist in a salsa band, often seen in Afro-Cuban music. While not as popular as some of their hits (probably due to the lyrics being in Spanish), this song incorporates most of the elements of a good Santana song and is a great introduction to the band.
4. Oye Como Va
Not far ahead of Corazón Espinado in terms of total streams, Oye Como Va also starts with a “montuno”, over which we hear a band member exclaim “Brrrrr, sabor” (translating to “flavour”), an apt introduction to the song. The song is actually a cover of Tito Puente’s original from the ‘50s, which is also worth a listen. The organ (played by Gregg Rolie, who would later co-found Journey) is striking. In many ways a simpler song than some of Santana’s other hits (just look to the barebones lyrics where ‘Oye cómo va / Mi ritmo / Bueno pa' gozar / Mulata’ (meaning “Listen to how my rhythm goes; it’s good for dancing/partying, mixed-race lady.”) is simply repeated four times. While I think I prefer Corazón Espinado, this is another great song.
3. Black Magic Woman
Yet another cover, this time of Fleetwood Mac, Santana’s version of Black Magic Woman. The song actually eclipsed the original by quite some margin and is the first song in this list performed in English. The original organist Gregg Rolie brought the song to the band and created the infamous Hammond organ riff which opens the song. The band took the original song and added it to their unique melting pot of jazz, blues, rock and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. While this isn’t my favourite of Santana’s songs (or even of their covers – see their version of La Flaca as a personal recommendation), it represents the band’s ability to take a pre-existing song and add their signature flair to it.
2. Maria Maria
The top two entries have significantly more streams than the previous hits on the list (both the top two have over double the number of streams of Oye Como Va). Chances are, some of you will recognise this song more than the first entry; not only is the guitar riff sampled in Wild Thoughts by DJ Khaled, Rihanna and Bryson Tiller (a riff which itself was inspired by the riff heard in Wu-Tang Clan’s Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing Ta F’ Wit). The song also trended on TikTok (though with some tempo modifications), bringing it to a younger generation. The song’s lyrics take inspiration from West Side Story, and, coupled with a memorable drum pattern (taken from Herbie Hancock) and a signature riff (though some find the high pitch somewhat whiny), took the song to number one on the UK singles chart, making this song a true relic of the late ‘90s Spanglish era, though calling Livin’ la vida loca (Ricky Martin) Spanglish seems generous.
1. Smooth
‘A song … conjured from the erotic feeling of leather pants against Rob Thomas’s goose-bumped skin and the dark enchantment of Carlos Santana’s guitar strings’ (according to journalist Alex Abad-Santos), Smooth is an undeniable banger and a refreshing callback to classic rock (though I’d perhaps phrase its creation slightly differently to Alex). The bridge features an incredible guitar solo, and the whole song brings a captivating energy, driven by the percussion (featuring congas, timbales, güiro and cowbell). This song, while not my favourite Santana hit, is certainly catchy, and it's easy to see how it gripped a whole generation.
