Abraxas [Remaster] by Santana

For me, there are few things more rewarding than discovering for oneself exactly why an album is legendary. People can tell you all day that "Led Zeppelin IV" or Savatage's "Hall Of The Mountain King" is an unparalleled masterpiece, but the true test comes when you sit down to experience it for yourself. That's what I did with Santana's "Abraxas", and I walked away convinced that claims of the album's greatness have not been exaggerations.

Like you and you, I've always known the name, the one or two hits, and little else. I even saw Carlos open for the Rolling Stones almost ten years ago, but the time had not yet come for me to immerse myself in the frantic Afro-Latin psychedelic world of Charles Santana and company. The door finally opened a few months ago when I took my chance with "Abraxas"; since it has "Black Magic Woman" and "Oye Como Va", I figured it to be the ideal starting point.

While he's retreated into comparative obscurity (minus the popularity resurgence that accompanied his "Supernatural" album), Carlos once headed a band that released chart-toppers and blazed across boundaries. Their first album, weirdly titled "Santana", laid the framework for their unique blend of 60's rock, Latin music, Afro rhythms, and jazzy virtuosity. They apparently blew people away with their performance at Woodstock, so "Abraxas" was sorta destined to be a success; seeing as how it spent six weeks at number one, I guess we can call it that.

"Abraxas" (the name comes from a Hermann Hesse book) doesn't depart too radically from the sound of the first album. It does come across as more professional, and the band was clearly starting to figure out what they were all about. Unlike the stuff that would come out after "Santana III", this one was more of a group effort. You see, even though Carlos lent the band his surname, there were five other members who were every bit as talented in their areas of expertise (organist/primary vocalist Gregg Rolie, who went on to form Journey with future Santana axeman Neil Schon, was arguably just as important to the band's early sound as Carlos' guitar playing). So crucial was rhythm to this group that two members were devoted to congas, bongos, and timbales.

In their heyday, Santana was an example of racial harmony in music. Out of six members, two were black, two were white, and two were Hispanic. This enabled the group to draw from a variety of influences, and "Abraxas" is where they balanced out the different elements. Later albums were so steeped in jazz fusion that Carlos started to lose his fanbase.

Incidentally, neither of the two songs that made "Abraxas" such a hit were written by Santana. "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen" is the pairing of an early Fleetwood Mac song with a Gabor Szabo tune, while "Oye Como Va" came from salsa legend Tito Puente. Still, Santana made those songs the classic rock staples they are, so they might as well claim them as their own.

The Latin feel of their music varies from song to song. Despite the addition of jamming organs and guitars, "Oye" and "Se A Cabo" are self-consciously so, but the sludgey guitar and fuzzy vocals of "Hope You're Feeling Better" put it closer to the neighborhood of Jimi Hendrix. As the resident white member of the songwriting process, Gregg Rolie's stuff is a little more rocky and sometimes falls flat after hearing a hyperactive rhythmic attack ("Mother's Daughter" is the one that thrills me the least).

This album is a great place to hear Carlos forging his reputation as guitar god. He shows off his slow, romantic side on "Samba Pa Ti", lets it scream on the atmospheric instrumental "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts", and demonstrates an ability to lay low on the rhythm-heavy "El Nicoya". On the racing "Incident At Neshabur", the whole band conspires to blow the listener's mind with their phenomenal musicianship; it absolutely floors me that these guys were in their early 20's when they pulled this stuff off.

The bonus tracks consist of three live versions: "Se A Cabo", Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen", and "Toussaint L'Overture" (which appeared on the following album, "Santana III"). Fear not- these guys were every bit as impressive on stage as they were on vinyl. As tight as any band I've ever heard, and sounding as if they just consumed a lunchbox full of stimulants.

The only reason I wouldn't unconditionally recommend this to every person on the face of the planet is its emphasis on music over lyrics. Many of the songs have no vocals (or vocals that are hardly more than chants in Spanish), and these guys weren't all about writing cutesey little pop melodies. Gregg's voice is harmless enough, but they were fonder by far of thrilling the listener with jaw-dropping organ solos, machine gun percussive assaults, and of course, the intensely passionate shriek of Carlos' guitar. Much of the disc resembles the soundtrack to a voodoo ritual, and if you can't take that, then head on back to the loving arms of Justin Timberlake. Musically, these dudes were the real deal.

"Abraxas" is a great place to start on Santana, but the first album and "Santana III" are similar in sound and feel. As far as I'm concerned, you can't go wrong with any of the three. Anything from "Caravanserai" on is even less concerned with pandering to the tastes of adolescents (or non-jazz enthusiasts) and should be approached with even more caution.