Track Listing

1. Singing Winds, Crying Beasts
2. Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen
3. Oye Como Va
4. Incident at Neshabur
5. Se a Cabo
6. Mother's Daughter
7. Samba Pa Ti
8. Hope You're Feeling Better
9. Nicoya
10. Se a Cabo [Live][#][*]
11. Toussaint l'Overture [Live][#][*]
12. Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen [Live][#][*]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #106709 in Music
• Released on: 1998-03-31
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Original recording remastered, Import
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Santana's 1970 follow-up to their Woodstock-propelled smash '69 debut found leader Carlos Santana further expanding his San Francisco group's already broad musical boundaries. To wit: two hit singles that emanated from opposite ends of the spectrum--"Black Magic Woman", originally written and recorded by English blues-rock guitarist Peter Green and Fleetwood Mac, and New York Latin percussionist/dance music king Tito Puente's infectious "Oye Como Va". Tying blues, rock, and salsa together in one pan-cultural package, Abraxas also featured such standout tracks as "Gypsy Queen", "Singing Winds", and "Crying Beasts". The latter two underscored the growing Eastern sensibilities of guitarist Santana. --Billy Altman

CD Description
ABRAXAS, the second album by the original (and arguably most powerful) Santana line-up, proved the band's commercial breakthrough. The album's contains two of the group's biggest hits, "Black Magic Woman", a slinky, smooth-edged interpretation of the song written by Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green, andtheir take on Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va", which injects Carlos Santana's stinging guitar leads into a surging salsa groove. The band's unique, genre-blurring approach makes thesesingles--and everything else here--unlike anything that hadbeen heard before.
The opener, "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts", showcases Carlos Santana's passionate, soulful six-string mastery over a drifting, psychedelic backdrop. The album ranges in feel, encompassing furiously propulsive jams ("Se A Cabo"), low-key Brazilian grooves ("Samba Para Ti"), andjazzy instrumentals ("Incident at Neshabur"). All the elements that made Santana's debut dazzling--roiling, polyrhythmic percussion, dense, pancultural influences, virtuoso guitarwork--are here--sharpened and painted with the rich, heady sound of late-'60s San Francisco (Santana was just as exploratory and innovative as their hometown cohorts the Grateful Dead and the Jefferson Airplane). ABRAXAS remains a seminal Latin-rock release, and one of the undisputed classics of the era.

Customer Reviews

There are not enough stars in this rating system to rate ...
... this Dts edition of the best of all Santana albums. When you pop this CD in your system, and the instruments start to flow from all around you with such clarity and definition, there is not enough words to thank for being able to live during these days. Simply perfect.
Please, people from DTS, publish more 70s music in this format: Mahavishnu, Jeff Beck, Hancock, Pat Metheny (Offramp must sound incredible in 5.1), Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, Pink Floyd (I want Dark side of the moon and Wish you were here in DTS now !!!)

Incredibly good
This is an amazing, deep and beautiful record. Each track is superb, but there are several - "Mother's Daughter" and "Samba Pa Ti" for my money - which are out of this world. I've been playing little else for about 2 weeks since I bought it, and anyone who likes guitar music can't go wrong here. Masterful.

Sheer listening pleasure
Of the 20 or so Santana albums I've owned over the years, this is my favourite. Listen to Singing Winds, Crying Winds on a decent hi-fi system and feel the shivers down the back of your spine - fantastic! The mix of percussion, searing keyboards and the trademark Santana guitar sound deliver a musical feast, to which you will want to come back for more. A must for any Santana fan's collection.