Not too long ago I wrote a piece here on Blogcritics titled "Confessions of A Recovering Music Snob." The article was about my memories as being one of those guys behind the counter at the record store who snickers condescendingly about the music choices customers bring to the register. Many of the comments, however, revolved around a debate that really had nothing to do with the article itself. And that is the age-old debate between technique and passion in music, and those who play it.
For my money this is a debate that simply cannot be won. Because when you get right down to it, it is all subjective. Neil Young, for example, is not the most technically gifted guitarist in the world. But there is no denying the beautiful noise he makes at his cranked up to eleven best.
His solo on "Like A Hurricane" for instance? One of the best ever.
On the other hand, some of the more technically gifted players ... like John McLaughlin, Al DiMeola, or Yngwie Malmsteen for example ... have been known to create some pretty beautiful noise themselves by shredding their way through classically based arpeggios at lightning speed. Clinical? Sure. But nonetheless inspired.
But every once in a while comes along that rare musician who combines both attributes. The Passion and the Technique. Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, and John Coltrane are a few who come immediately to mind. Carlos Santana, for my money, is another.
Santana's career has pretty much been all over the place since he first got the world's attention with a riveting performance at Woodstock in 1969 (a performance rivaled only by that of Sly and the Family Stone).
These days he has settled into a kind of "elder statesmen" role, making his most commercially successful music in decades under the watchful eye of music mogul Clive Davis. But it is Santana's first three albums for Columbia Records — made between 1969 and 1971 — that truly defined Carlos the musician and Santana the band.
It was perhaps the last time you could really call Santana a band at all.
Article comments
1 - Vern Halen
Totally in agreement here - I've made the same comment about inspiration & technique many times, even here on blogcritics once or twice.
For whatever reason, Santana 3 was an album I missed the first time around, and I only sheepishly admit that I didn't actually buy it until... well, last year, sometimes. But it's great! I loved Abraxas (even had it on 8 track!), but Santana 3 has a different tone to it - less subtle than Abraxas, but very powerful, and the duelling guitars & added percussion don't clutter, they just make everything sound bigger, like a complete band at the top of their game. Well, now I suppose I've got to go out & get the Legacy edition. It's always somethin'.