Gregg Rolie

Gregg Rolie

Legendary Vocalist/Keyboardist for Santana and Journey

Santana's 1999 Grammy phenomenon, Supernatural, has sold in excess of 25 million copies. It launched a rebirth of Carlos Santana's career leading to his artist-as-icon status. More recently, he has lent his name to a line of Santana perfumes and colognes, handbags, wine, Carlos by Carlos women's shoes, and more.

But this legendary status now enjoyed by Carlos wouldn't exist were it not for the hits still played on radio: "Evil Ways," "Black Magic Woman," "Oye Como Va," et al. Most of these songs were included on Santana's first two albums, Santana (often called Santana by Santana), and Abraxas.

At the heart of the sound of those classic records are the keyboard playing and vocals of a young musician named Gregg Rolie.

Still a teenager when he and Carlos formed what was at one time titled the "Santana Blues Band" and then finally simply "Santana," Rolie had a distinctive vocal style has been immortalized on those early albums. And he didn't stop there. He and band mate Neal Schon went on to form Journey, a band which initially achieved a cult status among musicians, and then became one of the world's leading pop rock groups.

Rolie wasn't just a vocalist who accompanied himself on keyboards, though. The powerful simplicity of his organ playing is evident in the iconic chord inversions that introduce Oye Como Va, the unusual note (a 9th) that kicks off his solo in Evil Ways, and many other parts. Playing keyboards is something many people do; really good keyboard players is a much smaller group. Creating keyboard parts (both rhythm and lead) that stick in people's mind is a rare skill indeed, and one at which Rolie excels.

To this day, Rolie can be heard on both keyboards and vocals in his own group, the Gregg Rolie Band. Touring the country and playing hits both old and new, Rolie and his band (which includes original Santana conguero Mike Carabello) embody much of the original sound of the early Santana songs that still resonate with listeners, 40 years later.

Neal Schon

Incredible Melodic Journey

There are a lot of excellent electric guitar players out there. When you narrow the field to guitar players who play parts that you remember long after the song is over, it shrinks noticeably. But at the very pinnacle of that group is this category: players so melodic that every "riff" they play is a hook that sticks with you for a long time.

One of the members of that very small cadre is Neal Schon.

He must have displayed that talent early, because at 15, he had Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana vying to bring him on tour. After a couple of years under the radar in Santana's band, Neal broke out on his own to form Journey with Santana band mate Gregg Rolie. It was a momentous career choice.

Beginning with the first note of the first song on the first Journey album, Schon has steadily created a catalog of memorable songs, parts, and solos that is mind-boggling. His unique chordal phrases form the basis of most Journey songs; his lead riffs and solos challenge the vocal lines for sheer melodic power.

For more than 30 years, Schon has built a body of work that is staggering in its sheer volume, not to mention quality. He has contributed to many other projects, and even been in other bands (Bad English, Hardline, Abraxas Pool, et al), but it is in Journey where his melodic gift is best exemplified.

Yamaha SG

One-Time Santana guitar

More than 10 years of photography have etched the image of Carlos Santana and his PRS Signature guitar into the public consciousness. The resurgence of Woodstock footage has served the same purpose for one of Santana's original guitars: a Gibson SG.

But the six years that Santana spent playing a much less known guitar -- the Yamaha SG -- have been, to a great deal, eclipsed. However, that guitar, played by Carlos during a pivotal point in his career, probably had a lot to do with what many people think of as the "Santana Sound." That is, a round, smooth-yet-beefy-tone, complemented by endless sustain.

Embodying the best of the features of Santana's two previous guitars, the SG and Les Paul (both by Gibson), the Yamaha SG175 was a thick, woody guitar with double cutaways in the body. Combined with his Mesa Boogie amp, it helped him develop the signature sound for which he is renowned today.

Actually, although the model number was SG175 at first, Carlos and Yamaha together modified it into it's eventual form, which was called the Yamaha SG2000. That is the guitar heard on the original recording of "Europa," "Open Invitation," and other classic Santana songs.

After Carlos had played the guitar for a while, it was "discovered" by other popular guitarists of the day, including Steve Cropper, Kerry Livgren (Kansas), and Mick Jones (Foreigner).

Recently, Yamaha has reissued the model as the SBG2000, as well as several other related models. It's a fitting tribute to the legendary status of the artist who originally helped the world see the quality of Yamaha guitars.

How Santana Music Influenced Me

During the years I've played guitar in a Santana Tribute band, people generally assume that I'm a huge Carlos Santana fan. It's true that I've always enjoyed his music (especially the first two albums, Santana by Santana and Abraxas), but since I didn't really learn any Santana songs in depth until decades into my guitar career, he didn't exert a noticeable influence on my guitar style.

Actually, short-time Santana band member and co-guitarist Neal Schon (of Journey fame) played a much greater role in my development as a 6-string slinger, as I have long admired his melodic finesses combined with technical prowess.

But I have never been able to really learn someone's music in detail without coming to appreciate it on a deeper level, and such has been the case with Santana's music. As a guitar player, I certainly comp his lick's note-for-note during the tribute band gigs. And although his playing style is different from mine, his flair for stripping a guitar line down to its essence has definitely inspired me.

One of the the things Carlos excels at is playing melodies that are harmonically simple but rhythmically complex. He does it so naturally that it's not generally noticeable, but try to mimic his style and you'll find you really have to pay attention to your phrasing.

Additionally, I have taken a cue from the original Santana band, as a unit. Having always been a devotee of chordally complex music, I was delighted to study how Santana could take, not a 3-chord, not a 2-chord, but a 1-chord song ("Jingo"), and use a dynamic arrangement to keep it interesting. Awesome!

Even the most popular of Santana songs -- their re-make of Tito Puente's classic song "Oye Como Va" -- employs a simple 2-chord progression (i and iv) that never changes. Yet the arrangement is so interesting that the song never loses its trademark drive.

When writing the songs for my band Savor's CD, ¡Moviendote!, I tried to utilize those principles, as well as techniques gleaned from years of listening to and writing many different styles of music. Since the instrumentation is the same (guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, timbales, congas, hand percussion), it can't help but bear a common thread with Santana. But I see it as just one of the facets that make up a musical menage.

Carlos Santana's Guitar Tone

Distortion Makes A Difference

We used to have a saying when I was a teenager first learning to play guitar: "so distorted it's 'clean.' " What we meant was that with the right kind of amplifier distortion, you would achieve a smooth, round tone that sounded clean. In his latter years, Santana has definitely achieved that effect with his PRS Santana Signature guitar, combined with his Mesa Boogie amp.

However, the first couple of albums, Santana by Santana and Abraxas, which contained most of his classic hits, were not recorded using that combination. Instead, he used a Gibson Les Paul Special and possibly a Gibson SG guitar, along with a [probably] hot-rodded Fender Twin amplifier, and later maybe a precursor to the Mesa Boogie that would become his trademark.

Any way you slice it, he did not have access to the super overdriven sound that gave him the full, satin tone that would later become his trademark. Instead, his sound was more raw and uneven. He had to resort to tricks like doubling parts in the studio, adding echo and reverb effects, and using his guitar's volume control to extend his sustain.

As a result, in order to play those original songs true to form, you need to avoid the super-saturated tone available with modern amps, and duplicate the methods that Santana used back in the '70s. Which brings up the next point:

Know Your Santana Album Versions

Many of Santana's Hits have been recorded and released several times, each time with a different arrangement, guitar part, and guitar tone. It's easy to mix these up, and therefore produce a version that isn't true to any of the originals. So, pick the version you want to play, and stick to that version.

My rule of thumb: play the version that people will know best. In the case of the early hits -- Evil Ways, Black Magic Woman, Oye Como Va, et all -- it means playing the original album versions. Because those are the versions that have achieved the most radio play, which means those are the versions that most people know.

Some songs, like Europa, and Soul Sacrifice, are better known from live recordings (the latter frm the film, Woodstock). In those cases, play the live version. But don't mix them up with the original studio versions.

But Santana Plays His Songs Different Every Time

It's true, Carlos is one of those guitar players who never repeats the same riff twice. That doesn't mean that you can get away with the same thing. After all, people generally come to hear you play Santana songs, not your take on those same songs. Give them what they want!

Last, but definitely not least, remember that you are not an island. What the other members of the band play is going to affect how you sound. So make sure your band captures the Santana vibe as well as you.

Scent of Santana

After successful forays in the cuisine business with Maria Maria Restaurants, the clothing business with Carlos by Carlos Shoes, Latin guitar legend Carlos Santana has added another arrow to his quiver: fragrance.

Carlos Santana for Men offers products with a "woody," subtle fragrance that is captured in the cologne, body wash, and deodorant. You can buy them separately, or together in a gift pack.

Carlos Santana for Women includes perfume (3.4 oz. size or 1.7 oz. size), moisturizing body wash, and silk body lotion. The women's products blend florals with some exotic fruits and complete the picture with soft, sensuous musk to create a warm, seductive fragrance.

Valentine's Day shopping just got easier for guitar nuts (and lovers of guitar nuts)! Of course all products share some of the profits with The Milagro Foundation: Santana's association that donates money to charities that work for the benefit of children.

Jingo: Santana's Trademark Song

When I first started playing with a Santana Tribute band, I liked Santana's music, but didn't have a true appreciation for it. No song has changed that opinion more than "Jingo": a one-chord "chant" piece from the band's debut album, Santana by Santana.

Not only is Jingo a simple song harmonically, but the bass line literally does not change from start to finish. Playing Jingo has given me a true appreciation for Carlos Santana's melodic prowess, as well as the power of arrangement to drive a song.

Though "Soul Sacrifice" was immortalized in the Woodstock Film, and "Evil Ways" had the most radio success, I believe it is Jingo which best exemplifies the deceptively simple power of Santana's early music.

While Carlos achieved his greatest commercial success with Supernatural (driven by hits like "Smooth" and "Maria Maria"), he launched his career decades before with music that -- although more than 40 years old -- is still relevant today.