Santana Abraxas ( vinyl LP )

Release date: 02-06-2016 (originally releasd in 1970)

2016 EU  reissue ( vinyl LP ) One of the best known Santana records and Peaked at 1 in Billboard Top 200 including the huge single " Black Magic Woman" .

Santana made clear that there was no such thing in his music as 'mindless conformity' and this unorthodox mix of Salsa, Rock, Jazz and Blues on Abraxas proved to be quite successful. This album, that due to its variety would be a nightmare to marketeers in the '90s, peaked at #1 in the Billboard Top 200 in the '70s. A classic!

Tracks:
A1. Singing Winds, Crying Beasts
A2. Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen
A3. Oye Como Va
A4. Incident At Neshabur     

B1. Se A Cabo
B2. Mother's Daughter
B3. Samba Pa Ti
B4. Hope You're Feeling Better
B5. El Nicoya

Picking up on the momentum of the band's excellent 1969 self-titled debut and drifting into edgier, more versatile territory, Abraxas is the confident sound of Santana stretching out and carving its own Latin rock subgenre. The 1970 set immediately captured the public's ear, spending six weeks as the nation's #1 album and spawning the cosmic "Black Magic Woman" as a Top 5 single that's since become one of the most widely recognized songs in history. A confluence of celebratory vibes, bluesy jams, mellow vocals, and hip-shaking grooves, Abraxas is a cornerstone of any music collection and nothing short of legendary.

Mysticism and spirituality abound. Wild, free, and loose, Santana conjures the feeling of mountains and rivers on the lead-off instrumental "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts," leads a salsa parade on the definitive version of Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va," and explores its sensual side on the stellar showcase "Samba Pa Ti," a tune indicative of the album's Latin vibes and percussion. Sonically, Abraxas takes advantage of studio techniques such as cross-fading and mixing lacking on its predecessor.