A selection of Santana posters, handbills and serigraphs with detailed information.

Click images to open expanded view.

The Poster Master

Dick Dixon

It all began in the spring of 1970. I was washing dishes in the kitchen sink when a song came on the radio that wasn't like what other bands were playing at the time. There was something different about the rhythm of it, how it sounded, and I turned up the volume. When it was over I called the radio station and asked the disc jockey what it was. He said "It's a new group called Santana, and the song was Evil Ways." I asked my mom to drive me across town to the only record store I knew so I could find that album. I brought it home and played it on my one-speaker record player as I gazed at the Lion head on the cover, finding different faces within it while listening to what sounded like music from a far away place.

I first saw them on May 30, 1976 in Des Moines, Iowa. It was a foggy morning as I began the 3 hour drive to the venue and Santana was just one of four bands scheduled to play. The lineup was Pure Prairie League, the J. Geils Band, Santana and the headliner Foghat. By the time it was Santana's turn the PA system was having problems with the sound cutting in and out, then distorting terribly on one side. It was quite disappointing to say the least. If my memory is right they played a couple songs from Borboletta along with several from Amigos, and of course Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va.

To me, collecting Santana concert posters is like collecting artifacts of times gone by. Each piece represents a musical event, a moment in time that will never be repeated. The artwork involved varies from black and white to the most vibrant colors of the rainbow, from pieces of basic design to others with intricate little details. Every poster or handbill has a story whether it’s about the band, venue, art or artist and the first four decades in their history were often promoted by some very unique and sometimes unusual art that continued to evolve over time. However, with the arrival of the 21st century a change took place when Santana started having their posters produced under the River Of Colors copyright and selling them at shows. While some independent promoters continued to commission different art for upcoming concerts, it was normal to see one or two standard images used repeatedly throughout the year. The majority of what's being shown here occurred before that happened, along with what I hope is some interesting info.

Posters/Handbills/Serigraphs (101 entries)

California Hall, San Francisco, CA March 30-31, 1967

Artist: Nestor

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This handbill from the earliest days of the band was only the second time their name had appeared in print. It advertised an event celebrating April Fools Day and for the price of one dollar (if you bought your ticket early) it included free food, beverages, bananas, even some free ice cream! Opening the show was a group called the Hedds. They had crossed paths with Carlos a year before this during a battle of the bands contest when Carlos was part of an unnamed trio with two ex-members from The Mockers: bassist Steve LaRosa and drummer Rod Harper. Harper would soon become the drummer in the third lineup of the Santana band but his time there would be short lived. The Hedds mainly covered songs from groups like The Byrds and the Rolling Stones and even appeared on a popular TV show performing “Get Off Of My Cloud” which can be found on YouTube. Next up was Santana Bluz, who had recently christened themselves the Santana Blues Band, but in those days handbills and posters would sometimes have different spellings of the band’s name. Joining Carlos for this gig was percussionist Michael Carabello (it was Michael who came up with the official band name), Greg Rolie on keyboards and vocals, Danny Haro on drums, Gus Rodriguez on bass and Tom Fraser adding rhythm guitar to the mix. This was the original incarnation of the band but they would undergo no less than five personnel changes before the end of the year. Coincidentally, a few weeks before this concert they were one of the groups that played a show in Redwood, California and a very young drummer named Michael Shrieve was in the audience, enthralled by what he saw and heard. Two years later he would be part of the band. Following Santana were The Outcasts, a pop group who had some minor success after releasing two singles over the previous two years. Their lead singer Gary Puckett went on to much greater success after the band split up when he formed Gary Puckett and the Union Gap, having six consecutive gold records in 1968 and selling more records that year than any other act, including the Beatles. The Orkustra (originally called The Electric Chamber Orchestra) was put together in the fall of 1966 by a somewhat colorful character who lived in the Haight-Ashbury district named Bobby Beausoleil, who wanted to create the first psychedelic electric symphony orchestra. The musicians had an unusual assortment of instruments that they electrified with pickups and amplifiers and played a very improvised style of music, a kind of rock/jazz/folk hybrid. Beausoleil later became involved with Charles Manson and in 1969 was sentenced to life in prison for murder, but continued to record and release music. At the top of the list for these two shows was The Sparrow, a Canadian band whose repertoire was originally influenced by the British Invasion and even used fake accents to convince the audience they were from England. When they added singer/songwriter and guitarist John Kay to the band their music took on a more bluesy rock ‘n’ roll approach and they decided to relocate to New York. After getting signed to Columbia Records and releasing two singles that failed to chart they heard about the music scene happening in California so moved there hoping to change their luck. Throughout the first six months of 1967 they traveled back and forth between Los Angeles and San Francisco playing gigs like this one wherever they could but were unable to catch their big break, so John Kay and two others left the band at the end of summer and formed Steppenwolf. Their new group would have a heavier blues rock sound and become hugely popular. Hosting this two day event with five musical acts was the California Hall, a multi-story building erected in 1912 with an auditorium on the ground floor. Most often used for fundraisers and meetings, several concerts were also held there during the 60’s in spite of it’s reputation for bad sound due to it’s lack of soundproofing and terrible acoustics.

Carlmont YMCA, San Carlos, CA July 28, 1967

Artist: Dave Caplan

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Pretty much unknown at the time of this concert was a newly formed group of young musicians called the Santana Blues Band. They had been playing gigs in and around the San Francisco area for just a few months while changing members at various times as they searched for that perfect lineup. Incredibly, for such a new band they had already played at the Fillmore the month before this then were fired the very next night for showing up late, which resulted in them getting banned from the venue for an entire year. Members of the group at the time of this show were Carlos Santana - lead guitar, David Brown - bass, Marcus Malone - percussion, Greg Rolie - keyboards and vocals, Rod Harper - drums, and Tom Fraser - rhythm guitar. During the months that followed, both Harper and Fraser would exit the band with Harper being the only one to get replaced. Also appearing on the bill for this concert was a group put together in the late 60’s known as The VIP’s. They would eventually change their name and record their own version of a nearly ten year old jazz instrumental, then become one of the more successful groups to emerge from the East Los Angeles area. The song was El Tirado. And the group’s new name was El Chicano, a band who would go on to record seven albums over the course of seven years. The show itself was held within a YMCA facility and the highlighted group was probably a local favorite named Mushroom, although an exhaustive search turned up no information on the band.

The Matrix, San Francisco, CA November 17-18-19, 1967

Artist: McLellan

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: At the dawn of the so-called 'San Francisco Sound' one of the first places people could gather to hear live music was the Matrix Club, opened up in 1965 by Marty Balin who later admitted he did it just so he could start a band and have a place to play. That band would turn out to be the Jefferson Airplane and they were basically the house band before becoming one of San Francisco's most popular groups of the era. In business from 1965 to 1971, the original Matrix was a tiny club that accommodated no more than 120 people while serving up beer and pizza in addition to the music. Strangely, because of a law that was still in effect from the early days of prohibition, dancing to live music was not allowed in San Francisco unless you were at a hotel or a venue that had a special dance permit. In April 1966, Bill Graham was actually arrested for allowing a dance at the Fillmore to take place without having a dance hall permit. So after putting on several 'illegal' shows and having the police come and bust them a few times the Matrix made sure to get one to avoid any more troubles. For six short years the club hosted many legendary or soon to be legendary bands and many of those musicians, famous or not, hung out there because of it's history and the owners respect for them. On any given evening you might see a performance from the Doors, the Grateful Dead or the Steve Miller blues band among others. A huge bonus for groups playing the Matrix was the high quality recording equipment used to capture their onstage performances. Almost every group's set was put on tape and recordings of the Great Society (Grace Slick's first band), Steppenwolf, the Velvet Underground and Santana were later released as live albums. This small poster from 1967 advertised a week of shows that kicked off with Charlie Musselwhite's blues band. Charlie, whose instrument of choice became the harmonica, supported himself in the 1950’s by digging ditches, laying concrete and running moonshine before immersing himself in Chicago’s blues music scene. After cutting his first solo Lp in 1966 he moved to San Francisco and later convinced John Lee Hooker to relocate there as well. Finishing out the week it lists two nights in a row by the Santana Blues Band, making their first ever appearance at this venue. Even at this early stage of their career they were already on the fifth different lineup as Doc Livingston had just replaced Rod Harper on drums. And in what I assume was the artist poking fun at parents worried about their children getting pulled into the dark world of drugs and devil music, it looks like Lucifer himself is promoting this five day stretch of shows. On a sign hanging over the entrance to what might be the netherworld he's offering a free pass for the entire week, although I'm not sure he's talking about a pass to the concerts... Standing ominously atop a slender peak in the distance, one of his disciples opens its wings in anticipation of your arrival while a pterodactyl flies slowly overhead. This is definitely one of several pieces from the early Santana days that uses bizarre or unusual artwork to promote a show.

Straight Theatre, San Francisco, CA December 1-2-3, 1967

Artist: Chris Braga

Reference: STGH 74

Dick Dixon: Originally called the Haight Theater when it opened in 1910, it operated for decades as a popular movie theater. When it changed hands in 1964 the new owners decided to turn it into a gay experimental theater, with explicit paintings on the walls and drag shows after the movie. The public was outraged and demanded it be closed. It lasted about a month until the owners ran off overnight leaving behind their home, a warrant for their arrest and a series of unpaid bills. They supposedly fled San Francisco in a new convertible with two female impersonators in the backseat, or so the story goes. The theater remained vacant for a couple years until a group of local artists took ownership of it and reopened it as a concert hall in August 1967. Because of the previous controversy surrounding it they decided to rename it the Straight Theater, and jokingly advertised on it's marquee that "The Haight is Straight!" It still showed movies but they explored other areas of entertainment too. In it's first three weeks the Straight hosted a poetry reading, a play, and a Grateful Dead concert. Happy to have another venue in town, many of the local Bay Area bands would play there including: Sons of Champlin, Peter, Paul and Mary, Charlie Musselwhite, Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks, Clover, It's A Beautiful Day, Blue Cheer, Little Richard and the Santana Blues Band. It closed down in the summer of 1969 after only three years, the owners claiming that the increased presence of hard drugs and crime in the surrounding area had ruined the scene. This handbill was created by Chris Braga, another one of those 60s poster artists about whom very little info exists. I've only seen one other handbill by him, which also advertised a concert here three months earlier. The design is Braga's modern interpretation of the Alice in Wonderland cat smoking a hookah. The headlining act Mad River would release two albums before breaking up in 1969.

Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, CA April 19-20-21, 1968

Artist: Steve Catron

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Posters and handbills done by Steve Catron are not seen that often simply because he didn't do that many of them. According to the memories of those who knew him, he pretty much kept to himself most of the time and was very secretive about his work. Described as being obsessive, he usually refused to show his art to anyone and always said he had destroyed it to avoid letting them see it. Then sometimes on a rare occasion and if the mood struck him, he would give them a glimpse of what he was working on. While in San Francisco, he made his living retouching photos and only designed a few posters in his spare time before returning to his hometown of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Carousel Ballroom itself was originally a swing-era dance palace in its early days. But in 1968 the cream of San Francisco rock, Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead, became partners for a short time to operate the ballroom for some weekend concerts. This put them in direct competition with Bill Graham's Fillmore Auditorium and Chet Helms' Avalon Ballroom. However, the Carousel was considered the best all around place in San Francisco for rock groups to play at because it had good sound everywhere, plenty of space to sit and listen, and enough room to dance. The main attraction on this night was Erma Franklin, a gospel/soul singer and the older sister of Aretha Franklin. A great vocal talent, she never attained the fame of her younger sister but did achieve success in her own right. Perhaps her best known song was "Piece Of My Heart", recorded in 1967, which became a top 10 hit and also earned her a Grammy nomination. A cover version of that song was recorded the following year and became a much bigger hit for Big Brother and the Holding Company, with a singer by the name of Janis Joplin. After just six months of putting on shows, the Dead and the Airplane decided that playing concerts was a lot more fun than promoting them, so gave up their lease on the building. At the same time, Bill Graham thought this would be a much better venue than where he was at so would close down his existing Fillmore Auditorium and move into the larger Carousel during the first week of July, renaming it the Fillmore West.

Avalon Ballroom, San Francisco, CA May 17-18-19, 1968

Artist: William Henry

Reference: FD 119

Dick Dixon: A very colorful poster during the time the band was still paying its dues. The focal point of the design is an elaborately decorated roulette wheel with numbers running around and through it along with question marks and light bulbs filIing out the space on each side of the venue name. The three dimensional lettering that was used here does stand out but also becomes difficult to read especially when looking at the May 17, 18, 19 show dates in the top corners. The artist is William Henry, who was just a high school student when he did this elaborate piece for the Avalon Ballroom and the poster is one of the very few in the Family Dog series that doesn't have the Family Dog logo on it, which was standard practice at the time. When he was asked about why the logo was missing William simply explained that he had lost his copy so couldn’t include it. Blues harmonica player Junior Wells and the jazz-based Sons of Champlin were the featured musicians of the night.

Spring Medicine Show. A Benefit For The Haight-Ashbury Free Medical Clinic. Avalon Ballroom, San Francisco, CA May 29, 1968

Artist: San Andreas Fault (Tad Hunter)

Reference: FD-680528-OHB-A

Dick Dixon: No discussion involving the 60’s in San Francisco can take place without mentioning Chet Helms, an important figure that heavily influenced the people, ideas and events of that time. His production company, called the Family Dog, evolved from small gatherings of local musicians and artists into promoting sold out concert halls spawning some of music’s most legendary bands. He even recruited Janice Joplin to join Big Brother and the Holding Company, a band he also managed. For a short time he had an informal arrangement with Bill Graham where they took turns producing shows on different nights at the original Fillmore Auditorium - until Graham privately took over the lease on the building without telling him. Calling this act a breach of honor, Helms broke away from Graham and leased a former dance hall just a mile away, renaming it the Avalon Ballroom. The following year Dr. David Smith founded the Haight Ashbury Free Clinic, a short distance from both venues and the first free medical clinic in the United States. The staff was entirely volunteer with a mix of sympathetic doctors, nurses and students from the local medical and pharmacy schools. It opened in June 1967 to a line of people stretching down the block and the staff worked well into the night treating 250 people. The next day they treated 350 more. But keeping the clinic going was a struggle. Money for rent and supplies was in short supply and police officers would frequently show up to search the rooms, looking for illegal drugs and underage runaways. “Soon after we opened we hadn’t received the funding we’d been told was forthcoming and after three weeks of operation we were already $700 in debt” said Smith. “Bill Graham came to see me and we had a philosophical discussion about the counterculture and social responsibility and he said he’d organize a series of concerts to save our clinic.” But running a free clinic continued to cost alot and each time money got tight different promoters and venues would assist by holding benefit concerts, helping it stay afloat financially. Over the years there would be several of these concerts and this was just one of many. It took place at the Avalon Ballroom during the middle of the week and most bands were given just 45 minutes to play their sets. Some notes about a few of the groups that appeared during the two night event begin with first night openers Crystal Syphon, who were originally a Beatles/Byrds sounding band before shifting their music into the more psychedelic type (as most bands were doing) and becoming a common sight at ballrooms and festivals until 1970. The Loading Zone occasionally headlined but were better known as a supporting act. In spite of having great live shows their self-titled debut album was poorly received and got little support from radio, causing them to split in 1969. Lead vocalist Linda Tillery would later appear on Santana’s third album, adding background vocals. Opening up the second night of the benefit was Allmen Joy, another psychedelic rock outfit with drummer Rod Harper, who played with them after leaving the Santana Blues Band the previous year. Their name is often confused with the Allman Joys, a band led by Greg and Duane Allman before they formed the Allman Brothers. One group that showed real potential was the Linn County Band. They had migrated from Iowa to San Francisco and were becoming more recognized after touring with musicians like Albert King, Ten Years After and Led Zeppelin. They released three blues-based albums over the course of their career but broke up when one member left to join Janis Joplin’s Full Tilt Boogie Band and another joined Elvin Bishop. Lastly, out of the twelve bands performing only one would continue making music throughout the next six decades - Santana. Already a hard working band (they would play 88 shows this year) their constant exposure and growing popularity around the Bay Area would pay off in December when they became the first band to headline the Fillmore West without having a record or record contract.

Matrix Benefit. Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, CA June 16, 1968

Artist: Aubrey Beardsley

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This benefit show raising money for the Matrix Club was a chance for people to attend one of the last scheduled concerts to be held at the original Fillmore Auditorium. Just three weeks later it would move to a new location with more space and get a new name as well, the Fillmore West. It was also a chance for someone hoping to play here one last time before it closed. With his year-long ban from the venue almost completed Carlos was anxious to get back into Bill Graham’s good graces so he sent Stan Marcum to talk with Bill, assuring him they wouldn’t show up late for any more gigs in the future. In the meantime the group had undergone some member changes and were adding more songs to their existing setlist. It was at this point a decision was made to completely drop Blues Band from their name in favor of just Santana, a change that wouldn’t be fully recognized until the release of their first album. In addition to Santana four other bands donated their music to the cause: Dan Hicks (and His Hot Licks) playing a mix of folk, jazz and swing; Sandy Bull whose musical style covered Brazilian tunes along with a little bit of Chuck Berry; the Steve Miller Band (which included Boz Scaggs at the time) with their blues rock sound; and Big Brother and the Holding Company whose performance a year earlier at the Monterey Pop Festival brought them national attention. Their second album ‘Cheap Thrills’ would shoot up the chart to #1 a few months after tonight’s concert but Janis Joplin would quit the band in December to start her solo career. The poster image has an interesting history, it dates all the way back to 1894 when a young artist named Aubrey Beardsley originally drew it. He had developed a reputation as one of the most controversial artists of his time because his drawings were not only visions of elegance but they also hinted at the erotic, a subject the Victorian audience considered taboo and did not acknowledge publicly. In spite of this, or maybe because of it, Beardsley was chosen as the person to illustrate Oscar Wilde's book Salomé, whose title character was portrayed as a temptress. A total of 18 drawings were done (this was one of the milder ones) and many of those were condemned as obscene due to his depictions of femme fatales, phallic candles and blood drinking flowers. In this image Salomé looks flirtatiously over her shoulder while standing next to a burning candle, it’s flame keeping three butterfly-type creatures at a safe distance. The character kneeling at her feet is Eros, the Greek god of love. Although normally presented as a man, Beardsley chose to draw Eros as a masked woman whose body is half beast with wings, horns and exposed breasts. Both women find themselves engulfed by the roses swirling around them that seem to spill forth from Salome’s untethered hair (Victorian women usually wore their hair up), which is meant to be seen as symbolic of her disregard for the boundary between proper and improper female behavior. Beardsley passed away at the age of 25 but his work has continued to be appreciated over the years not just by other artists but also by the Beatles, who included his face among those on the cover of their Sgt. Pepper album.

Berryessa Bowl, Lake Berryessa, CA July 20, 1968

Artist: Vince Green

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A year after 1967’s Summer of Love, when hundreds of American youth descended on San Francisco to join a cultural revolution, a somewhat out of the way spot for concerts opened up about two hours north of the city at Lake Berryessa. Located in Napa county it was man-made lake created for the purpose of water management and in early 1968 the owners of the land alongside it were approached by an unknown promotion group that wanted to bring in big name entertainers for concerts at the picturesque site. They would need a place to perform so the owners agreed to build what became an outdoor music venue known as the Berryessa Bowl. After tons of concrete were poured and an advertising campaign sponsored by Pepsi, the first concert soon happened. In an attempt to lure as many people as possible the advertisements also stated they were giving away hit records and the first 50 girls would get in free! The Grand Opening was a successful two day event held over the weekend of May 30 & 31, 1968 and the bands playing were Overbrook Express, Transmatic Experience, H.P. Lovecraft, and The Mojo all for the price of $2.50. Years later an article written in the Lake Berryessa News reminiscing about that very first event caused a reader to write the following response in 2020: “I saw your webpage writeup about the Berryessa Bowl. My band, the Overbrook Express, shown on the opening weekend poster on your page played there and I wanted to add a comment. You stated that Santana played there on July 20th. They also filled in on our second night there, May 31st, for who I don’t know - but someone cancelled that night and they substituted. They were called the Santana Blues Band then. I remember them well because Carlos Santana offered me 500 hits of acid if I would trade my Gibson guitar to him... I passed on the offer. Anyway, thought you might want to know they played on our second night there. Cheers, Rich Irwin.” An interesting bit of info unknown to Santana fans until this statement. Just three weeks after those first concerts Overbrook Express opened for Santana as seen on this July 20th show poster that has a mysterious dark-haired woman standing under a crescent moon and two misspellings, the second one being the absent ‘m’ in the Sons of Champlin name at the bottom. One of the unique aspects of the late 60’s early 70’s concert experience was the light show, created by mixing multi colored dyes with oil and water on glass slides, then placing them over heat lamps and projecting the effects onto a screen or wall behind the stage. One of the major players during that time was Little Princess 109, a nine man group who became the resident light show for Bill Graham during the entire Fillmore/Fillmore West/Winterland period. They also handled light show duties for this concert and their memories of working with Santana back in the day were positve: “Little Princess 109 had the privilege of lighting up the great Santana band at ten shows over the years for a total of 16 nights, the earliest date being July 20, 1968 at the Berryessa Bowl (one of the guys even created this poster). Of the dozens of notable acts we worked with in our career we did more shows with Santana than with any other performer. It's hard to think of another musical act that could better inspire us to pull out all the stops, to reach for the heights of brilliant color, rhythm and ebullient exciting imagery. Santana was just about the perfect band to do a light show for.” Several concerts were held at the venue throughout that summer with another one listed in May of the following year, but instead of being remembered for it’s many shows Lake Berryessa’s name would become more associated with the Zodiac Killer and his attack on a young couple there in late 1969.

Stanford Summer Rock. Frost Amphitheatre, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA July 28, 1968

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Even though it's not colorful or flashy, this handbill promoted a pretty big event that happened in the small California town of Palo Alto. Stanford University had always been careful about using the chosen venue, Frost Amphitheatre, for too many events and for most of the 1960's they limited concerts to weekend afternoons only. It was a beautiful open air venue dug out of an artificially constructed hill and able to fit 6,900 people inside it's grassy, terraced bowl. It's size actually made it too large for most concerts and since the University had no financial motive to attract any big shows, smaller concerts were done at other locations around the campus. And when the fall of '66 passed there would be almost no concerts of any size held at Stanford for the next year and a half. But by 1968 loud rock and roll became more mainstream and young people up and down the Peninsula wanted to see bands full of long-haired guitarists playing their own music. Palo Alto's downtown started to open shops selling lava lamps and posters and the University began letting small concerts happen on campus again, but avoided rock shows at the Frost. Then for whatever reasons, in the summer of '68 they decided to allow this big outdoor event to be held on a Sunday afternoon when college was not in session. A week before the show advertisements started appearing and one thing you could count on about concerts occuring at the Frost was that the multiple ads, posters and handbills always had varying degrees of accuracy. Depending on which one you looked at there would be bands listed that would not be playing, misspelled band names or totally missing names altogether. Expecting a big crowd to show up, the July 19th issue of the Stanford Daily newspaper ran an ad for help titled "Student Police Needed for Folk-Rock Festival at Frost 12-7pm $1.50/hr".

Featured performer the Chambers Brothers had been discovered a few years earlier by an up and coming new producer named David Rubinson who, with the help of Clive Davis, bought their contract from a smaller record label and signed them to Columbia Records. They continued to tour relentlessly and built up a big following around the country while becoming Fillmore headliners. Their hard work paid off two months after this show when they had a successful hit single with “Time Has Come Today", a rock-soul-psychedelic freakout that got heavy radio play all over the country. Interestingly, shortly after signing them to his label and hearing it played at a show Clive Davis had adamantly refused to let them record this song because it was "too profound of a statement for four black guys to be saying to the world". But Rubinson so believed in it that he snuck the band into the studio early one morning and told them they had to record it live in just one take and leave the rest to him. According to Willie Chambers "Clive Davis didn't find out about it until it had been mixed, prepped and released. When he found out, he fired everybody he could. He fired our producer, I think he fired the guy that opened the door for us. He fired everybody that got involved with recording that song."

Quicksilver Messenger Service was always locally popular, and their first album on Capitol had only been out for a few months. While their style of music was an unusual mix of classical, jazz and folk they favored using dual guitars to extend songs into free form jams during their gigs. Considered tougher sounding than the Grateful Dead and looser than the Jefferson Airplane they never managed to achieve the popularity of either band, and in spite of getting a hit song with "Fresh Air" in 1970 they faded away after 1975. As it happened, the day of this show they arrived late so actually came on last after the Chambers Brothers.

Creedence Clearwater Revival Band (mistakenly spelled Credence on this handbill) had been performing together for several years with their music being described as everything from swamp rock to country. Their first single “Suzie Q” was starting to get noticed and their debut album was out but an advance tape had already been played for months on local radio. They performed most of it during their set along with several songs from what would become their second album including 'Proud Mary', which became a major hit for the band and was later covered by many other artists including Ike and Tina Turner. It was the beginning of a great but too short career for the band that went on to chalk up some little known achievements: Creedence holds the record for the most singles (five) to reach #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 without ever scoring a number 1 single, as well as the most singles to reach the top 10 (nine) without ever hitting #1. In both 1969 and 1970, Creedence Clearwater Revival outsold The Beatles to become the biggest selling rock and roll band in the world.

The Sons of Champlin were a Marin County band and very successful on the teen dance circuit, playing tight rhythm and blues with Beatles-like harmonies. Unlike many other local rock bands the Sons were all superb musicians who could each play multiple instruments and had a lead singer (Bill Champlin) who aspired to sing like James Brown or Lou Rawls in addition to playing keyboards. The band did have local recognition, but were still several months away from recording their first album (also on Capitol), which would not be released until the Spring of 1969.

Santana, or the Santana Blues Band which was the name they were most often known by, had a good following around San Francisco but were pretty much unknown in the South Bay area. In fact they were so unfamiliar that an ad published in the Stanford Daily paper listed them as the Satan Blues Band. Organist and singer Gregg Rolie was considered a local boy from Palo Alto, having attended high school there a few years earlier. He had also been part of a popular South Bay band called William Penn and His Pals, who were a knock-off of the very popular Paul Revere and The Raiders. He had quit that group to move to the big city and ended up forming a band with this young guitarist from the Mission, so it must have been a kick to come back and play Stanford's huge amphitheatre. A year later and shortly after appearing at Woodstock the band's first album was released and would spend over two years on the Billboard charts, jumpstarting their transformation from an unknown into superstardom.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA July 30-31-Aug 1, 1968

Artist: Lee Conklin

Reference: BG 131

Dick Dixon: Not often remembered is the fact that Bill Graham originally started giving away posters to the first 100 or so people that left his Fillmore concerts every night just because he wanted them out of the venue so cleanup could begin. This is one of those many giveaways, a clever poster by Lee Conklin showing a visual illusion a lot of us did as kids. When the forefingers of each hand are held horizontally about a foot in front of the eyes, with the fingertips touching and your gaze focused just above them on a point in the distance, slowly pull your fingers apart and you'll see the famous 'floating finger' effect. Working in a design that was a departure from his usual style, Conklin's puffy lettering was meant to hide in plain sight the band names and concert dates within the clouds, then camouflage even more names and information in the landscape. The interlocking fingers and those staring eyeballs may come from the artist's mission "to translate my psychedelic experience onto paper" as he once described his artwork. The big name for the first three nights, the Butterfield Blues Band, had already released four Lp's by this date and their album 'East/West' has long been credited as the first psychedelic album to come from a blues band as well as one of the most influential blues albums of all time. They would be one of the many groups to appear at the Woodstock Festival a year later even though their performance did not make it into the movie. Also on the bill was a rather unusual band called The Hello People, who dressed in white face paint onstage and then performed wordless mime routines between sets. Although never making it big they still released seven albums throughout the 60s and 70s.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA August 27-28-29, 1968

Artist: Lee Conklin

Reference: BG 134

Dick Dixon: Although artist Lee Conklin has been creating poster art for over 50 years, he may be most known for the image used on the cover of Santana's first album. What many people don't realize is that the album cover was actually the second time he'd drawn that image, and it was slightly different from the first one which had been done a year earlier. Here we see that original drawing, done for a Fillmore West poster advertising a pair of 1968 shows. The first three nights were headlined by Steppenwolf, with Santana as the opening act, followed by three nights of the Grateful Dead and guests. Curious about what his inspiration might have been I contacted him in 1994 to ask. He explained that he had been on the hunt for an image to use so had purchased a book of animal pictures. While turning the pages he let his mind become playful and tried to see each image as what it might be, not what it was. He finally settled on the lion, seeing many artistic opportunities within its face. Asked if any substances might have been involved to 'help the process' Lee chuckled and admitted that yes, there had been some of that too. Although Bill Graham preferred color posters to advertise his concerts, he found this image so powerful he decided to go with Lee's black and white version this time. It was shortly after these concerts that Lee got a visit from Carlos and David Brown, who both told him they wanted to use the picture for the first Lp, so he redrew it and changed it just slightly. He added more detail to the faces, figures and surrounding area and even found room to add an extra face into the design. This is one of the most recognizable poster images of the psychedelic era, and it's been legitimately printed/reprinted a total of five times so far, with some included variations that determine which print run it belongs to.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA September 12-13-14, 1968

Artist: Rick Griffin

Reference: BG 136

Dick Dixon: Rick Griffin’s name may not be familiar but almost every music lover has seen an example of his art or at least a variation of it - he created the original logo for Rolling Stone magazine in 1967. It was used for the next eight years and then updated with some slight changes when the magazine underwent the first of its many facelifts. When he wasn’t spending time surfing he was usually drawing, and shortly before his poster making skills were recognized he participated in one of the legendary parties hosted by writer Ken Kesey (author of One Flew Over The Cuckoo‘s Nest) aptly nicknamed the ‘Acid Tests’. At the time LSD was legal and the use of psychedelics or mind expanding drugs was very common in both artistic and musical experimenting. As anyone who’s used it knows, LSD can lead to a very creative mindset, and Griffin would soon put it to use in his art. Coincidentally, one of the first posters he made was for the Human Be-In, an event held in Golden Gate Park protesting a law that had recently banned the use of that very drug. The event was a success and his unique style of lettering brought him some well deserved attention which led to a steady stream of work for the young artist. He was hired to create dozens of posters for the Family Dog and Fillmore venues while the Haight-Ashbury scene slowly developed into the Summer of Love, bringing hundreds of hippies to San Francisco. He became interested in spirituality and mystical symbolism and studied numerous books on the subjects, referring to them for inspiration but always finding his own way to express it. A good example is the art he used to promote this three night show from 1968 which is one of his most well known pieces and is often showcased in vintage concert poster exhibits. It features an arm thrusting from the center of heart while holding a flaming torch in it’s fist. For centuries the heart has universally represented love while the flaming torch can have several meanings, such as a symbol of knowledge or truth. So it’s possible that one could interpret this image as the age-old clash between heart and mind as the heart (which is driven by emotion and desire) often pulls us in one direction while the mind (guided by logic and reasoning) urges us to follow a different path. His lettering style here is so elaborate it’s almost unreadable at the top as it emerges from the lick of a single flame then trickles down, becoming a ribbon that reveals the rest of the band’s name. Santana is a bit easier to decipher but the Chicago Transit Authority almost gets lost in the banner below it. Later shortening their name to CTA before finally changing it to just Chicago, they could play a powerful mix of free-form rock one minute then veer into some deeply rooted jazz highlighted by horns the next. They shared vocal duties between three lead singers on many songs and in an unusual twist their debut album would become a two record set rather than a single, overseen by Clive Davis. Most often thought of as the band whose hits were mainly love songs, you only have to hear their superb cover of “I’m A Man” to know they could throw down with the best of them.

Climax Of The Autumnal Equinox. Selland Arena, Fresno, CA November 3, 1968

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: 1968 was a very busy one for the band. They were playing multiple shows every month, sometimes two or three nights in a row at the same venue. The majority of their time was spent in and around the Bay Area but they did venture out to Nevada and Washington for two of the gigs. Interestingly, their advertised name would switch between Santana Blues Band, Santana and Santana Blues throughout the year, sometimes happening in different ads for the same show. Occasionally they were the headliner, but more often than not they were a supporting act. That was the case here when Joe McDonald's band was the star of the show. Country Joe and the Fish were one of the most popular of the San Francisco bands at the time and were also among the first acts to use a light show during concerts as well as self-producing records to promote themselves. Originally more of a folk music band they soon went electric and by this point they had already released two recordings, broken up, then got back together with a new lineup. The band name was a compromise proposed by the group's manager. The first part was a reference to Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin whose nickname was "Country Joe" and was regarded by many as heroic for being Nazi Germany's greatest nemesis at a time when the governments of England, France, and the United States were wondering what to do about German militarism and the prospects of war. He then quoted Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong's metaphor about a revolutionary who resembled 'the fish who swims in the sea of the people.' In a similiar spirit, Country Joe McDonald was one of the very few musicians on the San Francisco scene who'd served in uniform but he also may have written the most blatantly anti-war, anti-military song to come out of the '60s. That song became the one they're most known for, "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag", and a memorable live performance of it would eventually be included in the Woodstock movie.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA December 19-20-21-22, 1968

Artist: Wes Wilson

Reference: BG 150

Dick Dixon: Wes Wilson's (R.I.P.) one and only poster for a Santana concert. Rumor has it that he and Bill Graham had a falling out over the prices being paid to artists to produce concert posters so he only made one more for a Bill after this. The image represents two faces opposing each other with the words above their heads reading: "this house divided is against itself", perhaps a reference to the disagreement between the two. The Grass Roots started out as a project of two songwriters trying to cash in on the folk rock movement of 1965/66. The writers recorded a song and sent it out as a demo to several radio stations in the San Francisco area. When some interest was shown in this "new band" the songwriters had to go out and search for a group that could actually become this band, record their material and promote it with live shows. They found a Bay Area band who wanted to do it and it worked for a few months until the members became frustrated with not being able to play their own music, so the partnership broke up. After some more searching an L.A. band was found that was willing to change their name, and with the help of the songwriters and producers they developed a unique sound playing a mix of blue-eyed soul and big brassy rock. They would eventually rack up a total of 21 singles on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 chart.

Rainbow Ballroom, Fresno, CA December 30, 1968

Artist: Tusan and Russo Studio

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Very interesting imagery on this one, the more you look at it the more things you will discover. The nesting women waiting to be fed, the human-animal hybrid in the background, the odd man with severed legs and the head of a bird. The artists may have been inspired by century old paintings depicting something called Theriocephaly, which refers to a human with the head of an animal. Many mythological creatures and characters in some of our oldest stories are endowed/afflicted with this condition. Christian, Greek, Hindu and Native American folklore all have variations on this in their histories. But surpassing them all are the characters in Egyptian mythology, where almost all of the gods and goddesses have animal heads. While in Native American history, stories have been passed down through the generations of shapeshifting, or skinwalking, a practice sometimes used by medicine people and Shaman to transform into part animal for the purpose of healing and protecting their communities.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA February 13-14-15-16, 1969

Artist: Greg Irons

Reference: BG 160

Dick Dixon: Happening even more frequently in 1969, particularly in San Francisco and areas of Northern California, Santana would often be the main act over other groups who already had albums or hit singles out. This poster by Greg Irons pictures one of the earliest Santana Band lineups consisting of (L to R) Carlos Santana, Marcus Malone, Doc Livingston, Greg Rolie and David Brown. The art work shows us a hand drawn urban street scene, done in a cutaway fashion that exposes a subway tunnel just below the street's surface and a partial glimpse into an apartment building above. On the surface itself is a narrow street jammed with bumper to bumper traffic and a crowd of people filing into an entrance at the base of the building. In two different rooms above, one man washes the sweat from his body while in the adjacent apartment a man's head is enveloped in smoke that rises through the rooftop combining with more smoke, steam and sounds from the sweltering city below and forming a cloud in which the picture of the band appears. The colors of this drawing start out in red and graduate upward into orange then yellow, similar to a burning flame. The drawing and colors chosen by the artist are very appropriate when interpreted along with Santana's music: Music from the streets, a tension-filled rhythmic pounding that escalates into a burning fusion of sights, sounds and smells that lift you above the hectic every day troubles of life (listen to "Savor" and "Jingo" from their debut Lp). A Canadian band by the name of The Collectors opened the show. They had two released Lp’s under their belt, musically combining psychedelic rock, Gregorian chants and jazz licks. The albums had done quite well in their home country but didn’t get much attention in the USA, although their live shows did attract a respectable amount of people when playing along the California coast. Folk rock singer Melanie first found chart success in 1969 with "Bobo's Party" which reached #1 in France, and her popularity in Europe resulted in performances on European television programs, such as Beat-Club in West Germany. Interestingly, she would soon be one of only three solo women who performed at Woodstock and later said the inspiration for her first hit song, "Lay Down” arose from the Woodstock audience lighting what appeared to be candles during her set. The recording became a hit in Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States in 1970. She then had her biggest #1 hit with 1972’s "Brand New Key” which sold over three million copies worldwide, and was also honored with Billboard's Number 1 Top Female Vocalist Award that same year.

Avalon Ballroom, San Francisco, CA March 21-22-23, 1969

Artist: Robert Fried

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This rare piece advertised three nights of shows to be held at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco. Soundproof Productions, who promoted the event, was the first company to produce concerts at this venue after the departure of the legendary Family Dog who had hosted events there from 1966-1968. Compared to a lot of the poster artwork of the time this one was easily readable while being visually interesting. The dark blue skies of outer space speckled with stars and planets serve as the backdrop to the circular 'world' of water out of which a guitar playing lion emerges on a surfboard. Coincidentally, this was the second time a lion's image was used in the advertising of a Santana concert. At the bottom of the poster a blazing yellow orange sun has set fire to all the words above it, the intense heat literally sending pieces of flame upwards until they join together to spell out the Santana name. Artist Bob Fried, who was a friend of both LSD guru Timothy Leary and poet Allen Ginsberg, had been trained as a commercial artist but found himself more drawn to and inspired by the late 60s art scene happening in the Bay Area. He soon began to experiment and create his own artwork and would often get commissioned by various promoters to do special concert posters such as this one. He was actually one of the first artists to use a printing press to communicate his visions and ideas instead of painting and collaging them first. The following quote is excerpted from an interview with Fried about his posters before his death in 1975: "I wanted to keep them simple and I wanted them to have entrances and passages. I wanted my posters to convey feelings of dimensional space like what you feel when you trip on acid, passing from one reality into another. I wanted people to feel in my posters the sense of discovery I myself was feeling."

Rockarama!!! 5 Days Of Music At The Avalon Ballroom. Avalon Ballroom, San Francisco, CA March 26, 1969

Artist: Gilbert Shelton

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Featuring some of the most popular groups in the Bay Area, this is a fun poster by underground cartoonist Gilbert Shelton. Realizing concert posters had become a major part of the music scene Gilbert and a few artist friends were eager to both design and print them so bought a printing press, rented a building to work out of and started a company called the Rip Off Press. But they soon discovered that trying to print those complex, multicolored posters required a technical mastery that none of them had and wound up wasting a lot of paper and ink during the process. Comic books were much easier to produce and by changing their focus they eventually found fame by publishing a series of comics called the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers. This concert poster is one of the very few they made before switching formats. Santana, who had been the featured act at this venue just three days earlier, also headlined the very first day of this event and sitting behind the drums was newest member Johnny Rae, who had recently replaced Doc Livingston but would only play a few gigs until Michael Shrieve was invited to take his place. Having a somewhat limited amount of songs in their repertoire at this point they no doubt were stretching them out with some longer versions, allowing each member to solo and show off their skills. Among the other bands that first night was Lamb, a male/female duo who would attract Bill Graham’s attention when they opened for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young at his Winterland venue several months later. It was enough to convince him to become their manager and to include them in his Fillmore: The Last Days album and dvd releases. Also appearing was a group called the Anonymous Artists of America who frequently opened for the Grateful Dead and weren’t considered very good, but their act involved costumes and a topless bassist. Their music consisted of spontaneous improvisations mixed with strobe lights and film projections that sometimes went on for hours, turning the show into a multi-sensory immersive experience. The second night featured the Cleveland Wrecking Company whose members came from jazz, flamenco and R&B backgrounds. They were local favorites who gigged at every stage in the area and almost recorded an album, but a proposed deal with Vanguard Records fell through when their manager disappeared with the album‘s advance money, supposedly making a trip to Mexico to buy a kilo of pot. Out of the the 24 acts playing at this event only one group besides Santana would still be recording and performing on the road six decades later. Originating in Phoenix, Arizona and winning a 1964 high school talent show as the Earwigs they soon changed their name, becoming The Spiders for a few years before renaming themselves Nazz and moving to Los Angeles in late 1967. After finding out Todd Rundgren had a group called Nazz they realized they would need yet another name change and a gimmick to stand out and succeed, so singer Vincent Furnier chose a name he thought sounded wholesome, and a look based on movie characters like the female villian in Barbarella. Their debut album would be released in June and the band’s permanent name was now Alice Cooper.

Las Lomas High School, Walnut Creek, CA April 1, 1969

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Another relic from the early years when the band was still playing in high school gymnasiums and you could see them for just a few dollars. Sometimes you could even catch a movie as part of the night‘s entertainment. I’ve written about It’s A Beautiful Day’s appearance at the Spring Flush concert a month from now and the opening act here was Sky Blue, a local Berkeley trio who made the roughly 40 minute trip to Walnut Creek for this concert. Although I didn’t find any info about this particular show I did come across an article about a gig Carlos and the band played a few weeks earlier which took place in yet another high school gym. The writer of the article talks about it happening after this show in Walnut Creek, but memories can sometimes be mistaken 40+ years after the fact.

The following article is from the Sonoma Index-Tribune May 6, 2021. Music Writer: Tim Curley

On Saturday, Aug. 16, 1969, San Francisco-based band Santana played the Woodstock Rock Festival. Two weeks later, their first album, simply called Santana, was released. About three months later, with their single "Jingo" climbing the charts and "Evil Ways" about to be released, Santana performed at this writer's Winter Prom at Washington High School in Fremont, California. They unloaded their gear into the old 'Hoosiers'-like gymnasium, and the place was never the same. Social studies teacher Mark Mattingly, now 78, was one of the chaperones that night. "There were joints being passed around, drinking going on, sex in the bleachers," Mattingly recounted via a phone call from his home in Fremont, all factors that kept him busy that night. Rest assured this writer, although in attendance, knew nothing about such goings on. The action on the stage kept Mattingly busy, too. They were to stop at 11 p.m., but didn’t. They were told again to stop. They didn’t. Eventually, Mattingly dramatically cut the power to the stage. Carlos and the boys just grabbed all the percussion instruments they had and kept playing. "They kept going and going and going," Mattingly said.

The Rose Palace, Pasadena, CA April 11-12, 1969

Artist: W. Painter

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: At this point the Santana band had been signed to Columbia Records several months earlier and were rehearsing new songs in preparation for the upcoming album. Travelling to Pasadena was the first time they had played this far down the coast where they wouldn’t have much name recognition, so they‘d have to be content with playing in the second or third spot on their next few trips through Southern California. On the night of this gig the reputation of headliner Procol Harum, who's name roughly translated from latin means 'beyond these things', was already bolstered by the release of two Lp's and having a popular song that had risen to number one in ten countries with "A Whiter Shade of Pale" (which Santana would eventually cover in 2021). Unfortunately they would never again attain the same popularity and throughout the rest of their career they tried in vain to recreate similiar magic, but the song that brought them fame had also burdened them with a legend they couldn't live up to.

Spring Flush. Edmundson Pavilion, University Of Washington, Seattle, WA May 3, 1969

Artist: Franz Xavier Leyendecker (original art)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: It was their last live show before recording of the first album began and the Santana Blues Band headlined a fourteen hour happening called the Spring Flush, which took place at the University of Washington in Seattle. Included in the price of admission was a huge light show that continued throughout the duration of the event, a ten ride circus carnival and a promised attempt to turn the venue into a 'far-out environment'. With all this and a roster of eight musical acts, who could ask for anything more? Santana probably played most of what would end up on that first album along with a few instrumental jams they liked to do, knowing they'd have to keep all the songs short and sweet once they were in the studio. Among the other groups playing were It's A Beautiful Day, a San Francisco band using an electric violin as the lead instrument rather than guitar and creating a sound that set it apart from other bands. Remembered mostly for their song 'White Bird' even though it never became a top 40 hit, they came close appearing at the Woodstock festival later that year. Band leader David Laflamme explained what happened in an interview with a Utah newspaper: "Michael Lang and I had known each other long before the festival and had a verbal agreement. He had approached me about playing at the festival and I told him if he could pull it together, we would play. Michael promised us a slot and we got ourselves to Woodstock, but at that particular time Bill Graham was managing Santana and he wanted Santana to play. So the two of them agreed to flip a coin and as fate would have it, Graham won." Also on the bill was a band from Los Angeles who'd been around since 1966 and had the unusual name of Peanut Butter Conspiracy. With melodies rooted in both psychedelia and pop, they were combining music trends of the time and already had some minor success with a couple of albums. On a side note, adding guitar parts to a few songs on their first Lp had been a young session musician named Glen Campbell, who was already on the path to superstardom. Unfortunately, as the novelty of their name wore off the Peanut Butter Conspiracy garnered less and less attention and eventually disbanded in 1970. The fairy-type image used on this poster was actually taken from an original painting created back in the early 1920's by artist Franz Xavier Leyendecker and had once graced the cover of Life magazine. Franz was born in Germany and for a time had studied art at the Académie Julian in France. By the time of his death in 1924 he was suffering from depression and poor health due to his ongoing drug addiction and it's thought that he committed suicide by morphine overdose.

The misspelling of the word Beautiful on the poster was corrected for the newspaper ad, but they neglected to capitalize all the letters to match. They also made some changes to the wording below the image and used bigger, bold lettering.

Pacific Pop Festival. Pacific Memorial Stadium, Stockton, CA May 10, 1969

Artist: Carson Morris Studios

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Without the help of an outside promoter the University of the Pacific presented this one day festival in Stockton, California. Built in 1950 the Pacific Memorial Stadium was an outdoor venue that could easily seat 28,000 people. The day before the festival an article appeared in the Pacifican newspaper reprinted here in its entirety: “On Saturday May 10th, at 12 noon at the Pacific Memorial Stadium, the Pacific Pop Festival will be presented for the benefit of the Minority Scholarship Fund. This is the first time that an event of this magnitude has occurred at Pacific. The festival will have a picnic type atmosphere and all students are urged to bring food, blankets and whatever else you need to have a good time. Everyone will be permitted to sit on the grass in the stadium. All profits from the Pacific Pop Festival will go to the fund raising campaign for minority students in the fall of 1969. Six outstanding groups will be featured, all of which have played at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. The groups are Santana, Cold Blood, Sons of Champlin, Elvin Bishop, Country Weather, and Sanpaku. Ralph Gleason, music critic of the San Francisco Chronicle said this about Santana. “They feature a wild conga drummer and an exciting guitarist, Carlos Santana, and this is one of the most impressive of the young new groups.” They have a loud, racially mixed, hard rhythm sound and just drive the beat through you. Santana is one of the hottest groups in California and next week will headline at Fillmore West. Cold Blood, in the short time since they got together (May 1968) have achieved wide recognition. Their rapid success is due to the tight sound created by them. A big, powerful rhythm and blues band featuring outstanding musicianship and the exciting voice of Linda Pence. This combination produces a musical, visual experience which has been well received by audiences at Fillmore West and at Whiskey A Go Go. Sons of Champlin have been around a long time in the San Francisco Bay area and now are breaking out to be one of the top San Francisco bands. They have just come out with a double album on Capital. Country Weather are loose, creative musicians who get up on stage to improvise. The band is a native of San Francisco and has been together two years. They feature a variety of sounds from hard rock to rhythm and blues to outright straight, heavy blues. Elvin Bishop Group is a straight, heavy blues group. Elvin Bishop, lead guitarist, was formally with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Sanpaku from Sacramento is an up and coming group who recently had Fillmore West in a frenzy with an outstanding performance. They combine a hard rock sound with rhythm and blues. Tickets are available at the gate for $2.50 for Pacific students with PSA cards. Food-service will provide a five course dinner for the nominal fee of one dollar for all who wish it. The Pacifican urges all students to show their support for this outstanding festival and the cause it represents. It should be a totally groovy afternoon. B. Y. O. B. and B. Y. O. D.” Hmmm, could that last one mean Bring Your Own Drugs? They were very open minded. And a five course dinner for a dollar? Those were the days.

2nd Annual Northern California Folk-Rock Festival. Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, San Jose, CA May 24, 1969

Artist: Linda Segul

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The Santana band was just another group among the many that appeared during this three day festival in the late spring of 1969. There were actually two competing festivals on this Memorial Day weekend and they were held within one mile of each other. The rival show was called the Aquarian Family Festival which was free, but also a protest of sorts against Bob Blodgett who was promoting the second Northern California Folk-Rock Festival. He had promoted the first one a year earlier that had been successful monetarily but which city leaders later described as a drug fueled mess that sent hundreds of overdosed attendees to onsite medical tents and local emergency rooms. As a result Blodgett was banned from using Santa Clara County facilities for any future events. But he returned anyway and this second one was surrounded by controversy from the very start due to his handling of the permit arrangements and promotion of the festival itself. To begin with, he was able to rent the Fairgrounds under false pretenses by using a dummy organization to circumvent the County's ban and in the months before the event started advertising Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin as the main acts even though neither of them had signed a contract to appear. Local Radio station KSJO was warning listeners that several of the bands advertised for the festival, as well as Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix, were not going to appear because they were booked elsewhere at the time. Zeppelin already had gigs to play in Chicago, Illinois and Columbia, Maryland on those three days. A lawsuit in connection with the use of their name was brought against Blodgett and he was ordered to issue a refund to any ticket buyer who requested one. In the meantime Hendrix had been arrested in Canada on May 3rd for drug possession, but continued with his American tour which landed him in San Diego for a show on Saturday the 24th. Blodgett then made arrangements for him to fly by Learjet to San Jose on Sunday afternoon and paid him $30,000 to play for just under an hour, bringing the concert to an end. Over the years conflicting reports about this festival have surfaced about almost everything written above including who did or did not play that weekend. A comment supposedly made by Blodgett's lawyer in 2013 stated that it was actually he who had made all the arrangements with the city to make this event happen and that there had been no false pretenses in the process. This handbill used to promote the event is printed on a delicate foil, similiar to aluminum foil. Depending on what angle it's held at in the light, the look of the center image and band lineup changes.

People's Park Bail Ball Benefit. Winterland, San Francisco, CA May 28, 1969

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Peoples Park was originally just a plot of land the University of California had purchased with the intent of building student housing, and was the size of a city block. But the University ran out of development funds and for two years the bulldozed land sat vacant, slowly accumulating old cars and junk. So political activists from Berkeley decided they would turn the land into a park for the people. They rolled out sod, planted trees and flowers, bought swing sets, put in a garden, a winding brick footpath and an amphitheater, all built and maintained by volunteers. This land was still legally the property of the University, but after seeing what the volunteers had done with the small section they had built, the University promised to let them keep it. Plans were made to put a fence around the park and then go ahead with the building of student housing on the rest of the block as originally planned. However, Governor Ronald Reagan had been publicly critical of the University’s administrators for tolerating student demonstrations at the Berkeley campus. Reagan called the Berkeley campus "a haven for communist sympathizers, protesters, and sex deviants." Then on March 15, 1969, Reagan sent California highway patrol and Berkeley police officers into People's Park, overriding the University’s promise to the people who had built it. As the crowd of protesters grew larger more police were brought in from neighboring cities, creating a volatile atmosphere. Eventually a major confrontation ensued between police and the crowd, which ended up with over 100 people injured and one man dead. The following week this benefit concert was held in an effort to bail out the more than 250 protesters who had been arrested.

Sounds Of The City. Exhibit Hall, Convention Center, Fresno, CA May 29, 1969

Artists: Casey and Mercer

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Having been the opener at the People's Park benefit the day before, Santana was now the big draw for this show just down the road. The first thing I noticed about this handbill was that the Santana logo had been directly lifted from Lee Conklin's 1968 Fillmore West poster. A slight change was made to the 'S', but the rest of the lettering is identical. Most likely this was was done to avoid a lawsuit over copyright infringement. The remaining artwork surrounding the name very much mimics Conklin's poster as well but the art design here is credited to Mercer Studios. However, I wouldn't be surprised if Mr. Conklin ended up having a few words with them after seeing this piece. Warm-up act Cold Blood got a big jump in popularity in early 1969 when Bill Graham auditioned them and they played the Fillmore West in San Francisco (it was Janis Joplin who had recommended their audition to him). He recognized the potential of singer Lydia Pense's voice along with the sound of the band and immediately signed them to his new San Francisco Records label. They soon became one of the most popular high energy bands in the Bay Area, led by the girl with a huge voice whose powerful vocal chops were impossible to ignore. The band was often compared to another popular group called Tower of Power because they also featured a horn section in addition to guitar, bass and drums when playing their own brand of funky soul which came to be know as East Bay Grease. The group's original drummer Sandy McKee has been mentioned by Narada Michael Walden as one of the people who were most influential in his own stylistic development. Birth might have been a band from the surrounding area.

Memorial Day Rock Festival. Merced County Fairgrounds, Merced, CA May 30, 1969

Artist: Norman Orr

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The city of Merced has a rich musical history dating back to the 1950’s when it’s ethnic mix produced a variety of genres from blues to soul, with a little tex-mex thrown in as well. By the early 60’s folk music became popular which soon transitioned into folk rock and that led to psychedelic rock, a trend that continued into the early 70’s. So it was no surprise when the city hosted this festival at the end of May that included an array of local bands along with some of San Francisco’s finest. Guitarist and singer Elvin Bishop had been living in Chicago and playing with the Butterfield Blues Band for several years until he felt the need to launch his own career so relocated to San Francisco, considered the center of the music universe in 1968. His playing style was sometimes described as flashy but it was also playful in a way that many guitar heroes of the late 60’s were not. That September he participated in recording The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper by playing guitar and handling lead vocals on "No More Lonely Nights.” (Carlos made his first recorded appearance on this album). Six months later in March of ‘69 his Elvin Bishop Group made their debut at one of the Tuesday night jams occuring at the Fillmore West, which eventually led to his signing up with Bill Graham’s talent agency. His career began to take off and a few months after playing this festival in Merced his band would record their first album. Among some of the lesser known San Francisco bands that appeared, AUM was a classic rock power trio inspired by the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream. They were first brought to the attention of Bill Graham by San Francisco's premier photographer Jim Marshall and with one album already finished the band was slotted for one of Graham's Sounds of the City live auditions at the Fillmore West. On their first night performing AUM knocked the audience off their feet, earning three encores and the longest standing ovation in the history of those auditions. They soon became a popular opening act and always put on a high energy set. Writing about one particular night at the Avalon Ballroom, music critic Ralph J. Gleason is quoted as saying "AUM came on and broke it up with a wild, swinging set. There is no getting around it, this is an exciting group with the same kind of turn-on going for it that Santana had when they first appeared." Local band Crystal Syphon initially came together in 1965, created by a group of musicians from Merced High School. As mentioned in the Spring Medicine Show writeup this group was very much influenced by the Byrds as well as the Beatles, and because of their ability to sing four part harmonies they were able to do versions of Beatles’ songs that would’ve been impossible for most other bands of the time. From 1966 into early 1970 they played extensively in the Merced area but also traveled throughout California, appearing as far north as Lake Berryessa and as far south as San Clemente. Not enjoying the lifestyle it involved they thought it was better to stay in Merced to avoid some of the temptations that musicians faced in the big city. They had one final appearance at the Fillmore in late 1969, then decided to call it quits in early 1970. Also based in Merced were five aspiring musicians who formed a rock band named Crazy Horse. Their individual talents made it easy for them to switch between different styles of musical influences and after making their second appearance at the Fillmore they received a standing ovation, played an encore and were approached by several record companies. However, instead of choosing a record label they moved to Santa Cruz where all the hippies were going and became the first house band for the famous Catalyst when it was still just a night club. After they were told Neil Young had named his backup band Crazy Horse they were forced to pick a new name and in true hippie fashion they changed it to A Tear and A Smile, after the title of a book by Khalil Gibran. They played around the area for about a year, then wound up living in the woods until they broke up in late 1970. A Southern California trio called Wildfire began the day’s event and was famous for it’s powerful live shows, packing the clubs around Costa Mesa while being the house band for Finnegan’s Rainbow, a seedy little joint known as a biker bar where LSD was frequently sold. They were also the favorite group of the Hessians motorcycle club, who became the unofficial guardians of the band. At one point they started to record a demo at the Beach Boy's studio but a Texas promoter heard the band play live and persuaded them to finish recording it in Austin. While playing clubs in that area they became an instant hit with audiences and ended up completing an 8 song demo that got released in 1970 as a private pressing. Of course the big name for this concert was Santana and they were having a very, very busy year. In addition to performing gigs around California and a few western states this was one of ten festivals they would appear at, five of them happening before they got to that career changing moment at Woodstock. As explained in the 2023 documentary ‘Carlos’, Bill Graham scheduled them at several festivals on the way there, wanting to prepare the band for what would be the biggest audience they had ever seen up to that point. So as they slowly headed east each successive festival grew larger and larger, getting them comfortable playing in front of much bigger crowds. “He actually trained us like a boxer” said Carlos.

Monterey Peninsula College Gymnasium, Monterey, CA July 19, 1969

Artists: Katherine Harlow and Bob Divale (photo)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In the late 1960s, Bill Graham was trying to expand his concert business into band management, two record labels and a talent agency. So it was common to see several of the bands under his guidance playing together on any given show. His Millard Talent Agency was giving a lot of opportunity to rising groups such as the Grateful Dead, Santana, It's A Beautiful Day, Elvin Bishop, Aum, Cold Blood and others who were trying to hit it big. One of those was Sanpaku, a Sacramento based seven piece jazz rock band that had gotten together in the summer of 1968 and was considered one of the best bands in the area. Near the end of that year the group had landed a Tuesday night audition at the Fillmore West and their performance was impressive enough that Bill Graham, upon discovering that they had no manager, immediately volunteered his organization’s booking and management services. At that point they began playing the ballrooms of Northern California supporting many of the major groups of the time. Then shortly before this concert they added another member, singer and conguero Rico Reyes. Reyes had been part of the Santana crowd, providing some vocals and percussion when he appeared as a guest on the Abraxas, Santana III and Caravanserai albums as well as receiving a writing credit on 'Guajira'. When Sanpaku broke up the following year he would eventually become part of the band Azteca in the early 1970s. Opening act Fritz featured bassist Lindsey Buckingham and Stephanie (Stevie) Nicks who both went on to later fame in Fleetwood Mac. This concert was held at the Monterey Peninsula College gym, which was a modest sized venue holding approximately 2,000 people in a festival seating arrangement.

Woodstock Music & Art Fair. Bethel, NY August 16, 1969

Artist: Arnold Skolnick

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Over the years literally hundreds of articles have been written about this event while news reports and documentaries like the 1970 film "Woodstock" have helped solidify its place in concert history. There was even a song about it which became a hit for CSN&Y. People who were there for that long weekend often speak of the shared sense of unity and collective consciousness everyone felt despite the heavy rains that turned the grounds into a quagmire of mud. It was three days of music in a dairy farmer’s open field and whether you’re an old fan or new you already know this was an important moment for Santana, whose set is regarded as one of the weekend’s most electrifying and influential moments. The festival was well into it’s second day by the time they took the stage and their performance that afternoon would become a turning point for the group, catapulting them into the national spotlight. This unknown band had a sound quite different from the other acts and when their percussive mix of Latin and African rhythms emerged from the speakers the crowd’s reactions were caught on film as they connected with the earthy music. For the rest of the world the first glimpse of Santana would come the following year when "Soul Sacrifice" appeared in the movie featuring twenty year old Michael Shrieve‘s exuberant drum solo, often declared one of the most memorable in rock history because of his creativity and ability to combine intricate rhythms with raw energy (although he considers his solo at Tanglewood during this same song as the better performance). The influence of the festival itself has continued throughout the years due to the enduring appeal of it’s 60’s ideals and cultural significance, even inspiring occasional revivals that have varied in success and size. One of those attempts was promoted as ‘2 More Days of Peace and Music’ in 1994 which included Santana along with a few others from the original event. Yet in spite of attracting a large audience and having a diverse lineup that also appealed to Gen-Xer’s, it faced criticism for it’s commercialization and failure to replicate the spirit of the original Woodstock. This time there were brand names plastered everywhere with sponsors supplying everything from Pepsi, pizza and designer ice cream to t-shirts and sweats. There were even Woodstock condoms for sale. When the 50th anniversary came around in 2019 promoters truly wanted to honor the original festival’s legacy by offering a similiar mix of music, art and activism while presenting a slate of contemporary artists. However, logistical and financial challenges ultimately led to the cancellation of the event, revealing once again how impossible it would be to recreate the experience of Woodstock in these modern times. Shortly before the cancellation Santana made the decision to play a smaller anniversary celebration in Bethel, New York where the first festival had been held. As he acknowledged his return to Bethel Woods, Carlos called the event ‘ground zero for unity and harmony’ and told the crowd “You are the light. You can create miracles. This is the real Woodstock right here.” I didn’t find out until 25 years after obtaining this poster that it’s a counterfeit, but a good one since a magnifying glass is needed to identify the difference.

Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, San Jose, CA September 26, 1969

Artist: Vargas

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: While playing gigs in San Francisco and nearby cities Santana was headlining concerts about half the time at this point in their career and would soon be venturing out to other states much more often in support of their first album. For this one they found themselves back at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds performing at a show produced by N.B.C. Productions and David Forest. It’s doubtful that the television network by that name suddenly got into the concert promoting business but David Forest was a student turned promoter at Stanford University who had been booking local bands for fraternity and sorority parties. He liked the money he earned and found he was spending more time doing that instead of attending classes so dropped out and began promoting full time. He was managing the Fritz band and before long went to work for Bill Graham's talent agency where he started handling some of the more well known bands including the Grateful Dead and Santana. Multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Taj Mahal, who says his name came to him in a dream, had appeared on the scene at a vital time for blues music and was one of the pioneers of what came to be called world music. He was combining acoustic blues with Caribbean and West African music along with other styles to create his own distinctive sound. Many blues veterans were already branching out to keep up with the psychedelic movement that was happening and Mahal’s adherence to tradition made him a defiant voice, but a welcome and strong one. He would frequently include electric instruments, tubas, steel drums, and such exotic instruments as the kalimba (thumb piano) on his recordings, often in unexpected combinations that set him apart from other musical acts and assured him a constant busy schedule.

Santa Rosa Fairgrounds, Santa Rosa, CA September 27, 1969

Artist: S. Bertolli

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Reflecting the 'hippie type' art of the time, this late 60's poster grabs your attention with it's bright colors. Notice the pink and green flowers floating gently downward towards the speckled mushroom-like date below. The main focus of the piece is the drawing itself, which dominates the poster and can spark some interesting conversation. A nude woman with an enormous Afro grasps between her fingers what appears to be either: a) The tip of big blue balloon she just blew up (with the opening acts advertised on the side). b) The handle of huge magnifying glass. c) A marijuana pipe's stem, attached to a gigantic bowl into which we are peering from our bird's-eye view. Looking inside we see a brilliant red sun as it sets over the tree lined banks of a slowly meandering stream. The expression on her face suggests 'c' as the correct answer, but you might be able to come up with a few other ideas of your own as you study it further. It's A Beautiful Day had released their first album just three months earlier. A classic poster from the early days of the Santana legacy.

Grape Workers Strike Benefit. Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA October 1, 1969

Artist: Lee Conklin

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This significant poster advertises a benefit concert for the Grape Workers Strike – a historic battle between the exploited Latino and Filipino farm workers and the growers who owned the California grape farms. For the first time in American history the farm workers started a protest strike, led by Cesar Chavez from the United Farm Workers Union. It was a protest over concerns about wages and protection from pesticides and it lasted nearly five years, during which the growers used threats, guns and intimidation in an effort to stop the strike. But in the end the farm workers won the hearts of the American public and millions of consumers stopped buying grapes, forcing the growers to sign a contract allowing workers better pay and protections. This benefit concert took place in late 1969, and artist Lee Conklin cleverly incorporated the United Farm Workers logo of a majestic eagle into the illustration. Some of Conklin's earliest art influences had been created by masters of pen and ink drawings and throughout his career he continually developed his own style of intricate detail using both graphics and calligraphy. After seeing articles featuring Wes Wilson's poster art, he was inspired to visit San Francisco and show his art to Bill Graham. Graham soon commissioned him to make posters and he produced 31 original designs for the Fillmore between 1968 and 1969. What began as a personal challenge to disguise images within images and lettering soon turned into a concentrated effort to turn every single letter and figure into another form, stretching the imagination to new limits. In this piece the band’s names emanate from the heat waves of the sun while the eagle’s body is created from over two hundred faces rising up from the ground, symbolizing the workers rising up against the unfair conditions they'd been forced to labor under. Within the clouds are the dates, time and ticket price of the benefit and the concert title at the bottom is made from blades of grass.

Gold Rush Festival. Lake Amador Meadows, Lake Amador, CA October 4, 1969

Artist: Tom Morris

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In the fall of 1969 the shores of Lake Amador and the hills surrounding it became filled with hippies when an estimated 40,000 people flocked there to experience what they hoped would be an amazing weekend. It was an event that would give Amador County a taste of Woodstock but there were concerns that it might cause too much of a disruption in the area, and one county official wanted to short circuit the festival by cutting off the electricity. The Amador County sheriff even called in an order for reinforcements including putting the National Guard on standby. Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains Lake Amador had been chosen as the site of an all day concert that’s regarded by many to be one of the era’s most memorable, the Gold Rush Music Festival. Taking place just seven weeks after Woodstock, it’s been described as Northern California’s equivalent to that iconic music event. It was early in the morning and just hours before the concert began when co-producer and band manager Robert Strand walked onstage and surveyed this natural amphitheater created by the lake, trees and elevation. He then took the mic and greeted the still growing crowd with equal parts excitement and nervous sweat as he mentally went through the line up for the day: Santana, Ike and Tina Turner, Bo Diddley, Albert Collins, Taj Mahal and a roster of Bay Area talent. It was a perfect morning at this scenic location by the lake and the fans spilling in were young and eager for the music to begin. Most had paid $3.00 for tickets and patiently endured a two mile traffic jam on a one lane road until they parked, carried their blankets and walked another mile to the lake and stage. Even so, the vibe of the crowd that day was all 60’s peace, love and rock ‘n roll. Robert describes what he remembers as a magical day: “The day was perfect. Putting it all together had been a nail biter, I’d hardly slept, but in the end everything lined up - the gorgeous setting, weather, music and a happy, loving audience. We had it all. It lasted from 8 in the morning until after midnight. This show was an amazing combination of emotions and an incredible coincidence of events that somehow allowed it to even happen. To promote a concert the first thing you’ve got to do is set the table for the show. When we were first putting this thing together Gene Lane, a DJ from Sacramento, came to me and said he had a way through his radio people to contact Ike and Tina Turner in Los Angeles. And at the same time I knew there was one band that would absolutely pull this show off, and that was Santana. I had done a couple of shows with Santana at that point, their album had not come out yet and they were the hottest thing in the valley. They had just played Woodstock and they were at that moment, in the fall of ‘69, the hottest thing going. Without any question. The first story I want to tell you about booking this festival is that I knew for Amador if I could land Santana and if Gene could get Ike and Tina Turner we were a long ways down the road to putting something special together. I had known Bill Graham for several years and had booked Country Weather, a band I managed, at the Fillmore numerous times. Bill was the father of the San Francisco scene and I was just 23 years old then but I came to him and said “Hey Bill, I want to book Santana for October 4th at this place called Lake Amador.” At the time Santana was probably making about $2,000 a night. Bill leans back in his chair and says “$5,000.” The price he gave me, in his head he must have thought there’s no way I would accept that. And I said “You got it.” And it took him about one second to say “All in advance.” “Ok, no problem” I replied. “Tomorrow.” “Ok, no problem. But I want a contract today Bill.“ And I’m sure he was thinking to himself God damn it this kid, he’s bugging on me man. Anyway, I got Santana for five grand and Gene got Ike and Tina Turner for twenty five hundred and then we chased it with so many other great bands. I have to say, media-wise the show was probably promoted as well as anything that was ever done up to that point in the rock scene. About five days before the show we had people start showing up from all over the country, places like Oregon, Colorado, Montana, Nevada and Arizona.” And people continued to show up, growing into an overwhelmingly huge crowd that jammed the banks of Lake Amador to sunbathe nude, drink wine, smoke marijuana and listen to some amazing music. Despite the earlier fears of trouble the massive number of people were surprisingly well behaved and peaceful, so sheriff’s deputies chose to ignore the drug use and skinny dipping. One person’s recollections of the day were summed up this way: “I remember looking out over a sea of people and everyone was really happy and full of enthusiasm, the music was the catalyst that drew us together. It really was a time of believing in love and peace for humanity.” This event poster most likely was displayed for several months to promote the concert and left up for some time afterward, revealing the scars of use with it’s staple holes, creases, stains and missing pieces.

California State University Gym, Hayward, CA October 9, 1969

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Funded and presented by the Associated Students of Cal State, this concert was promoted as "A Sendoff Party for Santana” and the laughing clown near the bottom holds a banner telling you so. They would be leaving on a cross country tour taking them through the Midwest on their way to New York for a TV appearance on the Ed Sullivan show and two gigs at the Fillmore East. The band had now reached a point where their name was becoming more known outside of California due to their Woodstock appearance two months earlier followed by the release of the first album. Most of their November dates would have them playing in different cities around the East Coast before they headed back across the Midwest doing a few more shows, eventually making stops in some Southwestern states as they got closer to home again. It's notable that even though they had done an East Coast tour back in August this would be the Santana band's longest multi-state tour away from their home turf and on several nights they were the headlining act. For this particular show all three bands were under Bill Graham's umbrella of companies in one way or another with Santana at the forefront and Cold Blood just weeks away from releasing their own first Lp produced by David Rubinson. Country Weather, a group originally known as The Virtues, had changed their name a few years earlier at the suggestion of music promoter Chet Helms who then encouraged them to start writing and playing their own music. Although they recorded a five song promotional demo in 1969 they never managed to sign with a major record label but the band (sometimes described as psychedelic cowboys) was always well received at their live concerts with set lists that had no musical boundaries, playing everything from Psychedelic to Country to Blues to Rock. In 2005 a double album featuring those five demo songs along with previously unreleased live recordings and a studio session from 1971 finally came out on an independant label.

Exhibit Hall, Convention Center, Fresno, CA October 10, 1969

Artists: Casey and Mercer

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: As was often the case back in the day, the artwork rarely had anything to do with the bands advertised. It was more of a showcase for the artist to exhibit his work or vision to a wider audience. Here is a good example of that. Is this drawing revealing the artists’ own S&M fantasy? At the top of the magenta colored handbill are two winged guardians armed with bows and arrows, keeping intruders away from the bizarre activity below. It appears that two blond, muscular naked demons with whips and sunglasses are herding a group of naked dark haired men in chains along the path of a downward spiraling road that leads to...hell? What type of unspeakable acts await them there? A pair of flying hands hovers above, ready in case of an escape attempt. The huge egg-type object in the center has a crack from which a second twisted road emerges and meanwhile the mountain face seems oblivious to it all. An unusual piece of artwork to promote a concert to say the least. Snail formed in 1967 and became somewhat of a local legend in the Santa Cruz/San Jose area. Similiar to the supergroup Cream, they were basically a power trio until 1969 when they added a second guitarist. Their break came more than a year later when a few of their performances impressed promoter Bill Graham, who saw potential in the group and thought they could score a record deal. He offered to record some demos for them, and according to one of the band's webpages their first session was in 1971 at Columbia Studios with engineer Fred Catero, while Santana was in the other room recording what would become its third album. Opening group Black Ghost was a local Fresno band.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA December 31, 1969

Artist: Bonnie McLean Graham

Reference: BG 209

Dick Dixon: During the early days of the Fillmore, a lady named Bonnie MacLean would take tickets, pass out handbills, blow up balloons, and draw the names of bands on the “coming attractions” chalkboard inside. Impressed with her lettering skill on the chalkboards, Bill Graham surprised her with an easel and art supplies for Christmas 1967 and MacLean's poster artist career was launched. Untrained in graphic arts, MacLean's early style evolved into ornate, Medieval-Gothic designs. Faces in her posters wore trance-like stares, steady and serene, and evoke the detached spirituality of the sixties. In an interview from the 1992 book "Bill Graham Presents: My Life Inside Rock and Out", Bill recalled the first time he met Bonnie: “An employment agency sent over a young woman named Bonnie MacLean that I interviewed. They called me up afterward and said, ‘What do you think?’ I said, No, no, she won’t do.” Then Ms. MacLean herself called Mr. Graham, and he confessed to her that what had put him off was that she had been wearing “the ugliest chartreuse coat I ever saw in my whole life.” He gave her another chance, hired her, then started dating her. After living together they married in 1967 and she created 32 posters in the four years that followed. Traditional symbols of peace and love are obvious in this particular design that advertised different billings at the Fillmore West and Winterland for New Years Eve. Artist Bonnie Maclean Graham passed away in 2020 at age 80.

Grateful Dead Benefit. Winterland, San Francisco, CA February 23, 1970

Artist: Randy Tuten

Reference: BG 222

Dick Dixon: These handbills (there are also posters) were designed for a benefit show to help out the Grateful Dead after they got busted for drug possession in New Orleans. Suspiciously, when the Dead had arrived at the airport earlier that day they were given the name of a lawyer 'just in case anything happened', and later at the hotel Jerry Garcia was warned to stay clean because a raid was likley. Legend has it that after playing a gig well into the wee hours of the morning the band returned to their hotel at 3:00am to find the police waiting for them in their rooms, with a variety of drugs that had been confiscated during a search. No drugs were found on any of the bandmembers. It's assumed they had been set up by the cops themselves because city officials didn't want their town to become the next Haight-Ashbury. Most of the charges against the band were eventually dropped. For the artwork Randy Tuten chose to depict their dilemma as a court jester with a skull face (skulls being a Grateful Dead theme) wearing a ball and chain. It's a striking image, brightly colored with a red & orange color scheme. The alternate version was done without colors and only a small number of those were made. Supposedly they were delivered to Mickey Hart's father who was managing the Dead at the time, but the majority of them simply vanished.

Memorial Hall, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA April 24, 1970

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: After headlining a show in London just days earlier with Taj Mahal and It’s A Beautiful Day, the Santana band returned to the states for this concert presented by the Student Council of Muhlenberg College. To help bring Santana to their campus the students had enlisted the help of booking agent William Honney, who was a hands-on type businessman similar to Bill Graham. In the 60’s and 70’s he not only promoted rock concerts but also put up posters, collected tickets, and even helped out with crowd control. Sometimes he also had to convince entertainers to perform when they were hesitating for one reason or another, like the time he needed to persuade Smokey Robinson to sing at an outdoor venue even though it was raining at the time. On another occasion Elton John was booked to play at the state’s annual farm show where livestock were on display, but he objected to the animal’s smell and said he wasn't going to perform in a ‘loo’. Mr. Honney quickly changed Elton’s mind about performing after pointing out that he was going to receive 90% of the gate’s proceeds. Nothing quite so dramatic for this concert however, because both bands came ready to play. Opening for Santana were The Byrds, a folk rock band who’d been on the music scene since early 1964. Originally a trio that included David Crosby they soon became a five man group and signed a contract with Columbia Records after Miles Davis encouraged the label to take a chance on them. Their first two albums contained several remakes of other peoples music, such as Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ and Pete Seeger‘s ‘Turn, Turn, Turn’ which both became #1 radio hits for the band. But in early 1966 they finally got one of their own songs released called ‘8 Miles High’ and it was unlike anything they had previously done. Widely considered to be the first psychedelic rock song to be played on radio it was quickly banned in several markets by stations who thought it was promoting drug use. Lead singer Roger McGuinn denied this, explaining that it was actually the band’s first attempt to play jazz after being inspired by the Afro-Indian improvisations heard on John Coltrane's album ‘Africa/Brass’. He further explained that both the title and the song lyrics were innocently written during a plane trip. “It started out as 6 Miles High,” McGuinn recalls, “because that’s the approximate altitude commercial airlines fly, eventually we thought 8 Miles sounded better.” Unfortunately the controversy over the song was the beginning of the end for the band’s commercial success but they continued touring and after a few member changes their lineup at the time of this Muhlenberg show was their most stable. It was just one week after this concert that Santana started recording music for the Abraxas album and with Albert Gianquinto helping to work out it’s arrangement, ‘Incident at Neshabur’ was the first song to be completed. Once that was finished they spent the rest of May playing shows in the Midwest, Canada, Hawaii, and California before returning to the studio to record a few more songs during the first week of June. Then they were back on the road again for another month of shows and it would be the end of July before the remaining songs were finished and the album was finally ready to be pressed.

Waikiki Shell Theatre, Honolulu, Oahu, HI May 22-23, 1970

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This piece is from Bill Graham's personal collection and shows damage from the May 7, 1985 firebombing of his San Francisco office. Behind the office was a separate space that doubled as an archival room where he kept thousands of pieces of memorabilia including posters, handbills and other personal mementos. The firebombing was thought to be in retaliation to Grahams open criticism of President Reagan's visit to Bitburg Cemetery which had been published in the San Francisco Chronicle. Luckily many of the pieces survived with varying degrees of damage. This handbill has some browning caused by the intense heat along the top and right side edges as well as some spotting throughout, possibly due to water damage. I've personally seen one other copy of this that was in much worse condition.

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA September 10-11-12-13, 1970

Artist: Norman Orr

Reference: BG 248

Dick Dixon: Back in the late 60s and into the 70s poster artists used skill and imagination in their work until concert promoters realized it might be more economical to bypass the artist and instead use photos to promote many of the shows. But before that happened this truly fine piece was created by artist Norman Orr and was the very first poster he did for Bill Graham. He did a total of twelve more before going into private business as a graphic designer and then a successful furniture designer/maker. Orr's style of art was characterized by it's precision and he would always strive for a degree of realism in his drawings. This one advertised a four day series of shows at the Fillmore West featuring Santana with Dr. John, the flamboyant New Orleans funk musician, along with soulful bluesman Luther Allison who had performed at the Ann Arbor Blues Festival the previous month. As you can see there is a lot going on here, with a great amount of detail in both the lettering and imagery. The poster seems to depict Santana's music at the time - tribal, dangerous, ferocious. And there are so many images to discover once you look past the central vision of the pouncing tiger. Multiple snakes, skulls and stars are hidden in plain sight throughout the piece. Three drummers pound out a hypnotic rhythm, summoning a variety of jungle animals to gather behind them. Elsewhere you’ll find a heart, horseshoe, lightning bolt, infinity symbol and more. The Santana name appears twice. I have read that either Carlos or one of the people representing the band bought the original artwork after the shows were done.

Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, AZ September 19, 1970

Artist: AK Hollister

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This piece was done like the old ‘Wanted’ posters from the days of the wild west, created in an effort to get the public’s help in capturing outlaws who had committed crimes of some sort. Even the lettering style used here is reminiscent of those times, but in this case it’s Santana that’s wanted - for a concert appearance in the southwestern state of Arizona. And the beautifully hand drawn images of the band are prominently displayed so citizens can easily recognize them before they have a chance to get away. The poster was produced by Tea Lautrec Litho, San Francisco’s leading printer of concert posters that was known for its quality workmanship. Tea Lautrec (originally called T. Lautrec but later changed to Tea, 'Tea' being a slang term for marijuana) had also printed every Bill Graham concert poster between 1967 and 1971, more than 200 in all. A few days after this show Santana’s second Lp would be released and they had been playing nearly all the songs from the album live in the months leading up to this night, sometimes throwing in a few from their first Lp along with some unreleased ones like Gumbo and Conquistador Rides Again. Country Joe and the Fish (most famous for their appearance at Woodstock) played second and I wrote a small bit about them on the Nov. 3, 1968 handbill synopsis. The night's opener was Bread, one of the most popular pop groups of the early '70s with a string of radio hits between 1970 and 1972. By the time they appeared at this concert their second album had been released and they were celebrating with a number one song called "Make It With You."

Houston Music Hall, Houston, TX September 25, 1970

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A 2,200 seat music venue called the Houston Music Hall opened in November 1937 next to the already existing Sam Houston Coliseum, a much larger venue that 30+ years later would accommodate the crowds coming to see acts like Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. But the bands who hadn’t yet reached that status would end up playing the smaller Music Hall instead. Such was the case when Santana played here in September 1970, but that was about to change. Just two days earlier Abraxas was released and the album became an instant success spending 88 weeks on the Billboard charts, including six weeks in the #1 spot. Over time it came to be considered so influential that in 2015 it was one of the albums inducted into the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress, whose only purpose is maintaining and preserving sound recordings that are culturally or historically significant and reflect culture in the United States. Excerpted from an essay by Mark Brill, a professor of musicology at the University of Texas-San Antonio as to why this particular album was chosen: “The Latin character of Santana’s music set the band apart and enabled it to carve out a niche in the San Francisco hippie scene where radical innovation and eclecticism were valued, and conformity was despised. Santana then exploded in popularity with its appearance at Woodstock in August 1969 and it’s first album a few weeks later. In the year that followed, the band continued to infuse its psychedelic brand of rock with even more pronounced jazz and Latin elements. The result was Abraxas, the band’s second album and it represents Santana’s refined concept of musical fusion by masterfully combining hard edged acid rock, blues, soul, funk, jazz and Latin and African rhythms. This fusion had never been heard before and though it has often been imitated in ensuing decades, it has rarely been equaled.” Most fans would agree that this album was deserving of the recognition. The artwork for this concert once again uses imagery that at first seems random yet it’s not. It appears to be loosely based on one of Plato’s writings called Phaedrus, which includes the famous Chariot Allegory where he uses two horses and a charioteer as metaphors for three parts of the soul. As Plato describes it the charioteer is the intelligent part of the soul that guides the three of them along a path leading to the highest level of divine heights. He guides the two horses, one representing the positive part of the soul’s nature - it’s rational and moral impulses, while the other is quite opposite - representing the soul's irrational appetites and lustful nature. The two are warily eyeing each other as the charioteer directs the entire chariot/soul forward, hoping to keep them on their goal’s path as they proceed towards enlightenment. Behind them is a figure partially hiding his face behind a cape embroidered with stars, perhaps it’s the shady religious-type figure Plato refers to who promotes idle superstitions as a reason to justify certain appetites or vices. In the background Santana’s name rises above an immense sun undergoing a full solar eclipse, thought to be a significant moment of cosmic reset and new beginnings. As an image used to promote a concert it’s another unusual choice of art that most people probably looked at, but didn’t consider any possible meaning to.

The Montreux Golden Rose Pop Festival. Casino De Montreux, Montreux, Switzerland May 1, 1971

Artist: P. Krieger

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Many of the Super Pop concerts were held in the afternoons because the city of Montreux wanted to keep the youngsters off the streets and drugs while they were ditching school. It had the opposite consequences as you can imagine. Show opener Terry Reid was fairly well known at the time and had also been an opening act for groups like Cream and the Rolling Stones. At one point he had been invited to join a new group Jimmy Page was putting together, but other commitments led him to suggest Robert Plant take his place instead. Folk blues singer/guitarist Karen Dalton had previously played alongside musicians like Bob Dylan and Tim Hardin. Just seven months after these shows, the venue caught fire and burnt down when an audience member shot off a flare gun during a Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention concert. That incident was immortalized in the song Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple.

Kentucky Fair And Exposition Center, Louisville, KY June 10, 1971

Artists: Randy Tuten and Joan Chase (photo)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The simplicity of this poster actually required a bit more thought in the design process than is obvious at first glance. Similar to a child's maze, it's entirely possible to trace a path around the lettering (excluding the 8pm starting time) while staying within the thin white border and without having to lift your pencil from the paper. It's not necessary to circle each letter completely and you'll have to retrace your path at some points, but it can be done. The photo credit belongs to Joan Chase, who also shot the photos for the inside covers of Abraxas and the 3rd Santana Lp. The picture used here reveals what some fans think of as the original Santana band but the group had already gone through a number of personnel changes by this point, having had no less than 17 people involved in various combinations. The unique lettering concept came from Randy Tuten, one of the premier concert poster artists during San Francisco's psychedelic era. His work was constantly in demand and by the time Bill Graham closed the Fillmore West in June 1971 he had designed 31 of the posters for that venue. His talents were so appreciated that Tuten was asked to re-letter the logo for Santana's Abraxas album, but ultimately his design was not chosen. He later composed the photo collage for the inside cover of their Welcome album, and it was his idea to arrange the blue butterfly wings into a pattern for Borboletta. He also designed several mid 70s Santana concert posters and collaborated with David Singer to do the cover for the Festival Lp. Tuten once said of his own work: "There really isn't any heavy meaning in my posters. What I did graphically was a combination of what I liked and what fit."

Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA July 4, 1971

Artist: David Singer

Reference: BG 287

Dick Dixon: This double sized poster was designed to commemorate the closing of the Fillmore West, printed after the shows, and given as a gift to Bill Graham. Representing the final week of concerts it was the first time 17 bands had been listed on a single poster and the first time a poster was commissioned for the venue by someone other than Bill Graham himself. Since then it’s been printed a total of four times over the years with the second printing being folded and included in the boxed album set called Fillmore The Last Days. Artist David Singer remembers his ideas when creating this piece: "I saw the dark cat as the expression of the unconscious and the white cat as symbolic of the conscious. The two images were very different; one was light and playful while the other was mysterious and somewhat sinister. This interplay I felt was exactly right for what the mood and music of the time were all about. Then, to bring the dark and the light together I chose the image of Saturn with its halo of rings. Saturn is a heavy planet, associated with the metal lead. The presence of Saturn implies confrontation, especially in the material world. Saturn relates to the actual and made real, and to the seedtime and the harvest. The Saturn photo came out of a January 1953 National Geographic." The poster also featured a pair of decorative, bird-like shapes on the left and the right. “When people ask me about the birds I explain that their origin is from the Pennsylvania Dutch art that I grew up with, but I wasn’t making that connection at the time. Things like that would just sort of bubble to the surface because they’re what I grew up with.” An article by Frank Mastropolo about this final week appeared in 2016 on the Ultimate Classic Rock website and he described it this way: Promoter Bill Graham announced the lineup for the final week of San Francisco's Fillmore West one day after he closed New York's Fillmore East. He ended three years of historic shows with five nights of music billed as "the bands that built the Fillmore." Graham had moved from the original Fillmore Auditorium to the Carousel Ballroom, a former dance hall, in 1968. He reopened the venue as the Fillmore West on July 5th. One of its most popular acts was the Grateful Dead, who played the venue more than 60 times. The Dead played their final show at the Fillmore West on Friday night, July 2nd [1971]. Graham took the stage and announced, "After all the shit that's gone down over the years, I'm very grateful to them and consider them friends… the Grateful Dead." Their three hour set, with one intermission, included "Me and Bobby McGee" and "Good Lovin'" and ended with "Not Fade Away" and "Johnny B. Goode." Hot Tuna's set was the highlight on Saturday night. Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady were joined by fiddler Papa John Creach and drummer Sammy Piazza. The Sunday night finale was an invitation-only event that was broadcast live on KSAN and KSFX in quadraphonic FM. "This is going to be the greatest motherfucking evening of our lives," Graham promised as he opened the show. "And now, a bitch of a band from the East Bay – Tower of Power." The funk rock horn band was a tough act to follow but the audience was bowled over by surprise guests Creedence Clearwater Revival. Fronted by John Fogerty wearing a turquoise cowboy suit with matching boots, CCR was now a trio. It was their first performance since Tom Fogerty had quit back in January. The band opened with "Born on the Bayou" and the hour long set of their hits ended with "Keep On Chooglin'." The headliners of the evening were Santana, who took the stage just before 1am. Santana's classic sextet was joined by guitarist Neal Schon and percussionist Coke Escovedo. The 90 minute set opened with "Incident at Neshabur" and included the hits "Black Magic Woman," Oye Como Va" and "Soul Sacrifice." The closing number was Miles Davis' "In a Silent Way." "We wanted to come off as a little more progressive, as we felt that it would represent us at the given time when the Fillmore closed," drummer Michael Shrieve said in a book titled Live at the Fillmore East and West. "We were sort of transformed as a band and that's why we chose to do the Miles Davis tune… and have our kind of groove to it. That was really important to us." The night ended as Van Morrison, Mike Bloomfield, Sam Andrew of Big Brother & the Holding Company, the Tower of Power horn section and others joined Santana for a jam session. "The music was terrible (at one point Van Morrison insisted they all stop and try something else) but the show was great," David Felton wrote in Rolling Stone. "Graham and his staff pelted the audience with gifts – paper plates, beer, champagne and ice cubes. Sometime between 4 and 5am, everyone gave up and went home. About 40 fans stuck around to shake hands with Graham, then left him to wander alone among the amps and debris." Graham told UPI that he was closing both Fillmores for a combination of reasons. “They've been a 52 week a year operation and I'm tired of the anguish and lack of time for myself and for other activities as a result of having to work that way. You become a victim of your own creation. I want to get out of the grasp of the monster I created." But he was soon back in the concert business, promoting huge outdoor concerts with performers that included Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin and the Allman Brothers Band.

Henry Levitt Arena, Wichita, KS February 6, 1973

Artist: Charp Latta

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Looking psychedelic even without the colors, this design by Charp Latta captures the mood of the early 70s. A long haired guitarist wearing bellbottoms (kind of resembles Carlos from the Abraxas album photos maybe?) with lightning strikes and a blazing sun in the background. This could've looked amazing had it actually been done in color. The arena was built in 1953 and was considered ahead of its time because of its circular design, which gave nearly every fan an unobstructed view and put the seats very close to the action. Concert promoter Barry Fey (Feyline) was best known for bringing big name music acts to the United States for the first time. In 1968 he promoted Led Zeppelin's first U.S. show and then in 1969 presented the three day Denver Pop Festival, which featured the final performance of the Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Sports Arena, Toledo, OH March 17, 1973

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: From 1947 through 2007 when it was demolished, the Toledo Sports Arena hosted everyone from Elvis to Rush and was the place to play for bands making a stop in Ohio. The downside was that during the 70s summertime temps inside the arena could sometimes reach over 100°. Opening act on this night was Bobby Womack, who in 1969 had gotten together with Gábor Szabó and penned the instrumental “Breezin”, which later became a hit for George Benson. Throughout his 60 year career Bobby was a very productive singer, songwriter and collaborator with musicians such as the Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Patti LaBelle, Rod Stewart, Van Morrison and too many more to mention here. Santana even did a live cover of his “Save The Children” on their 1991 tour which (I’m guessing) was brought in by new lead singer Tony Lindsay.

Crisler Arena, University Of Michigan, Ann Harbor, MI August 31, 1973

Artist: Gary Grimshaw

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A series of events leading up to this concert ushered in a dramatic change for Carlos Santana. And also for his fans. Beginning ten months earlier in October 1972 the release of the Caravanserai album saw Santana’s music exploring new musical territory quite different from their first three records. Critics and fans expecting more of the same were surprised by the mystical, spiritual sound that now emanated from their speakers. Embraced by some and disliked by the less open minded it was only the beginning as Carlos yearned for something more fulfilling in his music and his personal life. Shortly after it’s release he was back in the studio accompanied by John McLaughlin while recording his second solo Lp entitled Love, Devotion, Surrender and it was during this period that he got introduced to and became a disciple of guru Sri Chinmoy, which seemed to push Carlos even farther away from the band’s early recordings and into deeper musical experimentation. He’d been told by Bill Graham and Clive Davis that this new path he was embarking on would be career suicide and looking back it’s easy to see why. The band had already released three hit albums and found worldwide fame with their covers of “Black Magic Woman” and “Oye Como Va” but Caravanserai and now this collaboration with McLaughlin were both a drastic shift away from the previous records, a totally different sound injected with a heavy dose of jazz fusion. But to Carlos the music was no longer about making hits - it was about seeking and expressing an otherworldly form of transcendence, or what Chinmoy described as ‘immortality’s message’ and ‘eternity’s passage’. As Carlos explained in an interview at the time, “Without a guru I serve only my own vanity, but with him I can be of service to you and everybody. I am the strings, but he is the musician.” In keeping with his guru’s wishes Carlos also cut his long hair and began dressing in all white to the initial puzzlement of the band and his longtime fans. On tour at the time they were playing songs from Caravanserai at concerts in the U.S. and Canada and contrary to the fears voiced by people close to him a Rolling Stone article towards the end of October observed: “Santana on its complex new levels is at this point so solid musically that fewer and fewer people are demanding the old evil ways. There were standing ovations in San Francisco and New York, and encores almost everywhere else.” Fast forward to early summer 1973 and after playing several shows across the United States the band took this new music to such far away places as Japan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand before returning home. In late August Carlos and John McLaughlin got together for a short three week tour that featured musicians from both their groups: Doug Rauch on bass, Billy Cobham on drums, Armando Peraza on percussion and Larry Young on organ. (It was on the eve of this tour that Sri Chinmoy gave him the spiritual name “Devadip” meaning Lamp of God, Eye Of God, Light Of God). In spite of it’s short duration the tour helped to promote their collaboration album which had been released the previous month. McLaughlin recalled the circumstances that led up to making that album in an interview for Circus magazine: “It was really strange the way it happened. I woke up one morning with this idea for an album I wanted to do with Carlos. That same day my manager phoned me to say that he had been having meetings with Clive (Davis, president of Columbia) and that Clive had this idea that I should do an album with Carlos.” Yes, this was the same Clive Davis who told Santana that Caravanserai was career suicide just a few months earlier. But at that moment in time jazz-rock was not just at an artistic expression, it also sold a lot of albums and kept the record labels happy so that explained his change of mind. A review of this August 31st show at the University Of Michigan in Ann Arbor reads: “It was a fine concert of rock and roll/jazz with a spiritual message. The group filled Crisler Arena with waves of sound for a set lasting over three hours. Santana and McLaughlin improvise off a wide variety of themes, ranging from a very speeded up Sly Stone to an electronic version of John Coltrane’s masterpiece, A Love Supreme.” A photo of Carlos and John highlights the handbill for this show and was designed by Gary Grimshaw, the first major artist outside of California to attain national attention and whose body of work is considered equal to the poster artists from San Francisco. He was also the principle poster and light show artist for the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, which for many years was the most important rock venue east of the Rocky Mountains. Grimshaw's work graced not only that dance hall venue, but could be found throughout the Detroit and Ann Arbor area during the 60’s and 70’s.

Plaza De Toros Monumental, Maracaibo, Venezuela October 5-6, 1973

Artists: Marquelis and José Alberto

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Santana embarked on a nearly month long tour of South America in 1973, and this poster created by Marquelis and Jose Alberto announced two out of three shows that were held in Venezuela. Promoted as Tranquilo Primer Festival A Color (Calm First Festival In Color) the first show in Maracaibo was broadcast live on Venezuelan Radio Capital, occuring at a bull fighting stadium with a reported 12,000 people in attendance. At one point Carlos came out to play two songs with the opening band Guaco, and their use of a percussion instrument called the furruco (friction drum) so intrigued Michael Shrieve that he ended up bringing several home at the end of the tour. The following night's show in Valencia was also held at a bullring, said to be the second largest in the world, and it drew an estimated crowd of 35,000. Unfortunately this second night did not go as smoothly as the first. When the local opening band was unable to play their set Santana then stepped up to perform close to four hours after being asked by the promoters to start with some of their latin hits like Oye Como Va to keep the audience happy. But in spite of the music there were problems throughout the night caused in part by some serious drug abuse happening within the crowd. Impulsive behaviors continued to escalate and would eventually result in numerous violent outbursts and rape. Tragically, in what must have been a drug induced state, a nineteen year old student died after jumping from a height of over 60 feet while screaming "I am the dove of peace!" It was reported a few days later that 30 of the concert goers had suffered injuries and a total of 130 people had been arrested. Upon completing five weeks of shows this became one of the first, if not the very first, tours of Latin America by a major rock act and portions of it were filmed for a documentary called Santana en Colores (1973).

Wiener Stadthalle, Vienna, Austria November 30, 1973

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Scarce and difficult to find these days is this concert poster advertising what some consider a legendary Santana band lineup at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria on the 30th of November 1973. Although it's somewhat plain in appearance, it still commands attention using a bright orange background with bold black letters. There is also a larger version of this poster which uses a different style of lettering through the midsection. During the entire tour this year the setlist leaned heavily on songs from Caravanserai and the yet to be released Lotus, with only a few of their well known hits being played each night. Welcome, Santana’s fifth studio album had been released earlier in the month and delved even further into the genre of jazz-fusion that the Caravanserai album had begun, but this time used a different core lineup along with multiple guest musicians. Gregg Rolie and Neal Schon had left the band to form Journey, now replaced by new members Tom Coster, Richard Kermode and Leon Thomas. And among the guests appearing on the recording were guitarist John McLaughlin, pianist Alice Coltrane and Flora Purim, who contributed vocals. Perhaps because it was such a radical change in sound from the first three albums and even more experimental in nature than Caravanserai, this album did not produce any radio friendly hit singles. Even so, It was and still is a favorite time period in the band’s history for a lot of fans.

Surf Ballroom, Clear Lake, IA August 6, 1974

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: During the span of their long career Santana has rarely played a concert in the state of Iowa. Their earliest known stop was in 1974 when they appeared in a small town of about 6,000 people called Clear Lake, showing up for a gig at the tragically famous Surf Ballroom. Nicknamed ‘The Surf’, the inspiration for it’s name and design came from the original owners desire to create a ballroom that resembled an ocean beach club. The murals on the back walls were hand painted to depict swaying palm trees, sailboats, lighthouses and waves of the ocean. The furnishings were bamboo and rattan and the ambience had the feeling of a south sea island. Even the stage was surrounded by palm trees and the clouds projected overhead made it seem like you were outside dancing under the stars. Back in the 1930's and 1940's when big bands were trying to expand their audiences on a national scale, this was one of the venues they needed to play while on tour. Major stars like Count Basie, Duke Ellington and The Dorseys all made regular stops at the Surf. Those were the days when ballrooms were popular throughout the country and the main form of entertainment at the time was dancing to live music. When the dawn of rock ‘n’ roll began in the 1950’s the Surf Ballroom was quick to book the hottest names in the business. Artists like The Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison, Ricky Nelson, Little Richard, Jan and Dean and Conway Twitty all took the stage here. The Surf was one of the first venues in the state to feature this new rock 'n roll, and all the big name acts made this a must-play destination on the performance circuit. In January 1959 a tour called the ‘Winter Dance Party’ began and Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. ‘The Big Bopper’ Richardson, Dion and the Belmonts, Frankie Sardo, Waylon Jennings, Tommy Allsup and Carl Bunch set out on a 24 day tour barnstorming the Midwest. It became the most infamous tour in rock ‘n roll history. Organizationally speaking, the tour was a complete catastrophe. The shows were often scheduled hundreds of miles apart from one another as they zigzagged through one of the deadliest winters the Midwest had seen in decades, in the worst possible transportation available. The musicians crammed themselves into a drafty bus which was not equipped for the weather (its heating system broke shortly after the tour began) to perform in small ballrooms and theatres and by February 1st Holly’s drummer had left with frostbitten feet. By the time the tour limped into Clear Lake on the evening of February 2nd, Holly had decided to charter a small plane for himself, Allsup and Jennings to fly to the next venue in Fargo, North Dakota immediately following this show. At the last minute, Jennings gave up his seat to The Big Bopper (who had the flu) and Tommy Allsup lost his seat to Ritchie Valens with a flip of a coin. Their performances in Clear Lake were exciting and the music brought a joy that would remain forever in the hearts and minds of all who attended. It was a night that burned bright with some of rock and roll’s greatest songs and brightest stars… and ended with the unthinkable. After their performance Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper were killed when their plane crashed shortly after taking off from the nearby airport in Mason City. That day was forever immortalized as ‘The Day The Music Died’ by Don McLean in his 1972 song “American Pie.” For many people the tour and the crash afterward symbolized the end of a period in both rock ‘n roll and American history, a period of innocent fun for youngsters whose music defied the expectations of parents but also changed the direction of music by challenging existing social norms, including the segregation of races. During the early 1970's the Surf was bringing in a new era of muscians like REO Speedwagon, Kansas, Alice Cooper, The Doobie Brothers, ZZ Top, Martina McBride, Lynryd Skynyrd, Robert Plant, BB King and countless others. By the time Santana arrived here the setlist on their current tour included songs from each of the seven albums they’d already released, plus a few from the upcoming Borboletta. An Iowa rock band/power trio called the Pelican Peace Band opened the show by mixing original songs with covers of Alice Cooper hits.

Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena, Ashwaubenon, WI August 7, 1974

Artist: L. Haglund

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: While continuing their tour through the midwestern states the band made a stop in the town of Ashwaubenon, a suburb located about 3 miles southwest of Green Bay, Wisconsin. It’s name comes from the story of a young Indian brave who single-handedly rescued a kidnapped maiden and returned her back to her tribe. The tribe’s chief then rewarded him with a wife and a large plot of land which was eventually named in memory of the hero. Nearly 200 years later Ashwaubenon had grown to just over 10,000 people and the Brown County Memorial Arena was the largest venue in the Green Bay area at a time when touring bands cared less about the amount of seats and more about getting in front of the people. The concerts held there in 1974 were being performed by some of the most popular groups travelling the country like Aerosmith, Loggins & Messina, The Guess Who, Steppenwolf and Blue Oyster Cult. Santana showed up with opening act Frampton’s Camel and continued what they’d been doing in the months leading up to this date by playing a nearly identical list of songs with very little variation from night to night. Who was the promoter responsible for bringing this show to the arena? It was a young 20-something entrepreneur based in Duluth, Minnesota who used his knowledge of the amusement business to create this new venture which he called Yanqui Productions. The basic goal was to promote rock concerts but serious controversies occurred involving local authorities, parents and police over several of these shows, with Yanqui getting unwanted headlines in the news. The city was against all those kids gathering, several thousand of them sometimes twice a month, and there were a lot of arrests for smoking pot and similar behavior. One of the people who regularly attended shows recalls it this way: “Everyone kind of remembers their name as the coolest and would look for the Yanqui logo. I knew what Yanqui meant, it was kind of a code word for kids... think of Carlos Castonada and all the mescaline taking, shaman from Mexico kind of thing.” In spite of all the troubles Yanqui struggled for three years trying to produce a big outdoor concert at a stadium in it’s home town but had no luck, so expanded it’s promotions into the friendlier surrounding states. Admirably, from it’s very beginning Yanqui Productions had a strong connection to the Indigenous communities and was even invited to observe the Wounded Knee trial when leaders in the American Indian Movement were charged with conspiracy and assault in a standoff with the FBI. On several occasions it also called upon local Native American artists to illustrate a number of it’s posters. Different tribes often had very similar beliefs but would have their own concepts pertaining to them and some of the iconography associated with their cultures has been interpreted by the artist of this piece, starting with the angel type figure or female spirit guide. It’s believed that a spirit guide is a type of energy that’s embodied in different forms and can appear as an angel, animal, ancestor or otherworldly entity. Peering out from her open mouth is the face of a black panther, which is regarded as a symbol of courage as well as a spirit animal with the ability to guide individuals through challenges and provide strength during difficult times. Depictions of the sun are often illustrated in different ways and in addition to representing a beacon of wisdom and enlightenment it’s purpose is understood as being the ultimate provider of warmth and healing, breathing life into the earth. Another significant figure to many tribes is the raven, three of which are drawn here, and there are conflicting thoughts about it’s intentions. Seen as both a mischievous trickster and a shape shifter, it’s also considered a sacred messenger that bridges the gap between humans and the spiritual realm. Finally, even the Yanqui Productions logo has relevance. Placed in the center of the poster’s second sun it’s design is in the shape of a downward facing triangle which was an ancient symbol of femininity while it’s also a portrait of a winged woman, who in many cultures represents rebirth and immortality. Upon a closer examination of the central figure, the drawing suggests that it may be what is called a two spirit entity. An excerpt from the book The Spirit and the Flesh explains it’s meaning this way: Native Americans often held intersex people in high respect. Since everything that exists is thought to come from the spirit world, androgynous people are seen as doubly blessed, having both the spirit of a man and the spirit of a woman. Thus, they are honored for having two spirits, and are seen as more spiritually gifted than the typical masculine male or feminine female.

Honolulu International Center Arena, Honolulu, Oahu, HI November 16, 1974

Artist: Maddox

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A simple yet beautiful lettering style in pastel orange spells out the band’s name in this rare Hawaiian poster that was their final show in the USA before embarking on a tour of Japan. Designed by the artist known as Maddox it displays a large photo that was originally used on the inside cover of the third album, but at the time of this concert only three of the people pictured were still part of the band: Carlos, Chepito and David. Michael Carabello had already been gone for some time and as mentioned previously, Greg and Neil had left the band a year before this to form Journey. Then Michael Shrieve had recently fallen ill over the summer and had to drop out of the tour. The group at this point now included Armando Peraza (percussion & vocals), Leon Patillo (keyboards & vocals), Tom Coster (keyboards & vocals), Ndugu Leon Chancler (drums) and Jules Broussard (flute & sax). They had been touring extensively leading up to this concert and from mid September through the end of October they played 38 shows in 45 days and nearly all of them were in different cities. During that time a third solo Lp by Carlos (who had added the prefix of Devadip to his name) called Illuminations with Alice Coltrane had arrived in record stores. The two likely came together due to Santana’s preoccupation with jazz, but both shared a common vision of expressing their spirituality through music. For Carlos, it was something completely different from anything he had done with his own band. Their last studio album Welcome had taken a definite right turn into the jazz fusion/samba genre and the songs worked well within those structured forms, but this one even went beyond the music that was part of his collaboration with John McLaughlin found on Love Devotion Surrender from the previous year. ‘Illuminations’ was considered by some music critics to be the deepest Santana had ever delved into the world of jazz, while also being the least accessible for most of the diehard fans who had followed him since the very beginning. Needless to say, the Santana band did not play anything from this album during their tour and would stick mainly to more recognized songs and selections from other recent albums. At the strong encouragement of his label and a new manager Carlos would soon return to a more commercial sound and he later credited listening to FM radio and The Tubes as inspiration for what would eventually become 1976’s Amigos.

Nippon Budōkan, Tokyo, Japan December 9-10, 1974

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Undoubtedly one of Japan's top promoters, Mr. Udo welcomed Carlos and the Santana band to his country many times over the years during which a mutual respect for one another grew. In fact, a song on the 1991 double CD of Lotus was titled after him which had been incorrectly titled as "Savor" on the original triple album released two decades earlier. That three Lp set had been created from shows played in 1973 on July 3rd and 4th in Osaka. They would come back the following year, but prior to the last half of the tour which was scheduled to begin in mid-July Michael Shrieve contracted a bad case of kidney stones and had to be hospitalized. He would need more time to recover and the decision was made to bring in Ndugu Leon Chancler to take over drum duties. Michael would not return to the band but would instead continue on with a successful career that included a multitude of collaborations with other artists, his own solo projects and compositions for TV and film soundtracks. As they completed their USA dates, the Borboletta album came out (the third Santana release of the year following the Lotus and Greatest Hits Lp’s) from which they had had already been playing the songs "Mirage" and "Give and Take" throughout the summer months. They then spent the final three weeks of this 1974 tour in Japan to finish out the year by performing 17 concerts in more than a dozen different cities. This poster represents just one of the stops they made to play a show at Nippon Budōkan in Tokyo, however it uses a photo from one of their 1973 concerts with Carlos superimposed over the stage shot.

Rynearson Stadium, Ypsilanti, MI May 25, 1975

Artist: Gary Grimshaw

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Rock concerts filling big stadiums became popular from the mid-70s through the 80s and Rynearson Stadium was Michigan's big venue. It was built in 1969 with seating for 15,000 and mainly used for football games, but by the time Santana played here almost five years later, the seating had been increased to 22,000. Artist for this piece Gary Grimshaw started his career in Detroit, Michigan and produced countless posters for the Grande Ballroom as well as political art and album covers. He traveled frequently between the Detroit area and San Francisco while constantly creating posters and contributing his artwork to underground newspapers in both areas. His brightly colored poster created for this show advertised it as a Summer Celebration in the open air. The relatively unknown supporting act Peter Frampton had actually been paying his dues since the 60s, playing with groups like Humble Pie and doing session work with stars like George Harrison and Jerry Lee Lewis. He was just a year away from achieving phenomenal worldwide success with his Frampton Comes Alive! album when he appeared here with his group Framptons Camel. Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd had just released it's third Lp and their first to reach the top 10. Sadly, just two years later a plane on which they were traveling would crash, killing three of the band members.

Circus Krone, Munich, Germany October 7, 1975

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Near the end of their 1975 European tour together this concert showed the contrast between two very different bands, starting with disco/funk/jazz group Earth, Wind and Fire who opened the show. EWF had already released their hit album “That’s the Way of the World" earlier in the year and were considered an energetic dance band with horn driven songs and a 'get up outta your seat' vibe. But even though they were massively successful in the USA and had their eighth album coming out a month after this concert, the band was less popular in the UK at the time. That would change after this tour as they became known for putting on a big show with lots of people on stage, and an unforgettable revolving drum kit! For the always popular Santana, this tour came between their sixth album Borboletta and their seventh Amigos. As had happened several other times during the tour, on this particular night both bands were playing two shows each and Santana most certainly had to be on top of their game with such a strong opening act. And as usual Carlos and the band rose to the occasion playing crowd favorites like Black Magic Woman, Samba Pa Ti and Soul Sacrifice while teasing the audience with a few songs from their next album. Promoting the two shows is a striking poster in black with a center image that is actually a partial section lifted from a 1970 poster done by Norman Orr (probably without his permission). Oddly, the three conga players that were standing in front of the elephants in that original poster have been mysteriously erased. Faces of the Santana band members are then balanced on each side of this image. And in a very clever design below, the nine members of EWF are shown in front of the 'Earth', with flying birds above them in the 'Wind', while all are captured within a circle of 'Fire'.

St. Jacobshalle, Basel, Switzerland October 8, 1975

Artist: Peter Blumer

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This poster by Swiss artist Peter Blumer advertised Santana at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland with Earth, Wind and Fire as their special guests. Borboletta (which in Portuguese means butterfly) had been out for a year by this point but had spent less time on the charts than any previous Santana album. Since it was considered their newest album concert goers might’ve been expecting to hear quite a few songs from it but the band was only playing one or two. In a Rolling Stone article about it, a reviewer wrote: “As Carlos Santana evolves musically and spiritually - for the time being the two paths seem to be one - he chooses his associates more carefully. The demands of the music he conceives are dictating his personnel choices and the Santana band has become, for recording purposes, an umbrella under which various players perform. Saxophonist Jules Broussard and keyboardman Tom Coster share most of the solo space on Borboletta with Carlos, and their instrumental features are the Lp’s high points.” Another review which appeared in Jazz Music Archives had this to say: “Borboletta is an album that is less hit and miss than it's predecessor but not a whole lot more rewarding, even if it has a more unified sound to add to its share of noteworthy performances. Perhaps one of the highlights is ‘Mirage’ where the chilled approach to the song with its organ, happy beat and supporting percussion is a great fit for the vocal of Leon Patillo, who had previously been with Martha and the Vandellas and an early version of Funkadelic. But it isn't until the mighty and genuinely moving ‘Promise of a Fisherman’ that the album peaks. An eight minute exploration of a theme, it's an impressive workout from the entire group. Carlos is inspired and the whole middle section of the song is a burst of welcome, frantic energy. In fact, it's an almost complete overhaul of Brazilian artist Dorival Caymmi's original - which is more of a folk song - upping the tempo and only retaining the vocal line if not the words, re-imagining it for the keys and guitar and adding a wordless chorus low in the mix. The tension between the fast rhythm section and the slower, meditative key and vocal parts are part of what makes the song such a great listen.” It was during this European tour that the group also made their first appearance behind what was then called the Iron Curtain by playing two shows in Yugoslavia on October 4th & 5th, 1975.

Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, AZ March 20, 1976

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Once upon a time Santana was involved in the filming of a major motion picture. It all began when residents in the college town of Tempe, Arizona and surrounding areas were invited to participate in a Hollywood movie being made in their city. The 1976 film was called “A Star Is Born” starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson and the script called for a fully packed concert venue, which meant producers had to figure out how to bring 50,000 people to the filming site at Sun Devil Stadium. Their solution: put on a day-long concert with big name acts and dirt cheap tickets. The only hitch: the show would start at 7am and the audience would have to stay until it finished that evening. Why? Because making a movie is a very slow process and the concert was only part of the filming to be done that day. In fact, the movie’s producer (who happened to be Barbra Streisand’s love interest at the time) had tried to film the concert scenes elsewhere but it hadn’t worked out so Bill Graham was brought in to produce the segment. Graham had already replaced the Doobie Brothers with Peter Frampton figuring he would be a bigger draw as the closing act because his recent album ‘Frampton Comes Alive’ was already zooming up the charts on its way to #1, eventually becoming the best selling album of 1976. Santana had been missing in action on top 40 radio for quite a while but Bill scheduled them as the runner up and their Amigos album would be released just six days later. Producing a concert is hard enough, but producing a concert that’s part of a movie becomes much more complicated. The movie crew needed to use the stadium for a few days before the Saturday concert to shoot some additional scenes, including one of Kristofferson’s character accidentally riding a motorcycle off the stage. However, because they needed the stage to look like it would for the movie the bands were asked to send their equipment to the stadium ahead of time. So Bill had to arrange that. Then, before Saturday’s main filming even began he had to take care of another situation. One of the 50 or so Hells Angels the producer had hired to give ‘authenticity’ to a certain scene had pointed a gun at him, causing him to hide out in his trailer until Bill arrived. (Needless to say, it was decided that scene was no longer necessary). Of course Bill smoothed out the situation and filming began. Multiple cameras were used to capture the crowd’s reactions while each band played, then between sets the crew shot film of Kristofferson and Streisand onstage so these scenes could later be edited together, appearing as though the crowd was reacting to the actors. First up were the L.A. Jets, a band that Streisand herself had discovered. The band’s singer would later compose a hit song for Streisand called “Prisoner”, which was used for the movie ‘Eyes of Laura Mars’. Next to play was Graham Central Station, a funk band led by Larry Graham of Sly and the Family Stone fame, and they delivered an quick 45 minute set which was followed by more filming of the lead actors before rock group Montrose got their chance to entertain the audience. The crew then refilmed some shots with Kristofferson just before Streisand surprised the audience by performing an impromptu set that delayed the schedule by another 30 minutes. At that point all that was left was more filming of the crowd as they enjoyed longer sets from both Santana and Peter Frampton. A press release from the producers sent to the local news described the citizens of the Phoenix area as being “extremely pleasant and helpful.” But an Arizona Republic reporter was less complementary, describing the concert crowd as “smelling like an overripe mixture of grubby clothes and marijuana.” Thanks to Bill Graham the Santana band had gotten to play in front of nearly 50,000 people just days before their newest album would come out, hopefully giving it a kickstart in sales. But Carlos wasn’t overly concerned about getting on the radio or selling albums. It might have been a concern for the record company however. The band had released four albums over four years but had failed to give them even one top 100 single according to the Billboard charts. And for record companies chart position = sales. Amigos would be touted as Carlos “returning to his earthy ways” in a cover story for Rolling Stone magazine, but would it be enough to satisfy both the fans and the record label?

Day On The Green. Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA June 5, 1976

Artist: Randy Tuten

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Boz Scaggs the headline act over Santana? Well, yes he was. He actually replaced Jefferson Starship who was originally scheduled to be the main attraction of the day but ended up not playing. One reason why Boz might have been chosen over Santana might be due to his quickly rising radio popularity at the time, while Santana had basically been in a 4 year drought as far as getting any new singles on the charts since 1972's No One To Depend On. A few months before this concert occurred both bands had released their seventh albums, Silk Degrees and Amigos respectively. Silk Degrees produced four hit singles including 'Lowdown', which would go on to win a Grammy for best R&B song of 1976. The song itself peaked at #3 on the Billboard chart and the album would peak at #2, spending 115 weeks in the Top 200. Meanwhile there were high hopes for Amigos, which introduced new singer Greg Walker to the band and was the last album to include original bassist David Brown. Unfortunately, the only single from the album 'Let It Shine' peaked at a disappointing #78 just one day before this concert while the album reached #8 and then faded away after only 16 weeks. The band had better luck overseas where 'Europa' was released as a single and became a Top 10 hit in several countries.

Long Beach Arena, Los Angeles, CA January 30, 1977

Artists: Randy Tuten/David Singer

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: 1976 had been a real treat for fans with the release of two Santana albums, first getting Amigos in March followed by Festival which arrived in December. It was the Amigos Lp that allowed the band to finally reappear on the radio and also Billboard magazine‘s top 10 list after a four year absence. But in spite of that achievement it’s been said there were rumors at the time that some people behind the scenes felt the band had become too black and the album had too much funk and not enough rock. It was during this period that Carlos was being coaxed by Bill Graham and producer David Rubinson into recording music that would generate more radio play and album sales. With the release of Festival so quickly following on the heels of Amigos several critics at the time considered this album not as strong, partly blaming it on the change in band members. Drummer Ndugu Leon Chancler, bassist David Brown, percussionist Armando Peraza and vocalist Greg Walker had departed with only keyboardist Tom Coster still on board from the previous group. However, a 2006 article in All About Jazz reassessed Festival in a more positive light: Carlos kicks the album off with the "Carnaval/Let the Children Play/Jugando" medley, almost eight minutes worth of sizzling Latin heat and a throwback to the classic days of Abraxas and Santana III. It's the furious percussion of Jose Chepito Areas on timbales and Raul Rekow on congas matching Santana's incandescent guitar licks that make the medley a high point that the rest of this wildly uneven album never quite reaches again. Give Me Love" is a soul-shuffle ballad and an obvious bid for R&B radio with Leon Patillo's vocals sounding quite similar to Earth, Wind and Fire's Maurice White. Patillo had previously appeared on the last jazz fusion Santana album Borboletta in 1974 and toured off and on with the group until 1979. Patillo, a fine vocalist and pianist, left secular music behind and has gone on to become an established gospel singer. He only sings lead on three of the album's 11 tracks, but he is one of the better vocalists Santana has worked with. Carlos pays homage to the late legendary Brazilian singer Elis Regina with "Verao Vermelho." It features some excellent accoustic guitar with The Waters Family background vocalists singing the meaningless words "Badadup, badadup, badadup, ba pa pa ba pa pa." Santana plays a flamenco guitar solo, a first for him as the track closes with a florish. Gaylord Birch sets a military tone with his drumming on "Revelations." Keyboards have always played a vital role in Santana compositions and Tom Coster widened the range for the band when he replaced organist Gregg Rolie. In retrospect, there may be an overabundance of synthesizer flourishes on Festival, but Coster is the most accomplished keyboardist Santana has ever had with Coster able to compliment the guitarist quite well. “Reach Up" is a slice of greasy funk and a throwaway jam between Pablo Tellez's bass, Coster's synthesisers and Santana's screaming guitar but oh, what a jam it is. It's irresistably danceable and the kind of song best heard in cars with very loud stereo systems. Patillo returns for the surprisingly gentle ballad "The River" and the rave-up "Try A Little Harder." Both songs are professionally competent if not profoundly compelling. Tellez's vocals take the lead in the album closer "Maria Caracoles", a south of the border fiesta sung entirely in Spanish. The album peaked on the Billboard charts at #27 and went gold, but the lack of a single hurt sales. Festival represents one of the last examples of Carlos Santana emphasizing the music over radio friendly pop-rock, while also lessening his distinctive percussion driven sound and soaring guitar solos. In this poster promoting a tour stop in Long Beach, California creators of the album’s original cover art used the same design but placed it against a black background. Notice the flower petals are arranged in a way that subliminally reminds one of the lion’s face from the first Lp. The white copy was a test pressing to make sure the colors and images were aligned and is autographed by one of the artists.

Memorial Gymnasium, Kent State University, Kent, OH October 7, 1978

Artist: John Curran

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In the early days when someone spoke of Santana, be it a record or live concert, the name represented the whole band as a unit. But as the years went by it gradually came to most represent Carlos himself. Visually, it first started happening when he would occasionally be the only one pictured on the posters or handbills without the rest of the group. But eventually that would become the standard protocol. Perhaps it was because of the ever-changing band members. Or maybe because the promoters knew when Santana was coming to town people wanted to see and hear the man who could make a guitar cry. The focus was clearly on Carlos the man. In October 1978, the Inner Secrets album came out displaying a cover shot of the band but Carlos stood slightly apart, separated from the rest. It would be the last Santana album where anybody other than Carlos would be on the front cover. The band was now Raul Rekow, Greg Walker, Graham Lear, Pete Escovedo, David Margen and Armando Peraza along with newest members Chris Solberg and Chris Rhyne who had been added in June. The album itself might have been a bit of a disappointment to fans who were hoping for more of the earthy rhythms that had been restarted with Amigos, or others who were still hungry for the jazz oriented explorations that Carlos embraced on several of the previous albums. Columbia Records would let him get back to that on his upcoming solo and band projects, but for this album they very strongly wanted some singles on the radio to help push record sales so the hitmaking team of Lambert & Potter were hired to produce the Lp. The duo brought one of the songs they had co-written called "One Chain (Don’t Make No Prison)" which had first been a single for the group People in 1970, and then a second time for The Four Tops in 1974. Would Santana make it a three time hit on the radio? It made it to #59 on the pop charts but oddly it wasn’t the cut from the original album, it was an alternate disco single version that clocked in at nearly one minute longer. It’s this version that was included on most of the CDs released in the mid 80’s. Two other cover songs on the album also got some radio play: "Well All Right" (Buddy Holly) and "Stormy" (Classics IV). The band was near the end of it’s U.S. tour when it made a stop here at Kent State University. This was the site that garnered unwanted notoriety eight years earlier when National Guard soldiers fired approximately 67 bullets in 13 seconds, killing four university students and wounding nine others. The students had been unarmed and were protesting President Nixon's bombing of Cambodia. Within weeks the tragic event was recounted in a song written and released by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young called "Ohio". Kent State went on to become the largest university promoter of rock and roll shows in the country and hosted major acts such as Santana, the Eagles, Earth, Wind and Fire, Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd and others. But by the time Santana returned for this show in 1978 most of the big name concerts were being held 90 minutes away at the recently built Richmond Coliseum, whose capacity was three times bigger than Kent's Memorial Gym.

German Tour June-July 1980

Artist: John Paul Jones

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A striking image lifted from the Marathon album adorns this poster for a series of shows that were played from mid June through the beginning of July 1980. It was created by a relatively unknown artist named John Paul Jones who had previously worked on the Moonflower and Oneness; Silver Dreams, Golden Reality albums, and would later also do the work on Zebop. During a short interview he was once asked about his inspiration and method for the album art. "In 1979 Carlos Santana gave me some pictures of classical Greek urns that had runners as their motif. He asked me to develop a design for his next album, Marathon. He then told me that Tony Lane, the great art director at CBS and of Fantasy Records fame also wanted to design Marathon and was developing a concept for the album at the same time as myself. To create my image, I used three slide projectors, a slide of the runners urn, and a slide I shot in my fireplace which I duplicated and flipped for projection. I saw wings immediately in the flames, those Harley-Davidson kind of wings. Then I saw the double image that I was looking for. I was hoping to find a double image as an homage to the first Santana album cover loved by so many. I then cropped and traced the images for position. When Tony Lane placed my design next to the one he had already developed, he looked at me and said "%¥#! you, John Paul," and I knew he loved it." As for the Marathon album itself, some critics felt this was the beginning of Santana's second commercial slide and some of the reviews were quite harsh: "...terrible, terrible lyrics on top of melodies straight out of empowering volleyball commercials on what is essentially a washed-up disco-funk record. It's brimful with pedestrian pop choruses, awful instrumentation and synths overall. And frankly the guitar sounds lost, limp and assimilated in this context." Bad reviews aside, the album was notable for consisting entirely of band-written material which continued in the R&B/rock style that had started evolving on albums like Amigos, Festival, and Inner Secrets. But even with a Top 40 hit in "You Know That I Love You" which reached #35, Marathon became the first Santana album to not immediately surpass the 500,000 sales mark necessary for gold record certification (although it eventually did). On a positive note, the one song that most critics and fans seemed to agree upon as a standout was the instrumental "Aqua Marine".

Kalvøyafestivalen. Bærum, Norway June 29, 1980

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Kalvøyafestivalen was a Norwegian music festival held at Kalvøya in Bærum which is near Oslo, Norway. The idea for the festival came from a few people connected to a folk club called Hades, located at the art center on Høvikodden. The yearly festival itself was then started by Sten Randers Fredriksen in 1971 and officially ended in 1998. The following paragraph is an eyewitness account pertaining to Santana that was posted on the Festival's facebook page by Erland Bekkelund:

"In 1980 Santana came to the Kolvoya Festival in a limousine and leather boots. It had rained for several days. The day the festival was held, the calf island lawn had had enough and it became a little difficult to get out with dry shoes to tell the truth. The limousine the band sat in got stuck and they had to walk in between the audience the last bit before they got on stage. They opened the concert optimistically with 'Lightning In The Sky' from the album Marathon. Speaking of marathons, he had actually planned a jogging trip from Oslo to Sandvika with the audience and all but the weather put an end to it."

Sports Stadium, Albuquerque, NM August 31, 1980

Artist: Jim Pinkoski

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Here's another big stadium show where Santana topped the lineup over three opening acts. Sammy Hagar's career began as lead singer on the first two Montrose albums until band leader Ronnie Montrose fired him during a 1975 European tour claiming Sammy was already “getting into his own thing.” Hagar would continue on as a successful solo artist, becoming more well known than the band he was ousted from and releasing six albums by the time this event took place. One interesting note: in 1983 he put together short-lived project known as HSAS - Hagar Schon Aronson Shrieve (yes, that’s Santana alumni Neil Schon and Michael Shrieve). Within a year's time they did a very short California tour and one album before ending the project. Ex-cop turned singer-songwriter Eddie Money had been playing Bay Area nightclubs for nearly a decade when he was discovered by Bill Graham who then signed Eddie to his own Wolfgang Records, a subsidiary of the Columbia Records label. Released in December 1977, Money's first album was pretty much a studio version of his live shows at the time, nearly all original songs that he and the band had written and perfected during their performances around the Bay. By February of 1978 Eddie began opening shows for Santana in an arrangement that would continue off and on over the next year and a half while sending him on tour around the world. Two of his biggest hits “Baby Hold On” and “Two Tickets to Paradise” were still getting plenty of air play and his third album arrived in stores a month before this concert. Gamma was the group formed by guitarist Ronnie Montrose after breaking up his namesake band and putting out one solo record. I believe this was the first time he and former bandmate Sammy Hagar had seen each other since their falling out during that European tour a few years earlier. Gamma had a more progressive rock sound and was more radio friendly than Montrose had been, using a lot of the latest keyboard technology that was popular at the time. The band's debut Lp came out in 1979, and their second album was released just prior to this show. As for the colorful poster? No doubt the inspiration came from the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta which has been a yearly event since 1972 and is the largest balloon festival in the world. It was drawn by Jim Pinkoski, an artist who created posters promoting 60s, 70s and a few early 80s music concerts. He 'came back to Christianity' in 1984 while living in San Francisco and in 1986 turned his attention to writing and illustrating a series of Christian comic books. As far as I know this could be one of the last concert posters he did as I have not seen anything by him after this date.

Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo, CA February 22, 1981

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A very cool poster with a dragon and a winding road leading to a distant castle under an eclipsing moon. I have no info about the special guest or the poster artist, but here is a review of the concert from the University’s newspaper: Who says Cal Poly doesn’t attract rock ‘n’ roll stars? Devadip (his spiritual name) Carlos Santana 'bodysurfed' his way into the Cal Poly main gym Sunday night on the crest of a tidal wave, devastating the student populous with his Latin-rock jazz. "Bodysurfing", a new song played in the middle of the set, was composed by Santana after a trip to the Caribbean in December. The song combined the stinging Latin rock that characterizes the group’s first albums (Santana, Abraxas) with effortless melodic guitar work. The sum was a truly Santana experience. Carlos directed his way through 2 hours and 45 minutes of nonstop energetic rock, waving and gesturing his band through their extensive repertoire. From the outset the group never let up, winding their way from "All I Ever Wanted" through "Black Magic Woman" and "Dealer", which featured the improvising Carlos on his guitar. The band, formed by Carlos in San Francisco’s Mission district in 1969, featured an uncompromising percussion section. The newest member of the band, Orestes Vilato, a percussionist who hails from the New York City Latin music scene, rambled violently on the timbales (kettledrum) providing the backbone for Santana’s continuous beat. Bassist David Margen, who joined the band four years ago, provided a lively jazzy-type solo while other members took a water break. His rendition, coupled with the numerous percussion interludes, provided a perfect balance with Carlos’ flawless licks. Carlos opened his encore to a stage front packed with exuberant fans pushing their way through the ushers. The first song, "She’s Not There" from the Moonflower album, ignited the crowd as people began to dance and clap wildly, exhibiting some of the previous behavior seen at Elvis Costello. Sweat could be seen on everyone’s mug as the heat intensified through the final song "Transcendence."

UNH Field House, Durham, NH November 3, 1984

Artist: Mullen

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The 1980’s were a decade of change for the small local promoters and radio stations that produced concerts in and around their own cities. The bigger and better financed names in the business were slowly expanding into other markets by promising well known groups more money and putting on all-day shows with multiple acts at the larger stadiums. They still had to involve the local promoters to make the events happen but that would eventually change as well. Among those feeling the affects of this gradual power shift were the College campuses. Their venues were popular for concerts but it was getting harder for them to procure the money needed to compete with those bigger promoters. Throughout the 70’s the average ticket price had been around $6 but by the mid-80’s it was pretty common to pay $10 to $12 or even more to see your favorite band. Here at the University of New Hampshire a student organization known as SCOPE (Student Committee On Popular Entertainment) had been producing concerts since the 1960’s and was responsible for all aspects of bringing musical entertainment to their Fieldhouse stage. This included financing, promotion, stage crew, security etc. As times were changing they realized that even some lesser known bands were now demanding more money when they gained a little bit of notoriety. Case in point: an upcoming show by John Cafferty & the Beaver Brown Band was scheduled three weeks before Santana’s concert and they received a $4500 check for the gig. In the months prior to this date their highest payday had been $2700. Why the difference? Their song ‘On The Dark Side’ was featured in the movie Eddie and the Cruisers, which HBO had begun showing over the summer. It then got constant radio play and peaked at #1 on the Billboard Rock Chart. Taking advantage of their sudden popularity, tickets for their show now sold for $9. Tickets to see Santana, who had more than a dozen albums to their name but no current hits, would cost only four dollars more. Realizing it had been over two years since the Shango' album and with nothing new on the radio generating excitement for their upcoming appearance, SCOPE might have been concerned about interest in the show. That, along with the fact that a month earlier the Chick Corea concert had to be moved to a smaller venue because of low ticket sales. It’s also very likely that the majority of young students wouldn’t have been familiar with Santana’s music unless they listened to an oldies station or had seen the MTV video of ‘Hold On’, one of two 60’s pop songs the band covered on that album. However, this ticket price was still comparable to what most venues were charging to see Santana and a quick check on past concert revenues in other cities would show they’d more than recover their costs. As always, the band had kept busy over the prior two years playing concerts throughout Europe, Canada and the US. Most recently they had been on a short European tour with Bob Dylan from May through July, then came back home to finish up recording the Beyond Appearances Lp just a few days before this show. It wasn’t due out until January of next year but they‘d been playing nearly half of it during concerts throughout 1984. Finally, the poster image of Carlos from the Moonflower Lp was probably drawn by one of the University’s art students and the SCOPE group not only survived but thrived in spite of all the big name promoters. They remained very active and are still bringing concerts to the UNH Fieldhouse.

The Welsh Auditorium, Grand Rapids, MI May 30, 1985

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Originally called the Civic Auditorium when built in the early 1930's this venue became the Welsh Auditorium from 1975 until 2003, when it's time came to an end and the building was demolished. Among the wide variety of musical entertainment that played there during it's long history were artists ranging from Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole and Muddy Waters to Johnny Cash, the Grateful Dead and Journey. Santana's 'Beyond Appearances' album had hit the streets just three months before this show and unfortunately would not be that successful - only reaching #50 on the Billboard charts, while the single "Say It Again" reached #46. A quick look through the Santanamigos 1985 Tour page reveals that a typical setlist during this time had them frequently playing more than half the album on any given night. Quite often they would also include "Two Points Of View" (not on the album but later added to the CD release), a catchy tune with Greg Walker and Alex Ligertwood exchanging vocals. It was the first tour where the band was using two lead vocalists and the third time they added an additional keyboardist in the form of Sterling Crew, who had joined the tour in April to share those duties with Chester Thompson...

20th Anniversary Celebration. Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, CA August 17, 1986

Artist: David Singer

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Early in his career David Singer wasn't interested in making posters but had put together a portfolio of collages he shopped around to various companies that he hoped could be used as ​“greeting cards or something” in his own words. As fate would have it his work was rejected by most of the publishers in San Francisco before grabbing the attention of Bill Graham, who saw his art as a perfect tool to advertise concerts at the Fillmore. This was the era before computers changed everything in graphics and Singer's posters would become notable for his unique way of overlapping images he had collected and clipped from thousands of magazines spanning several decades. At the same time he would also develop a variety of lettering styles, using them to complement the theme or subject of each poster. He's the one person who eventually created more posters for Bill than any other artist, even after the Fillmore closed, designing a massive 75 posters from 1969 to 1990. In 1986 he was asked to make this larger than normal commemorative poster for a special event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Santana, an event that saw band members both old and new coming together on one stage for one night to perform two separate concerts. To signify how quickly time had passed along with the changes that occurred both personally and musically during their first two decades he used a vintage image of Father Time dancing upon the ocean while wearing the winged foot sandal, a symbol from Roman mythology associated with speed and progress. Also figuring prominently is the orange poppy flower symbolizing both imagination and regeneration. It's all set against a bright red background and the shoreline of a warm, sandy beach. This one is signed in silver ink by the artist.

Mission Cultural Center Retrospective. San Francisco, CA June 6-30, 1987

Artist: Fred Mueller/Mission Grafica

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Santana was honored with this retrospective event in early June 1987, but there were also some other related events around that time that are worth noting. The band played a free outdoor concert in San Francisco’s Mission District during the largest multicultural festival on the west coast, known simply as Carnaval. Hundreds showed up and filled the streets wanting to hear the music they’d grown up with and houses overflowed with people hanging out of second and third story windows, with even more climbing to the rooftops so they could see and hear the band. By the time it ended everyone had been rewarded with over an hour of Santana music. Another happening involved Michael Rios, an artist living in the Mission District who collaborated with two other artists in painting a three panel mural called Inspire to Aspire on the sides of an apartment complex. A large and colorful piece, it featured Carlos along with conguero Armando Peraza and pianist Eddie Palmieri. Rios was already well known around San Francisco for the many murals he’d placed throughout the city since the early 70’s. One of his very first had created quite a stir when it depicted pig faced police officers harassing rat headed citizens, and it immediately brought him recognition outside of California after being shown on national television. As for the circumstances leading up to the printing of this poster the facts are as follows: The Mission Cultural Center (MCC) had undergone more than two years of renovations with funds allocated from the city and charitable organizations in conjunction with the Neighborhood Arts Program, but MCC director Oscar Maciel reported that the work had been shoddily done. The concrete was cracking, the floors sagged in places and there were doors that did not operate properly. When MCC had originally approached the city it had a number of requests for the renovation including spaces for classrooms, the removal of pillars on the first floor, increased theater space, and installation of an elevator. Maciel claimed that the meetings had turned out to be merely ‘tokens’ and community input had been ignored. Community members stated that they had been left with an empty shell of a building because the theater space had no seating and capacity was now less than half of its prior use, plus it still lacked the requested elevator. In response, the Neighborhood Arts Program director said everything that could be accomplished with the allocated money had been done. Since they were now on their own MCC put out a community call to action asking for support and volunteers to assist with carpentry, painting and cleaning. To help finish the renovations Carlos Santana asked Mission Gráfica to design T-shirts and posters for an upcoming tour, with a portion of sales to be donated to MCC. As part of its official reopening after renovations were finally completed, the Center hosted an exhibit celebrating the twenty year music career of Carlos and the Santana band. The exhibit ran throughout the entire month and included photos, videos, awards and other memorabilia. The poster created to commemorate the event was a joint effort by Mission Gráfica and Fred Mueller, who computerized a photo of Carlos originally taken by Herbert Shulze.

Mountain Aire II Festival. Calaveras County Fairgrounds, Angel's Camp, CA August 22-23, 1987

Artist: Frank Vastano

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Angels Camp, California. Mark Twain based his tale "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" on a story he heard while visiting there in 1865. And a mere 122 years later a different kind of story happened called Mountain Aire Festival ll. It was held a few days after the Harmonic Convergence, a New Age spiritual event which had occurred on August 16 and 17, 1987 (where groups of people gathered in various sacred sites and mystical places all over the world to bring global awakening through divine transformation.) A festival attendee's memory of the concert follows: "David Lindley and his legendary band El Rayo X opened. With 90° heat Mr. Dave in his finest polyester announced that he was playing with the best drummer he had ever performed with in his life. At first I laughed, and then they ripped into a fire blazing "Crazy 'Bout a Mercury." What followed Dave's segment would be a nearly three hour scorching set by Santana. The heat, the planes, the ambulances, the parachuting acrobats, the dust, Jerry on a golf cart, and Bill Graham rushing around on his scooter desperately attempting to escort a carload of freaked out suits while threatening to 86 anyone who looked at him funny. There was no escape, we were in it for the full ride. The Dead didn't hit the stage until well after the sun had gone down. The blazing afternoon gave way to Jerry's incredible way of connecting to the song "Friend of the Devil" that seemed to put in context all we had been through leading up to that magical weekend. Damn, what a great time to be young." But after being overrun by more than 30,000 people during the two day concert, the city of Angels Camp discontinued the festival for a full decade. When it was finally brought back in 1998 more security was added and there were limits on the crowd size allowed for this event.

Zilker Metropolitan Park, Austin, TX July 4, 1991

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Featured performer Joe Walsh first gained notoriety in 1968 with the James Gang before striking out on his own with two solo albums. He then began a nearly twenty year association with the Eagles in 1975 and was featured prominently on their Hotel California album, one of the best selling records of all time. After they disbanded he continued his solo releases and was currently riding high with a top 10 single "Ordinary Average Guy". Taking the stage just before him was 60’s folk rock star Roger McGuinn who reportedly flew in after playing a gig in Dallas while on tour in support of his newest album. In addition to his recent music he undoubtedly played many well known hits from his days as frontman in The Byrds. Texas legend and Austin favorite for many years, singer/harmonica player Delbert McClinton belted out his distinct style of country blues, soul and roots rock for the crowd. Early in his career he paid his dues playing harp behind legends like Howlin’ Wolf, Jimmy Reed and Sonny Boy Williamson among others and started recording his own music in the 70’s, producing more than a dozen albums by the time of this show. He finally received worldwide recognition after singing a duet with Bonnie Raitt on 1991's Luck of the Draw album, earning a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal. First act of the day was the Arc Angels, a local four piece band featuring Stevie Ray Vaughan's former drummer and bassist. Although they never intended to record or go out on the road they changed their mind after being asked to open up for Robert Cray when he came through town. Things moved pretty quickly after that as they got signed to a major label, recorded an album and started touring. In celebration of the July 4th holiday Budweiser beer sponsored this free concert in Zilker Park, but Santana fans would soon be disappointed to learn that their favorite band would not be performing as scheduled. On June 28th Carlos Santana was busted at Houston Intercontinental Airport for possession of five grams of marijuana. Acting quickly to ensure a lawful, family-friendly environment for their patriotic beer bash, Budweiser then dropped Santana from the show, replacing them with pop rockers REO Speedwagon. By doing so the alcohol selling sponsor presented themselves as a company that would never condone such illicit, addicting behavior while ignoring the fact that 108,838 Americans would die of alcohol related causes in 1991.

Pima County Fairgrounds, Tucson, AZ September 1, 1991

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: When Santana played this venue the previous year more than 15,000 fans showed up, giving them the unofficial record for attracting the city’s largest concert crowd ever. After that kind of reception Carlos knew he’d have to come back again and play for such an enthusiastic audience. In the days leading up to the show the city’s newspapers helped promote it by writing several articles, with one of them printing a quote by well known music critic Dave Marsh (Rolling Stone magazine contributor): “What’s amazing is how well the smoldering power of Santana’s guitar and the husky yearning of the vocals have held up - a lot better than anything other members of San Francisco’s psychedelic squadron can claim.” Another local paper snagged an interview with Carlos noting that even though record sales had slacked off over the past 10 years Santana along with the Grateful Dead were still survivors of the 60’s music scene. “When it rains everybody gets wet” Carlos said by telephone from his San Francisco studio, the tone of his voice displaying a deeper meaning to his poetic comparison. This 44 year old guitarist who was born in the Mexican village of Autlan loves to fill his conversations with allegory. By talking about the rain he meant that all people in all countries are one people. “I say things and a lot of people don’t get it. I say ‘God created the world round so we can all have center stage.’ If you don’t get it you have to keep trying. The earth is the womb and we are all the babies.” And while Europe continues to work through a diplomatic jungle of political ego and compromise to reach its goal of a united continent by the end of the century, Santana sees the new world falling behind. If a European can travel all about the continent using the same passport and the same currency regardless of which country they’re in, Santana reasons that the same unity should exist among all countries on this side of the globe also, from Canada to Brazil. For him the question isn’t rhetorical, it’s spiritual. “Basically, we need to have spiritual education at night for adults - a spiritual Sesame Street for adults that teaches you spiritual values, more compassion and more wisdom. In other words we need to wake up to the reality that this is not a Rambo or John Wayne movie. This is very serious. Your children, my children and our children’s children are involved in this. I think through music we can gain faith and clarity that is more long lasting than anything that happens on CNN” he explains. Even though he hasn’t had a major presence on the radio since 1981’s single ‘Hold On’ Santana has continued to tour every year including some major appearances at 1985’s Live Aid concert in Philadelphia’s JFK Stadium, 1987’s performance in East Berlin (before the wall came down) and the Rock in Rio 2 gig last January in Brazil. His tours have touched down in 46 countries and he was the first rock ‘n’ roll star from the West to play in Budapest, Hungary. For Carlos the line between performance and personal philosophy has always been thin. “You can’t separate your spirituality from your music. Sometimes I am angry - about acts of injustice particularly - and I must counter that within myself. I used to think that the more spiritual you are the more wimpy you are, now I know that isn’t true. I’m always trying to add more softness to take the thorns off the rose.” But as fans started gathering before the concert at this outdoor venue it’s likely that very few of them were thinking of spirituality. Located just outside the city in a large desert area temperatures had been near 100° for most of the afternoon and the few patches of shade found next to the outside wall were already at full capacity. Even though it would be quite a while before the gates were opened they knew relief would come at sundown, but that was still hours away. Those who had been here the previous year had learned it was best to come early and endure the heat since there were no seats and they wanted to be as close to the stage as possible once the music began. It would be worth the wait.

Sweetwater Bar, Mill Valley, CA October 30, 1991

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The band played this benefit concert just five days after Bill Graham died and apparently it was only promoted by word of mouth and at the venue itself due to its small size. The location was the Sweetwater Bar which had a legal capacity of just 110 people, although I'm sure a few more might have squeezed their way into this sold out show. Arriving early in the afternoon to check the the place out, I saw that the stage area in the corner of this long but narrow room was so tiny that I seriously doubted the whole band could actually fit. I even asked the bar manager if this was going to be just a solo show and she replied that she didn't think so. Also scheduled to appear was guitar slinger Lonnie Mack who had burst onto the music scene in 1963 with an instant hit single called "Memphis", an uptempo instrumental based on Chuck Berry's tune "Memphis Tennessee". He is considered by many to be one of the pioneers of blues rock, and was supposed to open the show but his plane was late getting into San Francisco so Carlos and the band started their set early. They gave the small crowd a sneak preview of the entire Milagro album before it had even been released, with the exceptions of Your Touch & Free All The People. In place of those songs they substituted Trail Of Tears & a heartfelt rendition of I Love You Much Too Much, during which Carlos at one point turned to face a large framed picture of Bill which hung upon the wall. About midway through the night Lonnie showed up and Carlos invited him out to play Blues For Salvador and an instrumental jam. (set list from the Santana.com website is correct in this case). At one point during the evening Carlos told the soundboard man to "turn it up, if we go to jail we'll all go to jail" which brought loud applause and cheers from the crowd. By the time the album was released in 1992 the first song of the night, Nuestros Colores, had become Milagro and Swimming In Your Eyes turned into Grajonca. I snatched this small poster off the bulletin board outside the bar and was lucky enough to have Carlos sign it at the end of the night.

Bullring By The Sea, Tijuana, Mexico March 21-22, 1992

Artists: Steve "Killer" Kahn (photo) and Neko Studios (art)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The rumours were true. Santana was coming to Mexico. It created such an overwhelming demand for tickets that a second show was quickly added and a sticker was attached to the many posters yet to be displayed. The posters used an image soon to be found on the the band’s upcoming album Milagro, the Spanish word for miracle, and centered in the image was a colorized photo of Carlos placing his hand against the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem during the band’s 1987 European tour. The illustrations framing him represent small milagro charms, often made of silver and traditionally symbolizing a prayer, hope, or wish. Sometimes they’re carried for healing purposes after being blessed by a curandero/spiritual healer. Once it was announced the news travelled quickly - Santana was coming home to play two concerts inside an old bullring, a venue still used for that purpose when it wasn’t hosting boxing matches and other events. Located close to the border many fans from Southern California also attended and in a show of harmony each day’s event began with the release of balloons representing both the US and Mexico - red, white and blue from one side of the stage along with green, red and white from the other. Under a headline reading ‘Master of Latin rock throws a 5 hour Fiesta’ the San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper printed a review after the first day’s show: A near sellout crowd rocked the bullring by the sea yesterday as people danced and stomped their feet to the music of this city‘s prodigal, albeit adopted son, Carlos Santana and his namesake group. The concert - Santana’s first ever in the city where he played his first riffs - was turned into a binational happening. Young people from both sides of the border including sailors, barrio toughs, yuppies and preppies joined middle aged fans in a five hour memorable fiesta under relatively sunny skies. Santana will play a second concert today beginning at 3:30 pm and promoter Bill Silva said there are plenty of seats available. For Santana, who is 44, the opportunity to play in his adopted hometown is a dream come true. “The people have been incredible” he said hours before taking the stage. “I love to be here. I thank God for allowing me to play here.” A native of Autlan, Jalisco he grew up in Tijuana after moving here with his family in 1955. Acknowledged as the precursor of Latin rock, he started his musical career playing the blues in a local bar in the early 1960’s and later moved to San Francisco, where he organized his now famous group. Silva declared yesterday’s concert an artistic success but he admitted the organization involved, especially in the seating arrangement for the more than 16,500 who attended, was a disaster. “We owe a lot of people an apology for putting up with the disorganization” said Silva. Part of the problem was that Mexican authorities would not allow him to bring in people with the experience needed in seating logistics unless he paid a hefty fee to allow them to work. Ultimately volunteers and local police were put in charge, and the results were less than satisfactory. Hundreds of people who bought prime seats facing the stage on the bullring infield were forced to accept seats in the upper decks because the infield filled up long before Santana took the stage at 5:40 pm. It seems police were at first allowing people with general admission tickets to take many of those prime seats. When promoters realized what was going on “It was too late for us to do anything about it” Silva said. Ticket holder Roberto Galloza, a sailor stationed at North Island, was hopping mad. “They’re telling me that I have to sit up here. I paid $20 for my infield ticket and I want to be down there. This is unfair.” There were a few other problems but the 400 city police officers (200 of which were paid by the promoters) commissioned to control the crowd were able to control them easily. About 20 people were arrested for smoking pot and another 30 or so or arrested for fighting but overall the concert went smoothly. Crowds started lining up outside the 18,000 seat Plaza Monumental bullring around 1:00 pm and scalpers such as Victor Francisco Anda were doing brisk business. “People think that the concert is sold out so I’m buying $10 tickets and I’m reselling them at $15. I have three to sell and $100 in my pocket – all profit.” By 2:25 the bullring was half full and people were in a fiesta mood with lines at the beer stand already growing longer. Police officers in riot gear or on horseback patroled the premises. At 3:30 Carlos‘ father, Jose Santana, took the stage with the local mariachi group Tequila and the crowd cheered when they heard the first strains of “El Son de la Negra.” The fiesta was on! Pato Banton and his reggae group were next. After they finished there was a short break to set the stage and then the entire bullring erupted in a deafening roar as Santana began their set, fans jumping to their feet to dance with delight. They sang out loud the classic lyrics that rocked a generation and danced joyously as they clapped, all in tune with Santana’s legendary songs. “Oye Como Va” shouted the fans in a sing-along with one of the band’s most famous compositions. Wearing his signature bandanna headband, black jeans and a black and gold shirt Carlos addressed the crowd midway through the set, speaking in his native Spanish and saying “I’d like to present my Tijuana brother” while introducing his boyhood chum and musical mentor, local guitarist Javier Batiz. Loud cheers and applause greeted the announcement. Other guests appearing with the band at various times throughout the night were Jorge Santana, Larry Graham and Cesar Rojas from Los Lobos. For more than 2 1/2 hours Santana’s rhythmic music combined with the singing, clapping and foot stomping of the crowd to rock the wood and concrete structure. Once the final note was played a spectacular display of fireworks lit up the night sky over the venue, bringing this memorable event to a close.

All Our Colors. Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, CA October 10, 1992

Artist: Michael Roman

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In 1992 a special event was held in Mountain View, California. All Our Colors: The Good Road Concert was a Benefit for the Traditional Circle of Elders and Youth and it was part of a weekend celebration to commemorate 500 years of survival of the indigenous peoples of the western hemisphere. The festivities included dancing and drumming exhibitions, native foods, continous video programs, multiple artists showing their paintings, sculpture and art of all kinds, special speakers throughout the day and of course a variety of musical guests that played from early afternoon until late in the evening. In addition to the regular poster for the event, Michael Roman produced this special edition piece. Larger than most concert posters it's what’s called a Serigraph. A serigraph differs from regular printings and lithographs because no two pieces turn out completely identical. The reason for this is due to the process where different colors of ink are applied one at a time to each individual poster, and when running your hand over the poster's surface you can actually feel the different layers of ink. It's also signed and titled by the artist. The Native American depicted in the photograph is Wolf Robe (or Ho'néhevotoomáhe) who was a Southern Cheyenne chief and a holder of the Benjamin Harrison Peace Medal. During the late 1870s he was forced to leave his home on the open plains and relocate his tribe onto the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian Reservation in Indian Territory...

Paseo Stadium, Agana, Guam March 17, 1993

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: After finding this Santana poster from a Guam concert, I was curious about the little symbol that appears on the poster 19 times and found it is called the latte stone. The latte stone is a rock pillar topped with a hemispherical capstone and was used as a foundation for buildings, but for the early indigenous Chamorro people there was also a spiritual meaning for it as well. "Creation of the latte may have signified for the builder a connection to a particular activity of the ancient Chamorro's societal structure, a model for a sacred ritual and belief. The latte stones are thought to have been built because of the Chamorros' concept of aniti (spirit), and a passing to the next life within the protection of the latte. For this reason, the latte possibly symbolized a sacred space for the Chamorros, who buried their dead between the stones. And even though it is now used as a national symbol, the latte stones are as old as the Mayan pyramids."

Mesa Amphitheatre, Mesa, AZ June 3, 1994

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: It was a day more typical of late July or early August, the heat so oppressive that it felt as if someone had left the oven door open. But prematurely high temperatures had been common in the Arizona desert in the weeks leading up to this concert and today was no exception - it reached 107° in Mesa. Even so, the sellout crowd of 4,200 had begun to gather at the front gates two hours before the 7:30pm starting time and the buzz of anticipation was in the air. Located just 15 minutes from downtown Phoenix, this open air concert venue has long been popular for daylong festivals and concerts. Seating (there are no actual seats) is unreserved on three tiered levels of comfortable green grass so if you want to get up close to the stage you have to arrive early and grab a spot before anyone else does. After a well received performance by opening act Robert Cray and his band, the crowd anxiously awaited who they had really come to see - Santana! Minutes later as the first notes of “Angels All Around Us” rang from the speakers, Carlos thanked the audience for their response, made a few comments and the band jumped right into one of their new songs on this tour “Yaleo”. It’s a great upbeat tune with vocals done in Spanish and highlighted at one point by inserting a portion of 1980’s “Hannibal” into the melody to spice it up. This was followed by “Angel Love”, sung by Alex and sounding like a definite candidate for radio play if it ends up as part of the next Lp. The lyrics along with his vocal style on this one got a very good response, especially from the many females in the audience. A new instrumental “Luz, Amor Y Vida” (Light, Love and Life) featured Carlos‘ emotive guitar telling us yet another story and also making a reference to Stevie Wonder’s beautiful “Another Star” which he seamlessly blended in as though it was written that way. Following “Savor”, which showcased Chester creating another memorable solo on keyboards, Raul and Karl once again demonstrated the mastery of their instruments by first soloing alone and then playing together, interweaving through each other’s rhythms and captivating the crowd with their exact timing and precision. At this point Carlos asked the audience if they were in the mood for a jam and of course they were. He invited Robert Gray to join him and they proceeded with a slow, bluesy version of “Maggot Brain” from the 1971 Funkadelics album by that title. The crowd was equally appreciative of both guitarist’s tasteful soloing and roared their approval each time one would finish his musical statement. Cray stayed onstage for “Why Can’t We Live Together”, a 1972 Timmy Thomas song (covered again in 1985 by Sade) that Santana’s been playing at different times since 1992 and perhaps chosen again in light of the increasing conflicts around the world in recent years. After an extended version of Bob Marley’s “Exodus” the rest of the concert was filled with songs spanning the group’s albums from Abraxas through Milagro. The final song, as it has been over the past few years, was “Jingo”. Without a doubt the audience would have enjoyed more than one encore but due to the strict 10:30 curfew this uplifting music had to come to an end.

Reopening of the Fillmore June 10, 1994 (release date)

Artists: Michael Rios and Tony Machado

Reference: Fillmore Corp. 122

Dick Dixon: After Bill Graham died in a helicopter crash in 1991, those close to him decided to carry out his final wish and reopen the original Fillmore. In April 1994 the Fillmore once again became a San Francisco hotspot with shows almost every night. This commemorative poster created by Michael Rios and Tony Machado was done in tribute of Bill Graham’s decades of presenting musical talent to the people and includes just a handful of legendary superstars that graced the Fillmore.

Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA December 31, 1994

Artists: Michael Rios and Anthony Machado

Reference: F 105

Dick Dixon: The artistic duo of Michael Rios and Tony Machado conceived the colorful imagery and trippy lettering used for this New Year’s Eve poster. Michael, in addition to the many murals he’s painted around the San Francisco area, has also created record and CD covers for various bands (Santana in particular) as well as concert posters and clothing. Not to mention several Santana stage backdrops, lithographs and a painted guitar for Carlos. He’s even illustrated a children’s book. Tony passed away in 2018 but first started collaborating with Michael in the early 70’s when working on the large murals they painted throughout the city. He later produced statues that were used for the 1984 Summer Olympics in L.A. and in the 1990’s joined Rios at the Heaven Smiles studio where they produced album covers and other artwork for Santana. This New Year’s Eve celebration began with the music of Linda Tillery & The Cultural Heritage Choir, a five woman ensemble from the Oakland area whose set consisted of what they called black roots music and spirituals. They were followed by bluesman Buddy Guy, who has often been named as the inspiration for countless guitarists. The experience of watching him in concert was once described by Jimi Hendrix as “Paradise is being at Buddy Guy's feet while you listen to him play”. Next up was Al Green with a mix of gospel and soul that really made you feel like you were down south attending church. But by the end of his allotted time he didn’t want to leave the stage and had to be pulled off (multiple times) by an unidentified person while still singing. Santana began their last show of the year at approximately 10:30pm. They hadn’t played a concert since mid November in New York City and sizzled through most of the new songs from their recent tour, embellishing each tune with a different flourish here or there whenever they could. And once again, as they launched into the familiar chords of “Savor” Chester, Raul and Karl seem to burst forth with renewed energy while playing together and during their respective solos. Chester’s hands as quick as a cat, flying over the keyboards and finding new notes each time. Karl, first playing along with Billy Johnson then creating his own one-man show utilizing bongos, timbales, cowbells, and anything else available to him. Raul Rekow has picked up the reins that conga master Armando Peraza laid down when he left the group and has made this position his own. Alternately grimacing then smiling, his eyes remained closed as he pounded out a rhythm from within during his time in the spotlight. On the new “When You’re In Love”, Carlos invited Marsha Miget on Sax to exchange leads back and forth with him, then was joined by Carlos Hernandez and brother Jorge for the next few songs. With midnight just a few minutes away Carlos ditched the traditionally played NYE song “Old Lang Syne” and instead brought out Esplendor Azteca XipeTotec, an Aztec dance group from Mexico City. With beautifully colored feathers reaching high above their heads they danced to the rhythm of a multi-drum beat as they did a warrior dance called “Ixracuhuatatl”, celebrating new life. As the dance came to it’s conclusion a float was pulled through the audience to the front of the stage with people in costume as the Virgin of Guadalupe and various angels, representing the birth of a new year and a new beginning. While balloons and confetti floated down over everyone the music began again with members of the Cultural Heritage Choir, Buddy Guy, and Al Green’s band joining Santana on stage for a midnight jam consisting of “Right On Be Free”, “Good Time”, “Make Somebody Happy/Get It In Your Soul” and “Jingo”. What a way to end 1994 and begin 1995!

Pima County Fairgrounds, Tucson, AZ May 28, 1995

Artist: L'aura Colan (photo)

Reference: n/a

It was advertised as Santana at Sunset, and not having played here since a 1993 benefit concert the people were ready to hear them again. Over 11,000 people to be exact. As the taped 1986 introduction by Bill Graham faded, the band came onstage and we saw Carlos uncharacteristically dressed in black shirt and shorts with the red, yellow and green colors of Mexico‘s flag in a thin stripe down each side. “Bacalao Con Pan” opened the set as the sun reflected brilliantly of Carlos‘s new PRS guitar, but a sound problem of some kind surfaced almost immediately into his solo and guitar tech Ed Adair quickly changed the cable attached to his amp, while the rest of the band drove the melody ahead. Picking up where he left off Carlos continued on with the overall sound mix in better proportion than the previous night in Mesa. “Harmonious Convergence/Hal 99” introduced us to new singer/harmonica player Curtis Salgado. When was the last time you heard a harmonica solo during a Santana concert? And this tune turned out to be a rocker with a message. A short time later as he sounded “The Call” Carlos wasn’t getting the echoing notes that so dramatize the opening moments and makes your hair stand up on end. Ed hurried to his side, examined the foot pedal board and cable connections then scrambled back behind the amps. Evidently the problem was discovered and in a few more seconds all was sonically well again. A bit further into the song Carlos tried to initiate a little call and response flurry of notes with Chester, but had trouble getting his attention. Still, this song had a very powerful impact bringing both cheers and gasps from the audience. As played live, this song far surpassed the studio version that got recorded a few years later with Eric Clapton, which barely resembled the live version at all. Possibly frustrated by the technical problems Carlos‘ playing became more aggressive during the next two songs. His extended soloing on “Hannibal” might have gone on a bit too long, whereas during the cover of “Maggot Brain” his usual soulfulness was replaced by hitting notes at lightning quick speed - a striking contrast to the slower, more bluesy approach used by both Curtis and Chester during their solos. A different mood perhaps. But the concert seemed to shift gears at this point with a swinging rhythm and blues number “Got My Mojo Working”, once again featuring the vocals and harp playing of Curtis Salgado, stronger and more confident than the night before as he belted it out and had some fun with it. And so did the band! One could see this was closer to the type of music Curtis is used to playing.

In an interview I did with Curtis the day after this show he shared the following remarks - CS: I never thought I’d be singing for Santana and I would like to express the fact that…Carlos is like a master chef and he’s got a great big pot of groove, a big pot of the groove cooking and I think I’m one of the spices for this summer. It’s totally different from the blues, rhythm and blues, funk, and soul that I play at. I think he wanted more of a singer that got down into the nitty-gritty. Not that Alex didn’t, Alex is great! But I think Carlos wanted just a different kind of gritty vibe. DD: How and when did you become part of the band? CS: I became part of it about a month ago. Robert Cray’s management knows Santana’s management, and Carlos‘s manager mentioned that Carlos was looking for a new direction in singers. I went and auditioned, and I got the gig. I am the new kid on the block for this and I am the sauce, I am the little sauce that Carlos is throwing in and you know… it’s kind of scary. And Carlos man, he is an amazing cat. He just kind of puts you in a situation where you hang on and you better fuckin’ hang on and figure it out ahead of time because he’s too busy with his own shit. So you’re pretty much left up to your own means to get it. A special moment happened just before the next song began when a security man handed Carlos a present from a fan whose arm couldn’t quite reach the stage. It was a Navajo Kachina doll called the Eagle Dancer, which symbolizes strength and acts as an intermediary between the physical and the spirit world. He held it aloft and spoke for a few moments before inviting three members from opening act Sonia Dada to come on stage for an abbreviated version of “Make Somebody Happy” followed by a new bass and drum interlude courtesy of Myron Dove and Billy Johnson. A fine “Chill Out” started with Carlos’ instantly recognizable tone then once again showcased some blues-drenched harmonica blowing from Curtis, as he obviously felt the notes he was playing. A few more remarks from the interview - DD: I’ve heard you’ve got to be on your toes, especially in concert because sometimes Carlos will just throw in a song or two that isn’t even on the setlist. Has that happened to you yet? CS: Well, you know that song we did where I did that long, extended slow harmonica? DD: Yeah, Chill Out. CS: That came up on the first night we ever played live. I’m at the Fillmore West, the house that Santana built, a very important gig. Very tense. The place is packed. He starts playing Chill Out and all of a sudden he looks at me and puts his hands to his mouth, imitating a harmonica. And I’m like uh…what? You know, I’ve never played on the song, I don’t even know what the changes are. I still don’t! I get out there and just blow. And make sure I’m hittin’ the right notes that come from the heart.

Later, the audience itself became an integral part of Raul Rekow’s solo at the end of “Savor” as he invited them (without words) into sort of a you do as I do contest where he would pound out a few notes on his congas and they would reciprocate by clapping out the same beat until it just became too fast for them to keep up, and they surrendered with smiles and laughter. Although reserved until late in the show, the inevitable string of hits were played, including “Samba Pa Ti”, “Jingo”, “Black Magic Woman”, “Oye Como Va”, and “Europa”. The final song of the evening could’ve been called name that tune, but was actually titled “Santana Sandwich”. Made up of bits and pieces from songs past and new improvisations, the transition from one song to another had you wondering what would be next. It was a great way to end the concert. The poster’s photo of Carlos was taken when he appeared at Woodstock in 1994.

New Year's Eve Block Party. Market Street, San Francisco, CA December 31, 1995

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: New Year’s Eve in downtown San Francisco. It was a windy and chilly night but the thousands of people funneling into the Hyatt Regency didn’t seem to notice or care, they were on their way to the tent-like enclosures set up on the street behind it. Dressed in everything from tuxedos to tattered jeans they came to celebrate and take part in what was being called San Francisco‘s Best Party Of The Year. In addition to the variety of food and drink you could taste a musical sampling of rock, country, blues, grunge, latin, disco and even comedy depending on which of the seven enclosures you ventured into. As the evening progressed, the Rock venue gradually filled to capacity with partygoers who were happy to be out of the cold and anxious for some good music. After hearing opening act Beth Hart belt out some amazing vocals followed by an enthusiastic set from War, everyone was ready to rock into 1996 with the sounds of Santana! At the stroke of midnight the members of Escola Nova de Samba made a surprising entrance at the rear of the tent. Adorned in brightly colored feathers they danced and drummed their way through the crowd and up onto the stage, creating a festive mood like Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro. Santana began to play along, blending their music with the drummers before segueing into a cover of Mondo Grosso’s ‘Tree, Air, Rain on Earth’ which felt like a musical balm for the soul that swelled into a celebration of life, bringing smiles and laughter to the dancing crowd. The percussive energy from the power trio of Raul, Karl and Billy propelled the spirit and mood along with Myron‘s percolating bass. As the band continued playing into the wee hours of the morning they treated everyone to songs both old and new including ‘Brotherhood’, ‘Guajira’, ‘Spirit’, ‘Children of the Light’ and many more. Cheers and applause erupted from the audience when members from War were invited out to jam on ‘Exodus’, ‘Interplanetary Party’, and ‘Why Can’t We Live Together’, this being the first time these two bands had played together and there were smiles all around. A touch of irony happened towards the end of the latter song when a scuffle occurred in front of the stage and Carlos motioned for the band to lower the music’s volume so he could implore those involved to “...control your brutality and find the light inside your heart.” His words seemed to settle the disruption and next up was the new and beautiful ‘Light At The Edge of the World’, a Pharaoh Sanders cover which brought to mind some past romantic songs from the Santana catalog such as ‘Full Moon’ and ‘Love Is You’ with its melodic flow. Delightful solos from CT on piano combined with Carlos‘s expressions on guitar made this a special treat to those listening closely. Later, yet another surprise came when original member David Brown appeared onstage to join Myron on bass during ‘BMW/GQ’. As the clock approached 2:00am Carlos spoke of these amazing times we’re living in with the Berlin wall coming down as well as Nelson Mandela being freed from prison and elected President. It was now only a few hours into the beginning of a new year and he dedicated the final song ‘Bacalao Con Pan’ to those still in need of liberation, our brothers and sisters in Cuba, Haiti, South America and the Indian reservations. This poster, one of three different versions made to commemorate the event, was embedded with confetti particles during the printing process.

Aladdin Theatre, Las Vegas, NV January 5, 1996

Artists: Michael Rios and Anthony Machado

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: The previous year had been a busy one for sure. In addition to all the concerts there were three releases during the summer months that began with the VHS tape ‘Light Dance’, 40 minutes of visual art highlighted by the sounds of Santana’s music set to beautiful nature shots mixed with modern digital effects. A month later another a VHS tape called ‘Carlos Santana Influences’ came out paying tribute to three guitarists that had a major influence on Carlos by showing rare footage of West Montgomery, Bola Sete and Gabor Szabo. Then in August a three CD retrospective titled ‘Dance of the Rainbow Serpent’ arrived to officially make it the Santana band’s 23rd release. Music spanning the first three decades were chosen along with a few unreleased songs, packaged in a nice fold out display. Adding to the excitement of all that activity came the major announcement that Santana had now created a place for their fans on the World Wide Web. “Welcome to the next millennium - you gotta get on it or you’re going to be like a dinosaur” declared Carlos during a December interview with the Marin Independent Journal. “It’s like the turn of the century when they got rid of the horse and buggy and got cars. The internet is a vibration of where we’re going to now.” After ending the year by highlighting the huge New Year’s Eve party in San Francisco, 1996 had already begun with a private gig at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The following night and just down the street they appeared at the Aladdin Hotel, where an hour before the show hallways were already beginning to clog with the swelling throngs of people heading towards the box office. Anyone who hadn’t already purchased a ticket was in for a big surprise - the four lines at the ticket windows were stretched completely across the expansive width of the hallway, making it nearly impossible to get through to the theater. There was a buzz of excitement as people clamored to get their tickets and then find their seats before the lights went down. Finally it was showtime and opening the set this evening was “Children Of The Light”, an invitation to everyone to wake up and start living as one. In a town routinely portrayed as being all glitter and greed (nicknamed Sin City) the song created a feeling of being able to rise above all that, if only for a while. Later, what started out as a soulful ballad simply titled “Love” segued into the funkified earthy stomp-along of “Right On, Be Free”, guaranteed to get heads bobbing and bodies moving. Carlos sensed the energy in the room and spoke to the audience asking them to visualize a violet blue flame, sending this energy over to places like Haiti and South America to open the hearts of the people in power and give them more compassion, justice and equality. A hush fell over the crowd as if everyone merged into one heartbeat and a feeling of oneness permeated the theatre, lasting throughout the rest of concert while each song and each solo continued to be met with whistles and applause from the grateful fans. Towards the end of the night a little bit of the James Bond theme was mixed into “Bacalao Con Pan” but the bigger surprise came as the song wound down and segued into “Evil Ways” - something they hadn’t played live for many years. The crowd rose to their feet with unexpected gasps and loud cheers as the first chords were struck. I mentioned that moment to Carlos the following morning as he was leaving the hotel “…and did you see the look on their faces?” he said with a big smile. As this song neared it’s finish Carlos took off in yet another direction, finding his way into the middle of “Light My Fire” with the band joining his groove and the audience clapping in time, another one of those surprise moments. This in turn led to a chant of “A Love Supreme” which became the evening’s finale and left everyone beaming with joy as the theater lights came up.

NARAS Santana Tribute Concert. Universal Amphitheatre, Universal City, CA February 25, 1996

Artist: Robert Knight (photo)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Two days after imprinting his hands in cement during a celebration of Hollywood RockWalk’s 10th anniversary in Los Angeles, Carlos was honored by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) who hosted this all-star benefit concert at the Universal Amphitheatre. Carlos and the band performed, helping to raise $300,000 towards the Grammy in the Schools Music Education program. Throughout the evening many special guests also joined the band onstage and journalist Richard S. Ginell shared his thoughts about their moments in the spotlight with Variety magazine: This was a fine forum to show why Santana is so respected by fellow musicians despite being so strangely underrated in his own country, though he is a huge star abroad. Those who are obsessed with categories and profound lyrics are always baffled, dismissing him as latin rock yet Santana’s music spills freely into several genres and his flexible band fits comfortably into most of them. Tonight there were moments that drove the point home forcefully, none more so than on “Open Invitation” when Santana proved to the outclassed Kirk Hammett (from Metallica) that he mastered the heavy metal sound way ahead of the current crop. Buddy Guy’s proto-Hendrix guitar blended easily into “Everybody’s Everything” and he and Santana engaged in a humorous exchange of guitarspeak. John Lee Hooker’s sinister presence was all that was needed to inspire a full-tilt boogie, he did little else and didn’t have to. Herbie Hancock’s “Watermelon Man” fit the Santana band perfectly in the original rollicking Mongo Santamaria manner, but when Hancock tried to ram a Bob Marley medley into a jarring iceberg of dissonance, it didn’t work. Likewise a typically complicated Wayne Shorter workout sounded messy and unwieldy, yet Santana’s lyrical standard “Europa” suited the great saxophonist to a tee. Not long after a marvelously swinging “Guajira” with Jorge Santana offering a smoothly sustained mirror image of his brother’s guitar, Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead took the lead on the most daring (and successful) flight of the night. He led a fascinating and inspired Balinese/African-like jam on electronic and acoustic percussion, a bewildering experiment for Santana that ought to be followed up. Later a seemingly reluctant Bob Weir (also of the Dead) and strato-blasting trumpeter Arturo Sandoval joined the lineup in some Santana evergreens (“Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen,” and ”Oye Como Va”) that still retain all their percolating power. The over four hour presentation could have been much shorter: too much talk from co-host Edward James Olmos interrupted the music for long stretches but at one point there was a moving historical touch, a flashback of a 1991 video of Bill Graham praising Santana for his willingness to show up anytime for a cause.

Compton Terrace, Chandler, AZ September 26, 1996

Artists: Michael Rios and Anthony Machado

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: A warm night, a clear sky, a rare lunar eclipse and Santana! On their first and only visit to this outdoor venue the setting was just right. Both bands had earlier decided to forego a mid afternoon soundcheck (temperatures were close to 95°) and relaxed in a nearby hotel instead. After the sun went down and things had cooled off a little Ottmar Liebert and Luna Negra took the stage around 7:00pm while the full moon slowly became covered in a deep crimson red. An hour later as Carlos and the band were being welcomed to the stage it gradually began to reveal itself again – illuminating the entire venue in a natural spotlight. Revving up the audience with songs that included “Yaleo” and “Everybody’s Everything” to start with, they slowed down a bit for one of the nice touches added to this tour where they segue from “Why Can’t We Live Together” into “Light At The Edge Of The World” in such a seamless fashion that it becomes a perfect fit. Carlos and Ottmar shared a couple songs on acoustic guitars before the band broke into the powerful new “Day Of Celebration” followed by a great rendition of “Exodus” which brought everyone to their feet, then “Serpents And Doves” with it’s blues/ballad feeling. Responding to some of the fans who shouted out requests for songs they wanted to hear Carlos promised they would soon get to those, then spoke about sharing a universal love. They played a version of “Love” with new lyrics, which in turn led to “Right On Be Free”, one I hadn’t heard since they did it with Linda Tillery on New Year’s Eve 1994. Jumping directly into “Feel The Spirit” they kept the energy level on high, not letting the crowd catch their breath until the opening piano notes of “Guajira” began and everyone was dancing. Near the end of the evening Carlos dedicated “Evil Ways” to all the Republicans and Democrats which brought roars of approval from the majority of the crowd. At the close of nearly 3 hours I realized that the time had really flown by. Having just seen them 10 days earlier in California I was struck by how much more dynamic the band seemed, especially Tony Lindsay. His performance hit me as stronger and more forceful tonight while the entire band seemed more energized, which made everything sound so fresh and new, even the old classics. The fun they were having really showed on their faces! The whole band was superb.

Hawks Stadium, Boise, ID June 20, 1997

Artist: Hesh One

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Bill Graham will always be considered the all-time top concert promoter and was certainly the inspiration for many others that followed in his footsteps. “Bill Graham was the impetus for me to get involved in the music business” said Bill Silva, who started promoting concerts in 1979 while still a college student in San Diego, California. From that point forward his Bill Silva Presents would produce thousands of events featuring such world renown artists as Santana, the Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Pavarotti and The Who. And like Bill Graham he also used posters to advertise his upcoming concerts. From 1994-1998 an artist known as Hesh One became the in-house artist for Bill Silva Presents, churning out posters and ads for hundreds of shows throughout the Pacific Southwest including this one in Boise, Idaho. It was just the third concert ever held at Hawks Stadium, a venue which accommodated over 3000 people and was primarily used for a minor league baseball team. Embarking on their summer tour this would be Santana’s first appearance in Boise and they were ready to hit the stage again, feeling fresh after nearly a month’s break. The large Boise audience was surely excited to have the band in town but might have been disappointed when this turned out to be one of those rare occasions that Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va didn’t get played. Even though they’re both covers of other people’s music those two songs are so associated with Santana that many might not realize or even care that they aren’t originals. In fact, nearly half the setlist played tonight consisted of songs first done by other musicians rather than pulling more highlights from their own vast catalog. It was a trend that had been happening more often since they weren’t touring to support a new record - the last studio album had been five years earlier. But their loyal following was kept happy during that long stretch of time due to a few other releases: a live show from South America and a remastered one from 1968 at the Fillmore West, plus a three CD retrospective. A few days after this show the Idaho Statesman newspaper reported that although it may have been a good concert sheriff’s deputies said it was too loud and too late. The concert had run about half an hour past a city and county law requiring that loud outdoor noise stop by 10pm, so the promoters were ordered to pay a fine by the Ada County sheriff’s office. It would be another two years before the release of the Supernatural album and the career changing path that followed in its wake. For many fans the 1990’s are thought of as the end of an era in Santana’s legacy, a decade of memorable concerts before massive success would lead to what seemed like an endless string of special-guest albums along with the onstage posing and repetitive solos that would start to appear in the not too distant future.

Miscellaneous 1997

Artist: Alton Kelley

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: When legendary artist Alton Kelley passed away in 2008 his work was described as giving rock music new colors, shapes, and themes expressing the optimism and enthusiasm of young people around the globe. But 40 years earlier Kelley was part of The Family Dog, a group that essentially started the San Francisco music scene by throwing psychedelic dance concerts at the Longshoreman's Hall in September of 1965. He soon began creating posters for these events and eventually became known as one of the 'Big Five' poster artists of the 60's & 70's, his work becoming so respected that several of his pieces now hang in the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Collaborating with longtime friend and fellow artist Stanley Mouse, they won a Grammy Award for their cover of the Steve Miller Band's Greatest Hits album and are also credited with creating the wings and beetles seen on all the Journey albums. In 1997 he was commissioned to do this Santana piece which has been numbered and autographed by himself and Carlos.

13th Annual Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction. Waldorf-Astoria, New York, NY January 12, 1998

Artists: Lynne Porterfield and Jay Blakesberg (photo)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This was the night rock and roll royalty gathered at New York's Waldorf-Astoria to honor Santana’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, the Mamas and the Papas, Lloyd Price, Gene Vincent, Jelly Roll Morton, and Allen Toussaint. Leading up to the ceremony Rolling Stone magazine, which named him ‘One of the greatest guitarists of all time’ went on to praise how ‘Santana's crystalline tone and clean arcing sustain make him the rare instrumentalist who can be identified in just one note.’ And the Hall Of Fame declared: ‘When Carlos Santana’s guitar wails, the whole world nods with recognition. His unmistakable tone - fat, long and thick with a sustain that seems to sail on for light years - is one of the handful of trademark guitar sounds in rock & roll. He is one of rock's true virtuosos and guiding lights. If that sound were the only gift that Santana had given to rock music, he’d be well deserving of the place he’s about to assume in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.’ When it came time for Santana to perform during the evening’s festivities they took the stage to play Black Magic Woman and were joined by guitarist Peter Green. It was Green who had originally written the song in 1968 for his band Fleetwood Mac, the lyrics being inspired by a former girlfriend. He was actually inducted with his former band tonight but did not perform with them.

In regards to Santana‘s induction here are the transcripts of the speeches given by Clive Davis and John Popper.

Clive Davis: I’m really honored to participate in this induction. It triggers a lot of special memories for me. I got this call, and it was from a gentleman who was to become a very special friend to me but more importantly it was from a gentleman who was to become a very special defining force of rock and roll. And that was Bill Graham. And as only Bill could, he started ecstatically describing the music of a group he was to manage and that he was to mentor. His enthusiasm was that infectious that I hopped a plane to San Francisco and that’s when I first heard, saw, and met Santana. It was music I had never heard before. Soaring rock guitar with fiery multi-rhythm percussion. A fusion of rock and blues with Latin and African influences. It was mesmerizing, it was pulsating, I signed Santana. And then on September 19, 1969 their album came out and Evil Ways roared to the top, changing the sound of not only top 40 radio but their eight and nine minute long jams helped define the new FM programming. And barely a year later they came with Abraxas and Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va. They literally took over the world of music and yes Santana, Carlos, you’ve been doing it ever since. You’ve influenced scores of musicians who’ve come after you, all having been vocal about their debt to you. Prince, Vernon Reid, Dave Matthews, there are so many. So it’s with special pride and enhanced by the fact Carlos, that we’re reuniting now to work together for the future that I join in this milestone tribute and welcome you to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

John Popper: I’m really honored to be here tonight to do this. I was determined to wing it because that’s what improvisation is all about. I am a player and I improvise music, and when you improvise you really take on a discipline like a samurai, that’s the way we always look at it. It requires a facility with your instrument, much like twirling your samurai sword or something. And you also have to be very in touch with what you hope is an inner peace, you have to be in touch and open to things that you’re listening to, anticipating the jam as best you can. What we’re talking about here is a master samurai. I want to tell you about the day Miles Davis died. Blues Traveler was at a gig and so was Santana. Bill Graham, who was our manager at the time arranged for Carlos to sit in with us. We did a 23 minute jam of a song of ours and for me and for my bandmates it was like our graduation, because we stood toe to toe with the champ. It was kinda fun. I remember there were like four things we listened to when we were younger and we’d get stoned and we’d listen to Jimi Hendrix and John Coltrane. We’d listen to P Funk and then there was Carlos. You listen to Oye Como Va and you see God. I mean, I got to play with God, it was kinda cool. That was the last day I saw Bill alive actually and I remember coming off stage after we played, and I said “My God, I got to play with Carlos Santana” and I was all freakin’ out and he looked really kinda satisfied, and he said “You know, I remember when Carlos got to interact with Muddy Waters and he was saying the exact same stuff you are.” And I felt like I was really part of a tradition. And you know Bill isn’t around anymore and I really miss him alot but I feel like we’re part of a tradition you know, and I think that there’s a prediction out there that I think is kinda true. That the entire Western Hemisphere is going to start gravitating towards one kind of music. From Canada to Chile, and I think it was Santana and his band that really saw this coming before anybody and I think he was the first player in rock and roll to really utilize that. And I’m just very honored to be here tonight and help us all induct a samurai and a shogun.

Although this poster’s date is given as January 13, 1998 the ceremony was actually the night before on January 12. A quick search on the internet shows that there are just as many websites still showing the wrong date as there are the correct one.

Santana Fan Club Comission March 2000

Artist: Bob Masse

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: This is an uncut proof created by Bob Masse in 2000 for a poster that was made specifically for the Santana Fan Club. It also includes three handbills. A proof is an uncut sheet of paper used as the reference piece for color and quality after approval from all parties involved. These are made before the final printed edition and are not intended for sale or included in the count of the final edition. A rock n’ roll legend in his own right, Canada’s Bob Masse has been creating highly collectible concert posters since the 1960’s. Although one of the lesser known pioneers of the psychedelic art movement, he worked with everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, The Doors, and Cream. More recently his poster for U2 at the Reunion Arena in 2001 has been listed as one of the top 10 concert posters of all time by Billboard Magazine. While attending art school in Vancouver, British Columbia he began his career doing posters for the folk acts that came through town in exchange for free drinks, tickets, and the opportunity to meet the musicians. As folk became folk-rock and Vancouver was visited by such bands as the Grateful Dead and others, Masse continued to produce memorable concert posters for them. He became friends with the Vancouver band The Collectors and when they travelled to Los Angeles to make a record he followed them and soon was immersed in the art and music scenes in Los Angeles and San Francisco. He ended up spending the final years of the 1960’s living in the Laurel Canyon area, producing posters and album covers for various bands of the day and his work from that time is highly sought after. His unique lettering style and use of brilliant colors and bold composition give his art a signature look. The designs reflect his interest in the art nouveau movement and the work of artist Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939) in particular. In an interview from 2010 he was asked what it was about Alphonse Mucha that inspired him: “Oh, I just love his work. It’s one of those things. I don’t really have any great philosophical message that I’m getting out there, I’m just enjoying myself and having fun. I’ve always loved Mucha’s work. I enjoy doing it. A lot of the time I was just tracing on top of his work. You get shit for doing that in the fine art world but for a concert poster it doesn’t matter, I’ve just been having fun doing what I enjoy. I’m very much into turn of the century art nouveau stuff and I sort of feel that I’m turning other people on to it. People never see this kind of art, it’s hidden away in old books. I like to turn on a whole new generation that has never seen this stuff before. I had a period in Los Angeles in ’68, ’69 too when I did a couple of album covers and several posters while I was down there. Then the poster scene died out in the 1970’s, it didn’t last very long.” When rock concert art began another surge in popularity during the 90’s, Masse returned to the art with renewed energy and has continued producing a steady stream of posters for various bands and solo musicians as well as a multitude of commemorative posters.

"Supernatural" Tour: USA West-Midwest-South/Canada September-October 2000

Artist: Frank Wiedemann

Reference: BG 247

Dick Dixon: Well known Bay Area artist Frank Wiedemann has been a freelance graphic artist since 1987 and some of his professional accomplishments over the years include projects like web page design, cd and album covers, logos, wine labels and t-shirts as well as designing many of the concert posters for Bill Graham Presents since the late 1990's. Educated at the Rhode Island School of Design, his posters showcase the range of his talent with their many different moods, lettering and artistic styles. Here we see his imagination on full display and it reminds one of the creativity that was happening at the height of the poster frenzy back in the late 60's and 70's. Starting with a photograph of a right hand (probably his own) he created a halo around the head of the central figure that spirals outward in shades of blue and green. The rest of the poster is made entirely of photographed leaves in various sizes and species that have been carefully arranged to fill out the background and create a border. The leafy body of a mermaid is the main feature of the image, holding her acorn topped scepter while wearing some strategically placed daisies. Finally, listed near the bottom is a handful of Western U.S.A. dates during the Supernaturnal tour, but Santana was literally all over the map in 2000. Having won a record-tying nine Grammys in February the band continued to perform concerts around the world, appeared on countless TV talk shows and was recognized with even more honors from the Billboard Music Awards, VH1 My Music Awards, 1st Annual Latin Grammy Awards, and the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards to name just a few. They even had their own TV special "A Supernatural Evening with Santana". This unparalleled success would be a turning point for the band in more ways than one, beginning with rising ticket prices and 20+ more years of predominately multi-artist collaboration albums.

Cricket Pavilion, Phoenix, AZ October 2, 2002

Artist: CDW

Reference: n:a

Dick Dixon: Arizona concert promoter Danny Zelisko was known as 'the guy' in Arizona, Las Vegas and New Mexico. He created his company, Evening Star, in 1977 and due to it’s success and reputation he had received a number of offers over the years from people eager to buy Evening Star but always turned them down. Then near the end of the 90's a company called SFX (which eventually was sold to radio conglomerate Clear Channel, who later spun off a separate division called Live Nation to handle it’s concert promotion) was starting to buy up independent promoters like Danny and put them all under one umbrella but he still resisted selling. There was also the House of Blues, which at the time was owned by Universal, and they too were talking very seriously about buying his company. SFX had recently acquired the Ak-Chin Pavilion in Phoenix, Arizona where he booked a lot of live shows over the years and they also bought up venues in other cities that Danny promoted in while they continued to make offers and buy promoters anywhere they could in an effort to become the biggest concert promoter in the country. The result of all these buyouts was that instead of being able to book three, four or five shows on a tour Evening Star was now only getting paid for maybe 1/2 of one date with the best artists, and only if the act stood up and said they wanted Danny to get a part of the concert date. In 2001 he finally relented and sold them the company. Continuing to quote Danny from his book All Excess - Occupation: Concert Promoter, "This consolidation was devastating to a guy like me. Suddenly, somebody like Santana would come to town and instead of me getting the Phoenix, Vegas, Tucson and Albuquerque dates, a promoter with corporate backing would give them 20 dates at $250,000 each and cut them $5 million checks. They did this under the condition that the artist play all their markets at all their amphitheaters. Nowadays these numbers are really light as ticket prices have risen greatly over the years. I was screwed. There was no way I could compete with this kind of thing. I had done Santana regularly year in and year out since the late 70's. Then Carlos put out the Supernatural album in 1999 and it became a huge success. This changed his career along with his whole life and I'd been there for it. Unfortunately, now I was only getting half of a date. It wasn't right. And nowadays I don't even get half a date. Although I do love Carlos, this in a word sucks." This poster was basically a prototype originally intended to be used for the upcoming concert but is conspicuously missing any promoter's name or logo. Big Corporation no longer felt the need to distribute posters throughout the city advertising concerts when nearly everything was being done online. Similarly, at this point in time the Santana organization had already begun to commission their own posters to be sold at the shows and copywrited them under the River Of Colors trademark.

"Supernatural Santana. A Trip Through The Hits": The Joint, Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas, NV May 27, 2009

Artist: River Of Colors

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In 2009 Carlos took an unprecedented step in his career and signed on as the first ‘rock & roll‘ resident artist in Las Vegas (as described in news reports throughout the world) by bringing his legendary band to the music venue known as The Joint, located inside the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. It would be a multi-year deal in which The Joint was to be the only place west of the Mississippi River where fans could see Santana perform in the USA. In previous years the band had played this venue several times when it had a capacity of just 1300 people, but the arena had recently been demolished and rebuilt to hold 4,000 concert goers. The newly improved facility also included better sound acoustics along with second and third levels that wrapped around the room, and the furthest seat from the stage was now only 155 feet away. It reopened in April and on May 27th the Santana band began its first Las Vegas residency. Partially titled after his most successful album from a decade earlier, the Vegas show was called Supernatural Santana: A Trip Through the Hits. In an interview that appeared in the Las Vegas Sun after the first week of shows were completed Carlos remarked: “The reaction has been gloriously positive. People can see the genuineness. I’m able to invite people to perceive there are only two forces on this planet, love and fear. It’s which one you invest in. We believe it is more profitable to invest in love because when you invest in fear, ask Bush and Cheney how expensive that was.” And when asked if he felt pressured to focus on the hits he replied: “I look at the music like I’m a chef and people want to hear certain things they heard at a certain time in their lives, when they fell in love or they got married. I do my best to create that environment. In the middle of the set I can be spontaneous and take, as Wayne Shorter would say, take a backward flip into the unknown where the band doesn’t know where I’m going.” A poster created for this new chapter in Santana’s history displayed many of the declarations Carlos has made during past concerts and conversations.

"Universal Tone" Tour 2010

Artist: Dave Hunter

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Artist Dave Hunter moved to San Francisco in 1985 where he surrounded himself with many of the people who designed posters for the original Fillmore and Avalon Ballroom venues, eventually finding work as head picture framer for the Bill Graham Archives from 1988 till 1992. He was soon recognized for his own abilities and went on to create silkscreen posters for various Bay Area bands, record labels and venues as well as a who’s who of rock acts including Metallica, Gov’t Mule, Primus, Eric Clapton, Dr. John, and the Grateful Dead. He also did an occasional special project such as this piece for Santana’s 2010 Universal Tone tour. Under the Santana logo appears a lotus flower mandala which has within it an inverted triangle with three 'arms' (not sure what this signifies) and also the Om symbol. Behind this, if you look closely, are six more triangles with three of them pointing up and three of them pointing down. Making a minor inquiry as to what the meaning might be I found that a triangle can represent manifestation, enlightenment, revelation, and a higher perspective. It is often used to mark the cycles of growth that lead to a higher state of being. Spiritually, it represents a path towards enlightenment or connection to an omnipresent being. Energetically, triangles direct energy and power in the direction which they point. Beneath all of this is Carlos' guitar along with several doves in flight. Mr. Hunter was commissioned to make 600 copies of this image which were delivered to Santana management and sold at the concerts. He then created eight other variations of the image in smaller editions of 6 to 12 copies each. This particular piece was printed on cream colored paper with metallic sparkles embedded in the ink that react to light when turned at a slight angle. It was limited to only 12 copies and is numbered and signed by the artist, who sadly passed away in 2017.

Special Edition Poster Announcing Santana's House Of Blues Residency. Las Vegas, NV 2012

Artist: Adam Halverson

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Another milestone in Santana's history. Back in 2009 the band had been touted as the first ‘rock act' to have a Las Vegas residency and began a two year run at the newly renovated Joint, located in the Hard Rock Hotel. Once the contract was fulfilled Carlos was made an offer he couldn't refuse by rival hotel Mandalay Bay, who for the first time in it's 13 year history wanted to have their own superstar in residence - and they wanted the Santana band. The venue they were offering was called the House Of Blues. The new show, with the elaborate title of 'An Intimate Evening with Santana: Greatest Hits Live - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow 2012' was booked for May, June, September and November. How this came about was explained in a Q & A session between House of Blues CEO Ron Bension and Billboard magazine in February of 2012: “We believe this will be the start of several new conversations because if it’s good enough for Carlos Santana, it’s good enough for an awful lot of people,” said Bension. He then spelled out the plan for the Santana shows and why the time was right to get into the 'artist in residence' business that other Las Vegas venues were already known for.

Billboard: When you create a schedule for something like this, where do you begin and what factors play into it when you mount the shows?

Ron Bension: "We got a commitment for two years and we worked out a schedule that works within the ebbs and flows of Vegas, conventions mostly. I think we’ve mapped out the first 20 months. We’re going up with shows to the end of this year".

How many shows to start?

"First year is a little heavier. We have 45 in the first calendar year".

When an act already has a history at another Vegas venue, how do you convey to the audience that this is a different experience?

"We can’t look at what the other guys did. It was a totally different show. Couple thousand people come into a room for 5,00 people. It’s not exciting. We are creating a different experience by creating a totally different vibe with tablecloths, candles, and a dancing area. We don’t use the word intimate lightly. This is something you just don’t get in a big box square theater".

When residencies started, the goal was to get gamblers in, create packages for tourists and build up the rack rates in rooms. Is that still in play?

"That all comes with the territory. And we’ll have that because there are customers who want it. They want to get close (to the artist) and have a different experience, celebrate a special night. Come to our venue and we will provide you with a different experience. I don’t think you can say that when you go to some random concert".

When you prepare marketing for this, will you go after locals or invest more in getting word out to non-locals?

"House of Blues probably draws more than just locals than any other venue in the marketplace. It’s because the acts are relevant today to anybody. Because it is a destination venue, we are in the feeder markets - San Diego, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco".

How long did this take to come together?

"We started talking to Carlos… I’m going to say September-ish. We had talked to his agents because we felt House of Blues provided a unique platform. Carlos fell in love with the venue. He walked into that room and said this place is cool; I was right next to him. When you see that, that’s a deal maker. You know they get it. Sure he could go play an amphitheater but this is a different vibe and I think he digs that".

How do you structure the deal? Is it a payday per concert or an overall dollar amount?

"It’s a two year run and we’ll all make a few dollars. It’s good for us because we have other places - the restaurant, the Foundation Room. If you start thinking about the entire evening you have dinner, you party at the show, then go upstairs and have one of the great nightclub experiences in town. That’s what we want and we think Carlos will help us get there".

As of 2024 what began as a two-year residency entered it's 12th year. This poster designed by artist Adam Halverson was only sold inside the House Of Blues retail store along with a matching T-shirt.

St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine, FL April 27, 2014

Artist: Swing From The Rafters

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Foregoing any album cover art or pictures of Carlos this image was a pretty unusual choice for a Santana poster. It’s what’s known as a sugar skull design, and it’s superimposed over a natural skull beneath it. Sugar skull decorations are part of Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), which is a holiday celebrated mostly in Mexico like a family reunion - except for the fact that dead ancestors are the guests of honor. In recent years Día de los Muertos has also become popular in mainstream culture and is recognized and celebrated in different forms in various parts of the world. It’s a joyful time when people pay homage to the deceased by adorning gravesites with flowers and photos, cooking their favorite foods and also creating brightly colored skulls to represent the departed souls. Coincidentally, less than two weeks earlier conguero Armando Peraza had passed way. Armando had been an important part of the band from 1972 through 1990 and Carlos often called him his greatest teacher and mentor. The Corazón album would be released just ten days after this concert and Santana began touring to promote it while also playing scattered dates co-headlining with singer Rod Stewart, somewhat of an odd pairing that continued through August. As for this concert, those who couldn’t attend at least got to read about what they missed in the Florida-Times Union ePaper: It's kind of ironic that Carlos Santana's Sunday night show was just down the street from St. Augustine's Fountain of Youth. Santana's no spring chicken - this is a guy who tore it up 45 years ago at Woodstock, after all. But there he was Sunday night at age 66, waving his arms and encouraging the sold-out crowd at the St. Augustine to get on its feet and dance to "Smooth." This was more than two hours into his set, after he had already played dozens of those patented Carlos Santana blow-your-hair-back guitar solos. It's difficult to describe his sound, but when you hear one of his solos you know it almost immediately because nobody else sounds like that. He can be playing blues or jazz or Latin or rock, but he's always distinctly Santana. Carlos plays with a 10 piece band consisting of drums, two percussionists, two horns, bass, keyboards, a second guitarist and two singers. The singers, Tony Lindsay and Andy Vargas, sang most of the songs together either simultaneously or in some cases swapping verses and it worked really well, particularly on "Black Magic Woman" and "No One to Depend On." But there were long periods of the show when the singers were superfluous. At one point the band played for at least 20 minutes with no vocals at all and of the songs that did have vocals four of five were in Spanish. Midway through the show Carlos pulled out a secret weapon. Drummer Jose "Pepe" Jiminez stepped away from his kit for a few songs and Santana's wife, Cindy Blackman Santana took over. Ordinarily fans dread a drum solo but when the drummer is the headliner's wife, it's understandable. And when she can play like that, it's more than understandable. In a night filled with highlights, her work on "Corazon Espinado" really stood out. For the most part Santana just stood back and played but he sang a little on a few songs and at one point went into an impromptu speech. "It's so tangible, you can feel the love in here" he said. "This is the vibration, the energy, the consciousness we need to change all the stupid shit that's going around in this world… We can make the world a place where peace abides every day. All it takes is a smile." As the band’s tour continued in September the official DVD/Blu-ray release of ‘Corazón Live From México - Live It To Believe It’ came out. Originally filmed back in December 2013 during a concert in Guadalajara it featured a roster of special guests, safely sticking to the same formula that had been used on the multiple collaboration albums since Supernatural. Then the real treat came the first week in November when Carlos‘s memoir arrived titled ‘The Universal Tone’. A book signing event was held at the Barnes & Noble store in Las Vegas the day before the band resumed it’s residency at the House of Blues, followed by a four stop tour in December where Carlos again promoted it during some Q & A sessions.

Tempe Beach Park, Tempe, AZ October 30, 2015

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Another very, very busy year for Carlos and the band as they were constantly on the go making appearances of various kinds. In January Carlos was interviewed on AXS Television by respected commentator Dan Rather during a rehearsal session at the band’s HOB residency. They spent the month of March touring the southern United States and Mexico before returning to Las Vegas in April to record songs for the Santana IV album, then it was off to Miami where they collected two trophies at the Billboard Latin Music Awards with Carlos also receiving the Spirit Of Hope award. A bit of sad news occurred in May when another huge influence on Carlos passed away. “You showed the way to the heart, soul and spirit. With every note you told stories of grace and beauty…” read part of Carlos‘s statement on Facebook when he heard that B.B. King was no longer with us. He and Cindy would later attend the funeral. Over the summer months the band toured both Europe and the USA, ending up back in Las Vegas during September to play some more dates at the House of Blues. After taking a month off to relax it was now the end of October and Día de los Muertos art was again used to promote a concert featuring Santana. This time it was a sugar skull skeleton dressed as a guitar playing mariachi. Cool. Originally announced in June as a three day event called Monster Mash (with the middle day lineup undetermined) posters were printed showing only the Friday and Sunday concerts. Then just seven days before the scheduled start an announcement appeared on the event's website stating that Friday had been canceled ‘due to unforeseen circumstances’. No other explanation for the cancellation was given. But in spite of this news not all Santana fans would end up disappointed because the very next night and just two hours away they had a gig down the road in Tucson. However, it had been sold out for quite a while so if you weren’t one of the people who’d already planned on seeing the band two nights in a row you were out of luck. They had previously sold out their last two visits at the AVA Amphitheatre in 2005 and 2011, so it was really no surprise that it happened again. And this time it was happening on Halloween night! As the crowd filtered into the amphitheater there were concertgoers dressed as ghosts, goblins and devils while others had chosen to paint their faces in the more colorful sugar skull designs. When the lights went down everybody jumped to their feet and clapped along as the Woodstock chant began, but after just two minutes of “Soul Sacrifice” the band suddenly broke into - Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”! - with the stage bathed only in flashing blue lights. The surprised crowd loved it of course, it was Halloween night after all. Then right back into the song’s keyboard solo as if nothing scary had just happened. Following “Love Makes The World Go Round” and “Freedom Is In Your Mind”, new songs which would appear on a record two years from now, Carlos took a few minutes to speak beginning with “Happy trick or treat… but I prefer trip or freak. I love being around freaks. Run the hell away from normal.” The audience was fully in agreement and into the music so much that during “Corazón Espinado” the music’s volume would drop, letting them sing along during the chorus. Later, after an eight minute version of “Jingo” with an inspired solo by Paoli Mejias Ramos, there was a break in the music and Carlos once again stepped to the mic as he’s prone to do: “When you make the time to feel gratitude and be appreciative the universe opens up and it floods you with abundance… our message is about emancipating yourself from mental slavery... when you change your mindset you’re able to discard the concept of sin.” The crowd listened attentively as he spoke and the music then resumed for nearly an hour before closing with “Toussaint L’ Overture”, after which the many Halloween revelers disappeared into the darkness of night with their appetites satisfied not from candy, but from music. The next day unfortunately brought news that conga master Raul Rekow had passed away. A member of the band for 34 years he was loved by the fans and long respected by his peers, known for his fiery performances in concert and his never ending smile.

House Of Blues, Mandalay Bay Hotel, Las Vegas, NV March 21, 2016

Artist: Richard Nelson/Heather Griffin (incorporating art by Michael Rios and Mati Klarwein)

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: It was early 1996 on the internet service AOL and Michael Shrieve happened to check out a chat room I’d created for Santana fans. During our conversation we agreed to exchange some videotapes and what he sent included a note revealing he’d recently talked with Carlos and Greg about doing a record together. Although that particular project never materialized, twenty years later the three of them would get together with Neal Schon and Michael Carabello to record a new album and perform this concert. The reunion was spurred by Schon, initially as a collaboration between himself and Carlos in 2013, which over time evolved into bringing the others on board as well. Joining them would be current members Karl Perazzo, Benny Rietveld and Dave Matthews. When it was officially announced this concert would really happen expectations were high, and people wondered if they could recapture the magic they’d ignited more than 40 years ago. In various interviews Carlos and the others shared their thoughts about the reunion: "I feel like Lazarus, we came back from the other side after nearly 45 years” said Carlos. "It was one person who made this thing become what it is, Neal Schon. He hunted me down like a guided missile, he stayed on me and kept riding me to do something together. Neal is the one who made us believe this was the perfect time for us to create this music one more time. Everyone is healthy and very powerful."

When the five musicians finally got together at Santana’s studio in Las Vegas the rehearsals were immediately fruitful. Carlos: “We started playing and it was like watching dolphins jump in the ocean again after being at Sea World or something. We just went in there and started jumping around and chirping and laughing, and before we knew it time just passed like crazy and we had the first 12 songs and then 24 and then 42, just jams of songs. There was an immediate chemistry again. When I close my eyes and I hear the sound emanating from everybody it is intact, who we are and what we do from the Fillmore and the Carousel and the Avalon Ballroom to Woodstock and beyond. This is the sound. We always made our music from jamming. We just play off each other, and that’s exactly what happened this time, the same formula - with more knowledge.” Neal pointed out how he joined the group just after the Woodstock splash when he was just 15 years old "They took me under their wings, they showed me the world, they showed me the ropes. This has been a long time dream for me to make this happen. The coolest thing about playing with Carlos and the rest of the band is things happen onstage that are magical." Carlos: "The band tore it up at Woodstock when there was a lot of fear in the world. There was the Vietnam war, Richard Nixon and LBJ. Now we have Donald Trump and the same shit. That fear is still there.” He said the band sees itself as a peaceful force in turbulent times. "We really believe the same thing as John Lennon and Bob Marley, that music in your heart and my heart can transform fear. We are all the architects that will transform the fragments of fear in this nation."

The dvd/blu-ray release of the concert also includes interviews with the band, and multiple magazine and news outlets reviewed it: The concert begins with rousing performances of “Soul Sacrifice” and “Jingo” to kick-start the night, illuminating the awesome interwoven percussion of Michael Shrieve, Karl Perazzo, and Michael Carabello. Gregg Rolie back in the seat as lead singer and B3 player not only shows how strong he still is, but that his tenure in Santana best represents them. As far as the new songs, the undeniably smooth and “Smooth,” flavor of “Leave Me Alone,” did not go unnoticed by members of the reunited band. Speaking to Billboard magazine Greg admitted: “It does have that air to it. When we first played it Carlos put that melody on the front of it and Michael and I looked at each other and went ‘There it is!’ and then I had to really come to the party to make sure the lyrics were good and matched up to the guitar ’cuz it soared right from the get-go.” Drummer Shrieve takes credit for getting “Leave Me Alone” started in the first place. “It was something I had sitting around and had worked on for a little while” he recalls. “It’s not a complicated thing. It just felt good and felt like I could bring this to the guys and we could jam on it and they could really make it into something, which is exactly what happened.” The song “Yambu” starts with a few dangerous notes by Carlos before the drumbeats begin, taking you straight into the jungle. Close your eyes. It’s midnight and you can picture members of a tribe dancing around an open fire while the drums continue their beating. Then the chanting begins…. “Sueños” (Dreams) almost seems like an attempt to recreate the magic of “Europa”, which would be a difficult task to accomplish but the effort is certainly there. Near the end of the night special guest Ronald Isley is invited onstage and he dazzles while singing “Love Makes the World Go Round“ and Freedom In Your Mind” but this concert is all about Santana - the man and the band. Carlos is one of the few who can paint colors with a guitar, and if ever there was an example of unyielding chemistry between musicians, this collaboration is it. "For us, music was to break down the walls, to defeat tyrants who believe that without them the world don’t roll" says Carlos. "It means a lot to revisit and reunite with this frequency, this vibration. It feels really wonderful because this time we brought each other a gift. We gave one another the gift of deep appreciation and validation."

"Transmogrify" Tour/Ak-Chin Pavilion, Phoenix, AZ June 30, 2017

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: It’s a remarkable experience to see an artist at the creating and crafting pinnacle of their career. When years upon years of experience informs both every note and the space between each note. Where shifting between complex rhythms looks effortless. Where there is obvious joy and energy drawn from the process of creating and recreating each song and each melody within each song. And then to see a group of musicians do it together. To both draw from and contribute to each other. It becomes truly a thing of beauty... So began a review from an online website following the Friday night concert at this Arizona venue. While Carlos Santana and his guitar work were clearly the star of the show, the super tight three person percussion section played a strong supporting role. At times it was tough to figure out who was leading who. Santana was out front but the percussion section, especially drummer (and Santana’s wife) Cindy Blackman Santana, often seemed to take over and lead the way. That’s not to take anything away from percussionist Paoli Mejias and Karl Perazzo. Mejias played a tremendous solo during "Jingo" that was truly inspired which was followed by the band diving right into a medley of "Evil Ways" and "A Love Supreme" during which the interplay and back and forth between the band members was just spectacular to listen to and appreciate live. It was near the finish when the volume was lowered and Carlos spoke for nearly ten minutes while the crowd listened attentively to his message of positivity: “Beauty is a word that elevates you. Joy is a word that uplifts you. Love ignites you and elevates you. We want to use words tonight to invite you gently to remember who you really are. You are significant, you are meaningful and you are worthy of an abundance of divine blessings and miracles. We are one family. We are one heart. We are one love. All You Need Is Love – the Beatles. One Love – Bob Marley. So this is the place that I invite you from the center of my heart to look in the mirror and say, ‘I am significant. I am meaningful. I am worthy of God’s grace. I can create miracles and blessings’… God bless you. Be kind to one another.” Then shortly after playing a version of Enya’s “Orinoco” from 1988 and a short bass solo from Benny, Carlos again stepped to the microphone and introduced a special guest: “We’re going to invite onstage a beautiful warrior, a great brother who lives over here. His name is Mr Micki Free.” Micki plugged in and joined the band for a mix of “She’s Not There/Papa Was A Rolling Stone” followed by “Prince Of Darkness” while many in the audience must have wondered who the heck is Micki Free? A guitarist at 17, he was discovered when the band he was in was an opening act for KISS. Gene Simmons liked what he saw, became his manager and in 1984 encouraged Micki to join the R & B group Shalamar, winning a Grammy with them two years later. Recognition for his career after Shalamar came from the Native American Music Awards, where he won in the categories of Male Artist in 2002 and Pop Rock artist in 2004. Then in 2010 his group American Horse Trio featured Cindy Blackman on drums for a short time, becoming his connection to Carlos. It was a night of beauty as Santana, the individual and the band, graced the audience with their creations for a solid 2 1/2 hours. And as they slowly began to leave the venue once it was over the crowd carried with them the theme Santana came back to repeatedly throughout the evening, always reminding them that "You are important, you are beautiful, you are meaningful, and you can create miracles and blessings."

Bethel Woods Center For The Arts, Bethel, NY August 5, 2017

Artist: Hatch Show Print

Reference: n/a

Transmogrify: to change or alter greatly.

Dick Dixon: And so the quest to change or alter the audience with music continued, for roughly 2 1/2 hours at least, as the next leg of the Transmogrify 2017 tour got underway. This segment of the tour was beginning just one week after Santana released it’s 32nd album, a joint effort with the Isley Brothers titled ‘Power Of Peace’. A review on LatinJazzNet described it as “…music that pays tribute to the struggles and enduring spirit of humanity” and RecordingAcademy gushed “…their takes on some of the most recognizable and important socially conscious songs from Stevie Wonder to Marvin Gaye is a powerful statement to try and lift people up in 2017.” Evidently the message got through to quite a few people with the album reaching #32 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, but some fans considered it just one more thing Carlos could now mark off his bucket list. As was the usual custom here at Bethel Woods, the venue chose to have the poster independently made rather than using any supplied promo materials. They chose the Hatch Show Print company, one of the oldest letterpress print shops still operating in America since opening its doors in 1879 - the same year Thomas Edison demonstrated the first light bulb. For more than 145 years they have produced posters for all types of performers including magicians, wrestlers and musicians. Some of the most recognizable images of country music stars from the 1920’s to the 1950’s were printed here and it wasn’t long before the shop also captured the glory of some great African-American jazz and blues entertainers of the day, creating pieces for artists such as Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong. Ignoring all the newest technologies they still make their posters the old-fashioned way by hand-carving large blocks of wood with letters and shapes, then inking the raised portion of the carving before laying paper on top of it and pressing to create the design. Depending on the amount of pressure applied the end result might have a used or weathered look. There are also times when they will occasionally combine both new and old carvings on one piece, but the style of a Hatch Print remains unmistakable compared to other posters. They have produced six of them for Santana so far.

Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, Alpharetta, GA April 24, 2019

Artist: Lisa Eng

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Artist/Designer Lisa Eng has been producing concert posters as far back as the late 90’s, when she began creating a string of 32 different pieces for Bill Graham Presents to advertise shows at the Fillmore and Warfield theaters in particular. She also received type design credit along with Michael Rios' artwork on the Santana poster from April 1999. Using strong, bold colors combined with intricate details in her artwork the central image in this piece involves a flower/human hybrid. The person I obtained this from worked at the venue and didn't believe this poster was made available at the merchandise booths, but was only given to employees working the show. The 12,000 seat Ameris Bank Amphitheatre is located in the northern Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, Georgia and is considered to be one of the most spectacular outdoor concert venues in the country, situated on 45 acres of wooded forests filled with Georgia’s native trees and flowers. As the first band opening the 2019 concert season here Santana took the stage on this cool spring night and entertained the crowd with all the usual favorites plus a couple of new songs ”Candombe Cumbele” and “Breaking Down The Door” from the soon to be released Africa Speaks album, coming out two months later in June. Fan reactions to the album would be divided with seemingly with very little middle ground - most either loved it or hated it. Although opinions differed on that particular album and many voiced their wish for the band to go back to recording without any special guests, none denied that witnessing the band in person is a must see experience. And as far as the concert that happened on this night, a reviewer from Loudsound Magazine certainly agreed: “Over five decades in the game now Santana and his cavalcade of virtuosos, which include his wife and drummer Cindy Blackman Santana, took the City of Atlanta by the hand and walked them down a glorious path of rock-n-roll past and present. Carlos Santana is one bad, bad man - in the good sense of the word. Even in his 70’s this Mexican American rock icon is a suave maestro. From his expressive facial grins to his shredding on that golden axe, this old school cat is simply magnificent. From the start through the encore and beyond, roars drew louder, applause rained heavier, the music simply took over. Basically, if you are in search of a live spectacle that will meet expectations and then some, go check out Santana’s live pageantry.”

Bethel Woods Music And Culture Festival. Bethel Woods Center For The Arts, Bethel, NY August 17, 2019

Artist: Dan Stiles

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: In the summer of 2019 Santana hit the road across North America with special guests The Doobie Brothers to begin what they called the Supernatural Now tour. The three month celebration commemorated two of the most important milestones in the iconic guitarist’s career: the 20th anniversary of his groundbreaking multiple Grammy winning album Supernatural and the 50th anniversary of his momentous performance at Woodstock. Reflecting on the significance of both anniversaries occurring in the same year Carlos said “Both were monumental moments in my life. Woodstock and Supernatural took me to places I never dreamed were possible. I embraced those incredible moments in my life with all my heart. Both were supreme lessons in maintaining focus, heart and integrity in every step every day and to strive to better oneself with a high standard on and off the stage. I cannot think of these two moments without thinking about Mr. Bill Graham and Mr. Clive Davis. They are two of many angels in my life that helped shape my career. The magic of Woodstock would not have been possible without Bill Graham. No one had heard of us yet, but he made sure we were on the bill. He is always in my heart. And with Supernatural I felt I had a masterpiece of joy in my heart. While we were creating the album I knew we were touching upon something inspiring and that we were creating music that was timeless, like Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On or Bob Marley’s Exodus. But no one was prepared for the Supernatural spiritual virus that moved across the world. The album touched little kids and grandparents and all points in between. I am very grateful to Clive Davis for helping me craft this seminal album that is still as relevant and infectious as the day it was released.” One of the stops near the end of the tour was scheduled to coincide with with the Woodstock Festival’s 50th anniversary date in August. Original Woodstock promoter Michael Lang had been planning for an anniversary celebration since 2017 and wanted to showcase a mix of modern day hitmakers and Woodstock veterans who were still around. But as it got closer to the proposed date his plans began to fall apart with problems that included securing a location to hold it, getting the necessary permits and accusations of mismanagement. Eventually performers who were scheduled to appear, including Santana, began dropping out and his event had to be canceled. Fortunately a second event had been in the works for several months as organizers at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts had quietly promoted a weekend of concerts that would put the focus on the 1969 event and its musical and cultural importance. Santana was welcomed with open arms and the reviews were positive, as in the following example: “This was no mere rock concert on a stage. This was sight, sound, senses and sonic salvation from a man who exorcised demons from his slab of wood strung with six strings. Carlos Santana on Saturday night returned to the parcel of land upon which his career turned 50 years ago. He returned to Bethel, New York. He returned to Woodstock. And he led a 10 piece band through a primal offering for a soldout crowd that simply could not get enough.” Limited to just 150 copies artist Dan Stiles created this colorful poster that evokes the essence of the late 60’s, and depending on how you look at it the first image you see will then become another - no hallucinogenics needed.

Carlos - The Santana Journey September 23, 2023

Artist: n/a

Reference: n/a

Dick Dixon: Upon learning in May of 2022 that a movie about Carlos Santana was being developed most longtime fans must have thought to themselves - it’s about time. Having been approached at least a dozen times over the years about filming a documentary of his life and career, Carlos had finally said yes to one after Imagine Documentaries agreed to his conditions for participation. "I said I want to own my own movie, I don't want to have to ask your permission later on to show my movie in some other kind of form. And I want to have a say-so on the beginning, middle and end, how I'm being presented. Imagine came back, I guess they talked amongst themselves, and said ok, we decided we want to do this. I said ok then, let's do it." Imagine’s Justin Wilkes announced it in a press release. “We’re thrilled that Carlos has entrusted us with bringing his incredibly inspirational story to life in this film. He is one of the greatest musicians of all time, and throughout his career, Santana has unapologetically broken down borders and reinvented a tone universally celebrated across the globe.” Almost a year and a half later the worldwide release happened on September 23, 2023 when selected theaters showed it as a three day premier event that included separate introductions by director Rudy Valdez and Carlos. Following that, it was given a one week release without those segments before it disappeared completely. Was this short release time a strategy to create interest in the film? No, It was actually a requirement in order to be submitted to the Academy Awards for 2024 Oscar consideration. To be eligible a film must have completed a weeklong theatrical run in a commercial theater of a qualifying metro area (LA County, New York City, the Bay Area, Chicago, Miami or Atlanta). In addition, the film must have been released for public exhibition between January 1 and December 31 of the previous year. “Carlos” was one of 167 films eligible for best documentary feature but failed to make the shortlist of 15 finalists in the category. The film received an R rating due to some bad language, talk of drug use and brief nudity (the exposed breasts on the Abraxas album cover) and a number of fans spoke about the small audience sizes they encountered during it’s 10 day run with attendance usually in the range of 4 to 16 people, although one fan stated nearly 40 people were at his showing. Media reviews of the film were a bit of a mixed bag: “For those only passingly interested in the subject, this resolutely adequate portrait of guitarist Carlos Santana is the cinematic equivalent of a well written and factchecked Wikipedia page but with loads more pictures and film clips.” (from The Guardian). “The movie doesn’t dig very deep, but there are suggestions that parts of his personality are less admirable, the fact that he’s had many different incarnations of his band implies that he may be difficult to work with.” (from Common Sense Media). “Carlos” has one of the best openings I’ve ever seen or heard in a music documentary. We hear Carlos Santana, waxing philosophical and wise as he’s prone to do. Intercut with his words, at throbbing intervals of about 20 seconds and at top volume, are the iconic organ and bass notes — BOM BOM!…BOM BOM! — that open “Oye Como Va,” the 1971 hit by Santana. Yet instead of assaulting you with the song, ‘Carlos’ severs those four notes from it and blows them up into a piece of pop art, like a Warhol sound painting.” (from Variety). Likewise, reviews on various fan websites were also somewhat mixed with comments from the post-Supernatural fanbase happy to learn the history preceding that breakout album, while some older fans and collectors lamented the fact that much of the footage was simply lifted from YouTube videos when there was a wealth of rarer material that could’ve been used instead, but they were positive about the film overall. In October 2023 director Rudy Valdez appeared on the American TV show The View and assessed the documentary this way: “He believed in himself. At its core this is a story about a person who saw the potential in himself and what he could be and sacrificed a lot to go after that.”

From San Francisco,

Please Welcome... SANTANA!

Bill Graham

© 1999 Santanamigos