This summer marked the 50th anniversary of Love Devotion Surrender, a collaboration between Carlos Santana and Mahavishnu Orchestra guitarist John McLaughlin that was inspired by spiritual teacher Sri Chinmoy and a tribute to jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. Santana and McLaughlin were disciples of both cultural figures and, backed by their respective bands, recorded a transcendent collection of sonic meditations and celebrations that can now be seen as a pivotal point for the subject of upcoming documentary Carlos.
The feature-length film, directed by Emmy-winner Rudy Valdez, is scheduled to open after Santana’s September set of House of Blues residency dates, with a Carlos: The Santana Journey Global Premiere taking place Sept. 23-24 and 27 in selected cinemas. Executive produced by Brian Glazer and Ron Howard and released through art-film powerhouse Sony Pictures Classics, the bio-doc depicts Santana’s life from his beginnings as a teen musician playing in his father’s band to his current era as an active elder stateman of rock.
Prior to his spiritual awakening, Santana was known as the leader of an eponymous band immortalized by cinematographers at Woodstock during their incendiary performance of “Soul Sacrifice.” The band had already been introduced to the nation with a televised appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show and would release its most beloved album, Abraxas, a year after the three-day festival. Woodstock the movie, also released in 1970, would forever create a connection between Santana and fellow performers The Who, Joe Cocker and Jimi Hendrix as rock superstars of 1969.
Hendrix awed Santana as much as Coltrane. He speaks of both men with reverence, and both inspired his transition from FM-friendly radio hits to jazz fusion on Santana’s 1973 album Welcome. That recording marked the departure of singer/organist Gregg Rolie, which made room for Alice Coltrane to sit in on keyboards for several tracks and Leon Thomas to provide stirring vocals on a re-recording of the title track from Love Devotion Surrender.
Welcome, released five months after the McLaughlin collaboration, was a taking-off point for Carlos Santana as intrepid musical explorer. He had already melded rock and Latin influences into a recognizable, signature sound, but he made a fearless turn into noncommercial territory. Santana would remain a draw on the live circuit through the ’70s but would not return to the pop charts until having a radio hit with “Winning” from 1981 album Zebop!
The following year, he’d become the first Woodstock-era musician with a video in heavy rotation on MTV. “Hold On” boosted sales of 1982 LP Shangó, but breaking into the Top 40 would evade Santana until 1999 when “Smooth,” featuring Rob Thomas on vocals, became a video and radio smash, once again changing the course of Carlos Santana’s career.
He’s maintained a high profile ever since. Latest single “Energia” is attributed to the band, with son Salvador producing and nephew Joe Santana dropping Spanglish rap verses as familiar-sounding guitar lines weave in and out. Scenes from those recording sessions may be represented in Carlos, but Carlos Santana is hardly ready for the fade-out in the story of his career.
Mandalay Bay, 7 p.m. Sept. 10, 13 and 15-17, starting at $99. 702.632.7600
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