Santana Woodstock
Country Joe had gotten the crowd to its feet and now it was time for Santana. It is important to remember that this wasn’t Santana 1970. This was Santana 1969, the band that their manager Bill Graham had reportedly insisted be part of Woodstock if Woodstock Ventures wanted the Dead.
Whatever the story, Santana was the second scheduled act of the second day. It was about 2 PM.
The personnel was:
- Carlos Santana: guitar
- Gregg Rolie: vocals, keyboard
- David Brown: bass
- Jose “Chepito” Areas: timbales, congas, percussion
- Mike Carabello: timbales, congas, percussion
- Michael Shrieve: drums
And their set was:
- Waiting
- Evil Ways
- You Just Don’t Care
- Savor
- Jingo
- Persuasion
- Soul Sacrifice
- Fried Neckbones And Some Home Fries
Santana Woodstock
Waiting
The crowd politely applauded Chip Monck’s introduction and we immediately heard a style of rock that most of us had never experienced: Afro-Caribbean. While Carlos Santana is the obvious leader of the band and the lead guitarist at that, the band is always a band with each member contributing.
The band would play about 50 minutes and all the songs except the last was from their not-yet-released album and nearly all in the same track order.
Waiting… for my baby
Waiting… for my baby
I? m on the pier, I? m waiting for my baby
I? d like to see her and I don? t mean maybe
She goes by the name, the name Marcella
Y mira, mira como mueve la cadera
Cadera pa mi es como caramelo
Ay caramelo, caramelo, caramelo
Waiting… estoy esperando pr Marcella… for my baby
Marcella mi vida
Waiting… for my baby
After all this time I? m finally with Marcella
I want to marry, but I don? t know how to tell her
Marcella and I, we go to the cabana
We bibbi di bop and bibbi di bop and boppin to Santana
Santana pa mi, Santana pa mi
Pero que rico, que rico Santana
Waiting… Ay Marcella mi vida… for my baby
Estoy esperando pr Marcella
Waiting… for my baby
Pero que rico Santana
En Espanol
Yo estoy esperando a mi novia como un mango
En Espanol
Ahora viene mi Marcella huarachando
En Espanol
Me estuvo esperando el todo dia
En Espanol
En el sol ay mama mia
Doe-you… goe yoe yoe yoe
Goe-yoe… goe yoe yoe yoe
Waiting… for my baby
Santana Woodstock
Evil Ways
Just as the band is relatively unknown, so are their songs. If the band were to play Evil Ways today, the crowd would likely immediately jump to its feet. Not yet in 1969.
Before I stop lovin’ you
You’ve got to change, baby
And every word that I say is true
You got me runnin’ and hidin’ all over town
You got me sneakin’ and a-peepin’ and runnin’ you down
This can’t go on, Lord knows you got to change, baby
My house is dark and my pots are cold
You’re hangin’ round, baby
With Jean and Joan and-a who knows who
I’m gettin’ tried of waitin’ and foolin’ around
I’ll find somebody who won’t make me feel like a clown
This can’t go on, Lord knows you got to change, baby
My house is dark and my pots are cold
You’re hangin’ round, baby
With Jean and Joan and-a who knows who
I’m gettin’ tried of waitin’ and foolin’ around
I’ll find somebody who won’t make me feel like a clown
This can’t go on, Lord knows you got to change, baby
Santana Woodstock
Just Don’t Care
More solid playing. I’d say the crowd is beginning to feel the groove that the band itself is definitely enjoying.
You’d have to leave
And you listened with a cryin stare.
Now you’ve got the nerve
To tell me baby
Yeah, yeah, a no, no
You don’t care
You just don’t care baby.
Sun
Turns back at the sight of you
And your evil only clouds the air.
Hey, hey, hey, hum
Now you don’t care.
Hey
You don’t care for me.
Now you’re leaving to find
Someone who’ll dare
To change all the wrong
Like you done to me
Hey, hey, hey, no, no
You don’t care.
Hey, hey, hey, you don’t care.
Santana Woodstock
Savor
“Back to the Latin.” This instrumental features everyone especially Greg Rolie on organ and Michael Shrieve on drums, but this isn’t the drum solo that we’ve all likely heard. Not yet.
Santana Woodstock
Jingo
The band segues right into Jingo. Segues are great ways to keep a crowd into the set. Breaks between songs often allow the balloon to deflate. Not today.
Jingo features much more percussion.
Santana Woodstock
Persuasion
There’s no patter. No explanation. A bit of a break, the then the percussive engine roars again.
I can’t help myself
You got persuasion
I can’t help myself
Something about you baby
Keeps me from goin’ to somebody else
Now, now baby
You put me in a daze
All the time
Look what cha got for me baby
Like the devil in disguise
You’re one
You’re one of a kind
Has just outdone me babe
I can’t keep the rain from comin’ down
I can’t get out from under
But I wouldn’t want to
Even if I can
Make me feel
Make me feel like a man
Santana Woodstock
Soul Sacrifice
And we have arrived. Listening to the whole set is far better than listening only to what many think is the best song from the set. Be that as it may, Soul Sacrifice with Michael Shrieve again soloing, is a diamond in this dazzling set.
The crowd stood. The crowd shouted, cheered, stamped, applauded, whistled, and called out. It was a human earthquake for those of us there.
This was the song that made it onto the album. This was the performance that made it into the movie. How could they not have!
Santana Woodstock
Fried Neck Bones And Some Home Fries
Encores nowadays are a formal part of most bands’ performances. We know they’ll come back, they know they’ll come back, but we all act as if it’s a surprise.
There had been Woodstock encores, but this one was definitely earned and desired.
Another amazing song that is less lustrous only because of what preceded it. I’m not sure if a 6+ minutes song with only four words isn’t still an instrumental anyway.
Fried neckbones
And some…
Santana Woodstock
Next performer, John Sebastian.
They were unbelievably amazing. I felt the rhythm all through my body. I became a fan for life.
The best of its kind and the best of its time.
I saw Santana at the Filmore as the “warm up band” for the main attraction(s). The Youngbloods & Chicago. Believe the year was 1969 but could have been after Woodstock. I’m not sure. Santana blew Chicago off the stage and we’re a relative unknown at the time. I’ll never forget it!