Carlos Santana - History Of His Guitars
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- čas přidán 21. 03. 2024
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He brought the sunburst Strat into Guitar Center one day when I was working there. I think his regular tech was on vacation or out of town. There were sharp edges on the bridge saddles for the high E and B strings. They were constantly breaking. I was able to smooth out the sharp burrs on the saddles as a "while you wait" repair, and I had a great conversation with him and Cindy. I charged him $2 for 2 new strings, and he left happy. What a great guy. totally down to earth, and a true gentleman. Planet Earth needs more people like Carlos. It was an honor and a pleasure to do this for him, and it was one of the best days I've had at work in a long time.
The big question.......would you charge ME 2 bucks for two new strings ?
@@jimdep6542 Yeah. That was the going rate at the time. I told him " No charge for labor, I've been listening to you since I was 8 years old, (I was 56 at the time) and now it's my turn to do something nice for you." That was within my discretion. I was observing the law of reciprocity.
The strings were the property of the store, so I'd have to charge anybody for those.
@@InjectBleach-em9tg Carlos lives about 3 miles from the Guitar Center where I used to work. He comes in there all the time when he's not on the road. Cindy shot a Gretsch drum video in there. She literally played her heart out in that video and completely blew away every person who was in the store at the time. Carlos also helped a 12 year old girl pick out a guitar, a white Squeir strat, and played it to show her that it was a good instrument. She said she was a huge fan, and Carlos gave her a memory that she'll keep for rest of her life. If you want to say none of that ever happened, and you want to call me a liar, then you can kiss my butt.
You don't know what you're talking about.
Thanks
@@jpalberthoward9 With a name like injectbleach that's what you get.. a bitter person who wants to try and ruin good things that have happened to good people. He's having a miserable life so we should just ignore him and feel sorry for him.
As a guitarist and lifelong Santana fan, I totally agree with your conclusion that Santana’s best sound was the SG2000 and boogie combination. Having seen them countless times, I would love to see Carlos fire up the old SG2000 again!
Me too!
I somehow like the sound with the SG Specials the best but that Moonflower record with the Yamaha was outstanding.
That was my favorite too but I also really loved the Les Paul tone on "Flame Sky" on Welcome, that's totally a Les Paul into a Mesa Mark I, a classic sound. I actually owned a Gibson L6-S due to Santana owning/using them circa Borboletta. I got mine in 1981. I didn't keep it very long because the fingerboard radius and frets seemed small to me. I gravitated to other guitars after that. Also, the pickups were really gainy so it was hard to get good crisp tones from them. Plus, at the time I didn't have any Mesa gear so getting "that sound" wasn't really in the cards (youthful naivety). Santana used that guitar, so did Rich Williams and Kerry Livgren of Kansas and Bob 1 and 2 of Devo. That's about it for "celebrity endorsers". I'm also told Lily Banquette of Combustible Edison owned one (mentioned it in interviews that it was due to the Devo guys) but never played it on record. So yeah.
Dave Meniketti from Y&T got one too back the early 80s from Yamaha as they were popular in Japan and he was known for playing a Sunburst Les Paul.
Bob Weir and Carlos were playing Yamaha as well in the time. Played a used SG2000 in the 90s. Great guitar, but hella heavy!
Glad you agree!
I went into Leo's Music in Oakland in 1982 and I look down and there is Carlos' L-6S "Borbolletta" guitar with blue butterfly 🦋 wings inlayed on top. I couldn't believe it.
It was on sale for $400! So I bought it. It plays and sounds great. To this day I can't believe it's in my care. A fantastic album and a piece of music history.
Wow what luck! That is an excellent album and many Santana fans have not listened to it. I think it's the most spiritual of all. Only his most dedicated fans have it. I had it on vinyl and have the CD also.
@@12groney My all time favorite Santana album. Love it.
Do you have any pics of you playing it on line ?
We gotta see this!!
well done and lucky you.....always considering it was "carlos" own guitar of course.....
Had the distinct honor of meeting him twice, backstage in the early 2000's. He spent an hour with us each time. His road manager would come in occasionally pointing at his watch, as if to give him an "out." He just waved his hand.."its cool." The second time was right before his follow up to "Supernatural" was released, he put in a CD of rough mixes and played along, giving us a "sneak peak, and private audience. He was exactly as any fan would want him to be: Gracious, funny, warm, welcoming, "trippy" and kind. I will never forget it.
So cool thanks for the comment
That's how he is when he comes in Guitar Center. B.B. King was the same way. I don't think the Gen Z's even know who these guys are.
@@jpalberthoward9 Thats great to hear. Musician buddies of mine, met/opened for BB, they say the same. He was known as "The Gentleman of the Blues" for a reason. And sadly, many poor souls today have no idea what they are missing.
@@GINKBB You know what I think it is?
It's something real simple that lots of folks today have lost and don't even know they've lost it.
Grandma used to say that the difference between misery and happiness is the difference between hateful and grateful.
Carlos, B.B. Stevie Ray, Roy Clark and others never forgot where they came from, and they never lost that connection to who they are. that's why all of their music resonates so deeply even after they they leave us. It works both ways. Arrogance and narcissism are toxic, and that stuff will also come out in the music. You don't have to listen too hard to hear how we are flooded with that kind of stuff right now.
I had just switched from.piano to acoustic guitar when I heard WAR's 'Cisco Kid'. BB Dickerson' s bass blew me away so I gave my guitar to my sister and emptied my piggy bank and then walker down to Fed Mart where I bought a Kay Bass for $35. I rewired it to play through my stereo and that was that... Guitarists will know what I mean when I say that it had a 3/4" action...LOL... On the bright side it gave me strong fingers!
very cool!
My grandpa used to jam and play with Carlos Santana a lot in the 1960s.
My guitar teacher said once that the PRS Santana model is the only PRS model he actually liked and felt had some soul, maybe because it’s one of the most Gibson-like models.
For me its his Yamaha - he had a bond with that guitar
My favorite guitar tone I heard from Santana live was his sunburst Les Paul through the original Mesa Boogie Mk 1 in 1973 when playing solo's. This was during the Santana " Lotus band " era. His Les Paul used in 1973 and through much of 74 had the Bill Lawrence Super Humbuckers , designed and installed by Bill when he still worked for Gibson at that time. From there, Carlos asked Bill to have those pickups put in his next guitar , the Gibson L6-S. When Carlos came onstage to do an encore with the Mahavishnu Orchestra in May of 1974 at Wiinterland in San Francisco, he was still using the Sunburst Les Paul. I took a picture of him backstage tuning up before he went out front to play " A Love Supreme" with John McLaughlin.
My 2nd favorite live tone was when Carlos played his Gibson L6-S in September of 1974 when the Santana band played at Winterland again. When Gibson started mass producing the L6-S's, Santana started complaining about Gibson's quality control, stating that he was having problems with his pickup selector switch not working right during concerts and that Gibson was cranking out these guitars " like McDonald's hamburgers" and skimping on the quality not being consistent.
Next was the Yamaha 2000SG a year or two later, but his live lead tones started getting a little too distorted for my liking, even when playing with a clean tone. The sustain we definitely there but it didn't have that live singing quality and sounded too compressed instead.
The PRS's ? Forget it. I never liked his live tone. To me, it sounded like his solos had a sinus infection. I also liked his early Gibson SG tones , but I never got to see him play with the original lineup.
very cool tones indeed
This was amazing information. As A life long fan of Santana, I appreciated every second.
Thanks for the video. ... Seems t recall that during the early Paul Reed Smith involvement that Carlos tried out the Howard Leese guitar which Paul had built for him and what became the Santana guitar was basically an offshoot of that. That said, the articles I have on that are in storage and this is from memory only rather than written documentation.
When I lived in Pacific Beach, San Diego in 1985 there was an old 50's Les Paul for sale in a small guitar store. They said it was one of Carlos's guitars when he lived in Tijuana but they had no proof. It was only $1,000 but it wasn't in great shape. I think it was a gold top.
A very welcome gear review of one of the planet's most loved and admired musicians.
The one guitar Goose missed was the INCREDIBLE tone of the flamenco on Amigos, would LOVE to know what he used for this?
The sounds I most associate with Carlos Santana's golden era will always be the broken rawness of Woodstock. Second, the greatest Latin-Rock album ever made, namely...
Santana III (Third Album). No guitar player should ever be without this masterpiece.
Third Album was meat and drink to me at school while studying for my 'O' Level exams, and remains so to this day.. the screaming, searing tones of Santana and Schon Les Pauls. Which bring me to the great Neil Schon. Next guitar review, Goose?
This is one of the best channels on YT and this video shows it. Great research and presentation. 👍👍
Many thanks indeed
My dad was a big fan of Santana and he was able to see them live back in the day in Lubbock Tx. He told me that the PA was messed up and there was no vocals, so they basically just jammed for an hour and a half. Never the less he said that it was a fantastic show 👍🏻.
I’ve played some festivals in Mexico with Javier Batiz, he’s a character, nice guy.
I agree with you that the Yamaha was Carlos greatest tone. For those not familiar with the Oneness album, this is that set up, the Yamaha SG, Boogie amps and Carlos at their zenith. His tone throughout is sublime, especially on the opening suite, best heard on a CD or vinyl, though you can ask Alexa and she will shuffle the album for you.
Totally agree with John. The whole Oneness album is underrated in the Santana catalogue, and the track, Oneness is incredible in every respect, tone, feel, ambiance, and so soulful. I'm not a 'past is better' type, but I do believe Carlos put more heart into his music during the period he was playing his Yamaha SG. There's a clip go him doing Europa where he's absolutely in the moment feeling every note from the core of his being.
Awesome John
Javier is a treasure
I do not know him personally but growing up gowing to TJ regularly in the 70s I’m well aware of him
I also have mixed feelings regarding certain things
Thanks for sharing
Thanx Goose... that wuz great (as always)
cheerios
many thanks bro
I think Carlos also played a white left-hand Strat upside down with the strings in the reverse order (à la Hendrix, "mirrored") on occasion. A lot of successful right-handed players in the '70s tried to do the "Jimi thing" a little bit with left-hand Strats. Steve Miller, Ritchie Blackmore, Carlos, and a few others.
Most of them figured out rather quickly that playing a "reversed" Strat like that absolutely sucks for mere mortals. Everything is in the wrong place and harder to work with. You're playing an instrument that was designed to be as ergonomic as possible (by 1950s standards...) upside down. It's a bit like riding a bicycle backwards. Jimi himself only did it because he was all about having affordable equipment on the road, that could be replaced relatively easily if anything got stolen or irreparably damaged. He learned that the hard way on the Chitlin' Circuit. And he had learned to play on cheap used converted right-hand guitars in his teens. Later, literally almost every single one of his Roger-Mayer-modded Fuzz Faces got stolen from him before or after concerts, even when he was one of the biggest stars in the world. That was a constant reminder to keep it practical for him. If used left-hand Strats had been available in similar quantities and for the same price as right-hand models at the time, in all major cities, he would have played those. But they weren't, so he didn't. It really didn't go any deeper than that, no "special mojo", no supernatural "tone secrets". Availability, replaceability, and price.
Same reasons why Paul McCartney played converted right-hand guitars in the late 1950s and all through the 1960s. That was all that was widely available (and affordable in the early days). He struck gold and won the lottery at the same time when he found his first left-hand Höfner bass in Hamburg. Later on, he got the left-hand 4001 when Rickenbacker worked their way into the Beatles camp by repairing/customising Lennon's guitars and offering the first twelve-string to Harrison. Then The Beatles became partners with CBS-Fender and he got a free left-hand Jazz Bass out of the deal, along with a lot of other equipment.
great comment, thanks
Excellent, enjoyed this one 👌
Many thanks indeed
Thanks Goose!
pleasure bro
I've had four PRS, and they're really too nasal for the most part. I've never had a Santana model, although I would like to. I play Suhr and ESP now.
thanks - I play ESP also!
I remember a Yamaha catalogue with a beautiful black SG on the cover back in the early 80s...I was 13 or 14.... it was one of my holy grail guitars I dreamed of
so cool
Great video, thanks.
Thanks
In my early days he was my biggest inspiration.., now I cant listen to his solos anymore. He literally plays the same solo on every tune on all albums😂
Santana III is my all time favourite album with Neil Schon
Great video as always, Ramon. I read somewhere that those white P-90s on the SG Special came from an old Les Paul gold top. Him destroying the red Woodstock SG sounds unlike him. Would’ve been smarter to just get it looked at by a luthier/repairman or just unload it or keep it for parts. 🙄 Interestingly Carlos used Strats a lot in the recording studio.
Agreed - and yes he used strats throughout his career.
I've always really liked Santana's playing, the dude just had such an incredible tone and it's great. Awesome as always, I'd love to see a video on guys like Daron Malakian (System of a Down), Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), James Hetfield or Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Joe Perry (Aerosmith) or Synyster Gates (Avenged Sevenfold) sometime
like it - thanks!
A VERY interesting video to say the least!
Nice Ramon! Yes, I agree about the Yamaha SG 2000. Used to have one of those when I was in high school. One of the guitars I really kick myself for selling. It was beautiful.!
very cool guitars Lucas
I could not afford a 2000, so I bought a 1500 from Guitar Center in Hollywood from the original owner's son. I thought Santana's sound was the best back then
Yes, on Moonflower we have mostly the great Yamaha SG. But on "She's Not There" (and some other studio tracks) he played a Strat.
thanks
so it wasn't soo easy for Paul Reed Smith to get Carlos to play one of his guitars.....but he didn't give up...well done Paul....and yes i love your guitars too.....haa....
Good man
Very great video thank you 🙏🏼 for all the hard work as I have always wondered about Santana’s Gibson guitars history, a reminder from 1961 to 1963,there was no SG they were actually actually “Les Paul” in that particular case that is a 1961 Gibson Les Paul Custom . Thank you from South Australia 🇦🇺
Amazing guitars.
Agreed!
Goose, I think you missed a very important Santana guitar. In the mid-70s the Welcome, Lotus, Barboletta, Amigos and Festival era Carlos favored a Sunburst Gibson Les Paul Standard with gold top hat knobs and solid metal tuners (maybe Grovers), which you can see him pictured with on the back of the Festival album. there are a number of photographs with Carlos favoring this guitar which includes one of his talisman decals on the head stock. For those not familiar with the live Lotus album, this is a Taj Mahal of tone. Carlos pairing this guitar with his rig which consisted of the early Mach 1 Boogie and silver face Twin Reverb amps loaded with Altec Lansing speakers
It’s highly possible that Europa was recorded with this guitar, as it was his main axe in the mid-70s. You can check it out closely during the 24 minute mark of the Lotus movie here on CZcams.
czcams.com/video/KiYBWwE0EvI/video.htmlsi=IPq8ctLeKwbPRjzV
Santana's tone, from 1972 through the 1st half of 1974 was my absolute favorite live tone. It had a singing quality I've never heard him have since.
Thanks for this John - well I may try include it in the future if I can
All good mate. You are quite thorough so I thought you’d appreciate a heads up on Carlos’ standard burst. I really enjoy your channel. Rock on!
Carlos Santana, one of the best.
agreed
GOD BLESS CARLOS SANTANA 🙏 FOREVER THE VERY BEST GUITARIST 🎸 LES PAUL EVER ENCOUNTERED ♥️ ❤️ 🙌 ❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉🎉
SG Specials didn't always use P90s, by early 70s they were mini humbuckers with black covers. My cherry one had factory Bigsby. 🎸
Fantastic Guitarist.
Amén
Agreed!
Awesome
Thanks
Saw his band live twice. Once in 1987 in Copenhagen Denmark, where his singer was Buddy Miles. It was a bad venue and the sound was not the best inside that sporting arena. Next time was in Midtfyns Festival in Denmark, which was outdoors and it was in 1990. That one sounded way better, and there were 2 singers at that concert as far as I recall.
I was a big fan of his from the early 1980's and loved his new PRS guitar.
I had a great friend in high school and we were both living in the same boarding school. As he was from Switzerland he would invite me there a couple of times.
At one point in 1990, he invited me to get a 4 months working visa in Switzerland, and of course I accepted. I worked hard, made good money, most of which was put aside so I could buy my own Santana-colored PRS.
After the 4 months, I traveled though Germany back to Denmark, and had contacted a music store in Koblenz, that I would be coming by to buy a PRS.
They didn't have the yellow color-burst I wanted and the others they had, had the narrow/thick necks.
I wanted a thin/wide neck, so I just bough an all-black, all-mahogany PRS. Still have it. A wonderful guitar that never ever changed and is just rock-solid.
My friend had sg2000....you require weight lifting belt to use it
I bet!
yes, heavy
Small correction 😢: She's Not There is most definitely his famous sunburst 1954 Strat. Also played on Open Invitation.
A PRS Santana II is on my wishlist.
What a fantastic video have a wonderful weekend Ramon also Monday is my friends birthday also my birthday to him be honest ❤❤❤❤❤❤😊😊😊😊😊😊
Thanks and happy birthday to your friend
The Guy had magic in fingers WHATEVER he played.
There’s also a red Strat in the Sensitive Kind video from 1981 🎸
Thanks
My pleasure and thanks to you for sharing.
Prune Music was located on Locust Street in Mill Valley, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco
That's were the guitarist in my band picked up his Mesa Boogie Mk 1 back in 1977. Good times !
Thanks
so cool
👍👍👍👍
Is it me..or in the first pic of the Kay bass.. he's playing lefthanded?? IS this photo backwards or is he "playing" with us for the photo symmetry?
Does anyone know what guitar and amp he recorded Europa from the Amigos LP? It was released in 1976 and I thought I read somewhere that he used his '68 Les Paul but never said what amp. It seems on that LP he really got that violin type sustain that he was searching for but I'm not sure if he had the Yamaha and Mesa Boogie by then. That sound is so pure and clear if you use good headphones when listening the tone will make your eyes water, at least it does mine. 😭
I think thats the Yamaha
Great Doc…it’s L6S…
Many thanks indeed
L6-S....not LS6
Thanks
I had one in the 1970s when I was a teenager...bought because of that Santana Gibson ad.
B ought one used in the mid 70's GIBSON SG
BFD
Small correction to your information in the video....the SG 175-B and SG 2000 brass sustain plate is not placed under the tailpiece, but under the Tune-O-Matic bridge.
I totally agree abaut the Yamaha and the Boogie.
I actually play a Yamaha SG 2000 and a Boogie MK1 with an Altec 417-8h Series II speaker in it in my Santana tribute band,
To me the most epic sound / tone he had and according to a majority of die hard Santana fans his best ever. .
I never understood why he switched to PRS and Dumble amps....waaaaayyy too muddy making him sound like poo
Getty Images - some of the best stock images around.
prune music was in Mill Valley
i like carlos santana music.
me too!
L6-S. I had one.
I still have one…mint condition natural maple finish
I sold mine in 1982 and have never seen another one since.@@bradnelson2637
thanks and so cool!
One of his guitars played the solo for the song transdermal celebration by ween. A friend of dean ween worked in a studio where santana was about to record and they cheekyly borrowed the guitar in the middle of the night and recorded the solo.
so cool
Carlos can play one string cigar box guitar and it will sound like a symphony
Does anyone do a history of John McLaughlin's guitars?
coming soon!
cant wait!@@TheGuitarShow
00:55 Was he left handed back then??
good point
I thought he playede a Gibson S1 for a bit (?)
thanks
First picture shows him holding the base upside down and he is holding it as a left handed... and the band looks amused!
Thanks for observing that as some people were saying he played left handed!
You mentioned a Gibson LS-6, incorrect! It was a Gibson L6-S...
I play a Gibson L6S. It has proven to be more recognisable than me through the years 🙂I was soundchecking in a club in Sydney one time and the sound guy (with a very thick European accent) spoke to me about it. We mentioned Santana’s “Rainbow” and this guy said “ah yes I remember that guitar. I really hated it” with an odd tone in his voice.
It was only as I was going home from the gig that it occurred to me that this guy might have met the Rainbow personally as a sound guy for Santana. Did I have a brush with fame?
Jalisco.not Jalasco
Thanks, my bad
It’s L6S not LS6
CARLOS SANTANA ONLY PLAYS THE VERY BEST GUITAR 🎸 OUT THERE AND ITS LES PAUL AND THATS BECAUSE CARLOS SANTANA IS THE VERY BEST IN THE WORLD WHEN IT COMES TO GUITARIST 🎸 PEACE AND LOVE ALWAYS TO CARLOS SANTANA FOREVER 🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤❤
Amen
Fantastic and very informative video...many thanks. Agreed that Carlos had his best tone for the Moonflower era with the SG2000, I wish he'd go back to the Yamaha! As a guitarist my self I recently tried out a set of 'Moonflower' pickups which are replicas of the ones in Carlos's Yamaha SG. I fitted them yo my FGN Les Paul Custom and they can be heard here if you or anyone is interested:- czcams.com/video/BKLsOgr7Lv8/video.html - I'm not one to spam my own videos but my channel is very small and I'm not bothered if it stays that way! Thanks again 👍😎
many thanks indeed
The prototype was an L6S NOT LS6 please edit your video for accuracy
😬 *Promosm*
oy, It's a L6S ya mook.
What happened to the Yamaha relationship - and WHY doesn't Carlos even ever mention playing that Yamaha?? Its like a taboo subject??? WTH?
Carlos had 5 fingers at the age of 12
Its pronounced Hal eesco.
Thanks
Yamaha was my favorite...dirty and seemed ready to "take off" ...seemed like he had to tame that guitar a bit. Don't like PRS sound...to me it is too clean and neutered...
agreed!
I agree. When Tom Johnston of the Doobie Brothers switched to PRS, I was disappointed. Not my favorite tone
Noel Gallaghers Guitars .....would be interesting
I'll look into it!
I grew up in the 90s... Noel Gallagher was boring as hell.
really.....all i know is those 2 brothers were "slagging" each other off...for puplicity......bit like Pete Townsend with who...a few years ago.....
why is he playing left handed on a right handed bass? it even looks like it is strung right handed..
9:10 Oh dear! Suit and sandals .... how tasteless !!! 🤢
Hey man it was the 70s! - brilliant music and "tasteless" clothes - or now --- rubbish music and boring clothes.
Oh come on! I have seen pictures of many bands and singers from the sixties and seventies wearing “ridiculous” clothes and accessories but it was like that. Talent is more important than what they were wearing.
What a shame to defile the SG with Chinmoy's vile image. 😢😢😢
That’s one way to look at it. The other way is to see that Carlos was looking for a different path while many of his friends and colleagues were descending into addiction and chaos. It’s easy to judge the white suits and the gurus and such, but this was the path that kept him alive and stable during the rock & roll era.
@@JB_EcklChinmoy was a manipulative conman. I was in a couple of these guru cults, and I can tell you, they are as addictive as drugs.
Carlos has a spirituality in his playing which is unique but like all humbucker pup players he doesn’t have a great sound
For a few years in the early 1970's, he had a GREAT sound.
@@jimdep6542what should I listen to?
@@guitarnationtvLotus
@guitarnationtv - Bit of a sweeping statement I feel! You really believe that all humbucker players don't have a great sound? Have you listened to Santana's Moonflower album?
@@Pete_HarrisOr Peter Geen? C’mon.🤷♂️
Santana is the most over rated guitarist ever .
I’ve worked with him. He is a force of nature. You are so very, very wrong.
@@JB_Eckl Carlos has what Jack Kerouac called "IT" when he was describing John Coltrane. Very very few of us have "IT" There are lots of people who can play millions of notes and know all of the rocket science theory, and that's great, but Carlos or B.B. or Duane Allman or Django Reinhardt can play one or two notes, bend or slide them just right, and say more than the guy who shreds for a half hour. But, even Carlos would tell us "God made the world round so everybody can have center stage".
Santana very bad guitarist
What a trashy statement!
Agree
I respectfully disagree sir, as you were.
And I guess you are better than him. Ok, I can’t wait to see you in the music industry for more than 4 decades.
@@maccarnold amén