Santana seduces a sellout crowd

By GINA VIVINETTO

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 23, 2000

TAMPA -- "Santana is about two things," guitarist Carlos Santana told the Ice Palace crowd midway through his sold-out Friday performance: "spirituality and sensuality."

The forefather of Latin rock, Santana, who turned 53 Thursday, has been enjoying one of rock 'n' roll's most amazing comebacks since the success of Supernatural, the album that this year garnered him eight Grammys.

Though it could be dismissed as brilliant record industry marketing to nab Santana new listeners, Supernatural, which pairs the 1970s star with some of today's hottest acts, is filled with the soul and passion that marked Santana's first three albums.

Friday that passion was in full force. Although the stars on Supernatural weren't present, band members Tony Lindsay and Andy Vargas shared vocal duties. Not that it mattered if Matchbox Twenty's Rob Thomas or Lauryn Hill were in the house, Santana's signature guitar licks were what this crowd wanted.

Watching Santana play guitar is watching a man fully realizing -- and enjoying -- his life's calling. In trademark fedora and sunglasses, his jaw wildly chomping his chewing gum, Santana closes his eyes and nods gently toward his instrument as if coaxing a conversation.

Santana and his 10-member band fused blues, rock and Latin music. Three percussionists played bongos, congas and timbales. Singers Lindsay and Vargas kept the salsa vibe spicy with tambourines and maracas. Keyboardist Chester Thompson's sizzling organ and the dynamite horn section of trombone, trumpet and sax made this a rare concert where the jams never became tedious.

Over the Latin rave-ups, Santana unfurled his scorching, gorgeous guitar licks like a ribbon, seducing the audience, many with their fists clutched to their rib cages, responding to the visceral quality of his playing.

For more than two hours, Santana tended to Supernatural favorites such as The Love Of My Life, Put Your Lights On, Maria, Maria, and of course the sultry, horn-driven hit Smooth, celebrating a "Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa."

Several times Santana switched to acoustic guitar to zip off some flamenco-style playing. He also treated longtime fans to Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va, infusing those familiar riffs with new life, even incorporating a bit of Carole King's I Feel The Earth Move into a solo.

Opening act Macy Gray is another pop star enjoying success like Santana, although she lost the Best New Artist Grammy to the woefully undeserving Christina Aguilera. Gray showed what the buzz is about in a powerhouse 45-minute set.

Along with singers Erykah Badu, Angie Stone, and Me'Shell NdegeOcello, Gray is doing her bit to resurrect R&B's soul. But the styles are different. Gray is one funky lady. Watching the 30-year-old singer strut backward with her microphone stand would do James Brown proud.

Gray's voice, a curious squawk, melds the unpolished scratch of Eartha Kitt and Billie Holiday with the achy croon of Al Green. Gray and her gigantic backing band, including blue-bewigged singers, a turntablist and a horn section, zipped through Why Didn't You Call Me?, I've Committed Murder and I Can't Wait to Meetchu from her critically acclaimed debut On How Life Is. The raw and nasty Sex-o-matic Venus Freak could not prepare the audience for Gray's finale of the hit I Try. With minimal accompaniment, Gray sang of two lovers who should be together but are not. Even Gray seemed surprised when thousands in the arena joined her on the heartbreaking chorus:

I try to say goodbye and I choke,

I try to walk away and I stumble.

Though I try to hide it, it's clear,

my world crumbles when you are not near.