Carlos Santana have an accident while on his well back for interview

Few lead guitarists in American music have maintained a loyal following as Carlos Santana has over the years. Through his countless lineup iterations and musical directions, Santana has always remained true to himself and boasts a career full of great music and an incomparable guitar tone. Today marks the guitarist’s 77th birthday, and we wanted to celebrate the occasion with some serious jams.

Much like the Grateful Dead, Santana rose through the San Francisco music scene with the help of promoter Bill Graham. Graham helped to foster the artists who defined the counterculture movement, and Santana’s talent for the guitar was undeniable. He caught the attention of the scene by joining an impromptu superjam group, bewildering attendees with his soulful style at venues like the Fillmore West. It’s hard to believe those shows took place almost 60 years ago, considering how fresh and culturally relevant Santana’s sound remains to this day.

Related: Carlos Santana “Taking It Easy” After Collapsing Onstage At Pine Knob

Interestingly, things came full circle at LOCKN’ in 2015, when Santana took the stage with Phil Lesh featuring Friends Warren Haynes, Rob Barraco, Barry Sless, and John Molo. The guitarist took the lead on “Not Fade Away” to start the set and spit fire via his guitar through great versions of Grateful Dead classics like “Scarlet Begonias”, “The Other One”, and many others.

Carlos Santana’s guitar tone is a distinctive thing – a raw, howling blues-cry delivered with Hispanic inflections and a pent-up eroticism. Throughout his five decades making music, however, the man himself has resisted being pigeonholed. “I never really like a low ceiling,” he once told this writer. “I don’t like being put in a box, like I’m the Latin rock guy.” The only musical classification that he’s happy with, and which he says defines his sound and style, is one that he devised himself: ‘multi-dimensional interdenominational music.’

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