Santana – Black Magic Woman

This was a hit for Santana, but few people know that this song is actually a cover of a 1968 Fleetwood Mac song that hit #37 in the UK. Peter Green, who was a founding member of Fleetwood Mac, wrote the lyrics.

Many also don’t know that Santana started out as a blues band, just like Fleetwood Mac. “I used to go to see the original Fleetwood Mac, and they used to kill me, just knock me out,” Carlos Santana said in the book The Guitar Greats. “To me, they were the best blues band.”

Santana put their own spin on the song, incorporating Latin textures, but they kept the basic sound from the original intact.

The 1:49 instrumental at the end is called “Gypsy Queen,” and was written by the Hungarian jazz guitarist Gabor Szabo. It was omitted from Santana’s 1974 Greatest Hits album, even though radio stations usually play “Black Magic Woman” and “Gypsy Queen” as one song.

The original version is based on a blues song Peter Green wrote for Fleetwood Mac’s first UK album called “I Loved Another Woman.” Mick Fleetwood called the original version, “Three minutes of sustain/reverb guitar with two exquisite solos from Peter.”

“Black Magic Woman” was the first single from Santana’s second album, Abraxas, released in September 1970.

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Santana - Black Magic Woman (8/18/1970)

Santana - Black Magic Woman - 8/18/1970 - Tanglewood (Official)05:42

Santana – Black Magic Woman
Recorded Live: 8/18/1970 – Tanglewood – Lenox, MA

Carlos Santana – guitar, vocals
Gregg Rolie – keyboards, piano, lead vocals
David Brown – bass
Michael Shrieve – drums
Jose “Chepito” Areas – percussion, conga, timbales
Mike Carabello – percussion, conga, vocals

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