Rob Thomas, Carlos Santana at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards

Rob Thomas and Carlos Santana

Photo: J Vespa/WireImage.com

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Santana's "Smooth" GRAMMY Feat: For The Record

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The Mexican-American guitarist's 1999 masterwork, 'Supernatural,' spawned two tracks that put him in the GRAMMY record book
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
Sep 28, 2017 - 4:43 pm

Few guitarists are instantly recognizable within hearing a couple of notes. There's Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, B.B. King, and Eddie Van Halen. Surely, you can add Carlos Santana to that mix.

For The Record: Carlos Santana

Through his 50-year-plus career, Santana has sprinkled his patented minor-key runs all over Latin-flavored rock classics such as "Black Magic Woman," "Oye Come Va" and "Jingo," influencing generations of guitarists in the process.

And indeed, few musicians have been able to make such an indelible mark 30 years after their debut release. But that's exactly what the Mexican-born guitarist did with 1999's Supernatural.

Released three decades after Santana's eponymous 1969 album, Supernatural went super nuclear. On the strength of the hits "Smooth" featuring Rob Thomas, "Put Your Lights On" featuring Everlast, "Corazón Espinado" featuring Mana, and "Maria Maria" featuring the Product G&B, the all-star-packed album became Santana's most successful work by far, selling more than 15 million copies and netting eight GRAMMYs and three Latin GRAMMYs.

Adding to Supernatural's monstrous footprint, two tracks put Santana in the GRAMMY record books.

The ubiquitous No. 1 hit "Smooth" earned the GRAMMY for Record Of The Year at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards in 2000. Later that year, at the inaugural Latin GRAMMY Awards, "Corazón Espinado" earned the Record Of The Year Latin GRAMMY.

As a result, and for the record, Santana became the first and only artist to date to win both a Record Of The Year GRAMMY and Record Of The Year Latin GRAMMY.

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony

Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com

Feature

Jennifer Lopez And Marc Anthony's Harmony: For The Record

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Take a look back at the New York natives' duet history
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Oct 11, 2017 - 5:26 pm

Though they may no longer be husband and wife, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony still have undeniable  chemistry.

For The Record: Jennifer Lopez And Marc Anthony

The dynamic duo, who were married from 2004–2014,  has recorded a total of four duets in their career: "No Me Ames" (1999), "Escapémonos" (2004), "Por Arriesgarnos" (2007), and "Olvídame Y Pega La Vuelta" (2016).

"No Me Ames" earned the New York natives two Latin GRAMMY nominations at the inaugural Latin GRAMMY Awards for Best Pop Duo/Group With Vocal and Best Music Video. They also performed "Escapémonos" at  the 47th GRAMMY Awards in 2005.

Arguably their most famous duet, Lopez and Anthony staged a dramatic performance of "Olvídame Y Pega La Vuelta" at  the 17th Latin GRAMMY Awards in 2016, during whuch the two shared a romantic kiss during the duet that had fans' heads spinning.

 Music isn't the only work Lopez and Anthony still do together — they also partner for philanthropic efforts. Most recently they created an initiative called Somos Una Voz (We Are One Voice) to support victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

 

Jennifer Lopez circa 2000

Jennifer Lopez

Photo: WireImage.com

Feature

1999: The Year Latin Pop Conquered America

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1999 saw an unprecedented dominance of Latin pop sounds in American music, opening the public's ears to multilingual songwriting
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Oct 6, 2017 - 3:15 pm

The U.S. music scene in 1999 saw an unprecedented surge in the popularity of Latin pop.

Hispanic artists and various elements of Latin sounds dominated the charts to such an extent that by the end of the year even artists with no Latin heritage to speak of were looking to capitalize on the movement by recording Spanish-language versions of their singles in hopes of activating the crossover market.

Sure, there were prior Latin crossover rumblings — remember Dru's Hill's 1998 Latin-inflected Top 3 hit "How Deep Is Your Love" from Rush Hour? But most argue that it all started with Ricky Martin.

Ricky Martin

"It was completely sudden, and it had a lot to do with Ricky. After his performance at the GRAMMYs, everyone was on alert, so to speak, and expecting his new album. The first hit, of course, was "Livin' La Vida Loca" with that sensational video. I think that was the beginning." — Leila Cobo, executive director of Latin content and programming, Billboard

As a young man, Martin came to prominence between the ages of 12 and 17 as a member of the GRAMMY-nominated boy band Menudo. The Puerto Rico native was also a successful actor and solo recording artist before he burst onto the U.S. music scene in 1999. In the '90s, he acted in TV series such as "General Hospital" and "Getting By," telenovelas and stage plays, and he'd released four successful Spanish-language albums.

Martin won his first career GRAMMY — Best Latin Pop Performance for Vuelve — at the 41st GRAMMY Awards in 1999, but it was his show-stopping performance of "La Copa De La Vida" that same year that made it clear something big was on the horizon.

Martin's "Livin La Vida Loca" was released one month after his spectacular GRAMMY performance, and quickly became his first-ever No. 1 charting single, holding the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks. 

The singer's self-titled fifth solo album — his English debut — was released two months later, and hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 almost immediately. The most successful album of Martin's career, it has gone on to sell well over 15 million copies worldwide. Needless to say, 1999 was a big year for the Puerto Rican pop star.

Leila Cobo, executive director of Latin content and programming for Billboard, was working as Miami Herald's pop music critic at the time, recalls one event that served as an interesting tell sign.

"I went to cover [the signing] and found a line of hysterical girls at 11 a.m. on a school day that went on for blocks," she says. "I had never seen anything like this, ever."

Writing for Billboard roughly a month after "Livin La Vida Loca" hit store shelves, Michael Paoletta, now executive producer, A&R and music supervision for Comma Music, commented prophetically, "In the weeks since [the GRAMMYs], it seems like every record label exec has been in a heated search for the next Latin hottie."

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez had worked as a successful dancer and actress during the '90s, notably appearing as a Fly Girl on Keenan and Damon Wayans' sketch comedy and variety show "In Living Color." In 1997 Lopez earned a huge breakthrough in the leading role as GRAMMY-winning Tejano singer Selena in the titular biopic about her life and tragic death. The Bronx native's performance in the film was lauded by critics and fans alike, putting her in the entertainment spotlight and at the same time making her ripe to become the breakout female star to help propel the Latin pop movement.

Lopez's debut single, "If You Had My Love," was released in May 1999, just a week before Martin's self-titled album hit the shelves, arriving at the perfect time to sate the appetites of stateside listeners. The single climbed to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and became one of the best-selling singles in the U.S. for 1999. Lopez's first studio album, On The 6, released a few weeks later, also skyrocketed, debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and ultimately earning triple-platinum status.

"Waiting For Tonight," the second radio single from On The 6, would go on to be nominated for Best Dance Recording at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards.

J.Lo, Pharrell Williams, Lady Gaga: 13 Iconic GRAMMY Fashion Statements

The same month that saw Lopez release On The 6 also saw another well-established Latin pop star blow up in the U.S.

Enrique Iglesias

Enrique Iglesias had previously won his first GRAMMY for Best Latin Pop Performance for his first self-titled 1995 studio album. The Spanish singer also came from an impressive musical pedigree, being the son of GRAMMY-winning Latin pop crooner Julio Iglesias.

"Bailamos," the junior Iglesias' inaugural English language release, was selected for the 1999 blockbuster action flick Wild Wild West, thanks in part to a request from GRAMMY winner Will Smith. The single would top the Billboard Hot 100 and become an immense success, eventually selling more than 5 million copies worldwide.

Almost certainly the biggest success story of the 1999 Latin pop explosion, however, was to be the eponymous band led by then-52-year-old guitar god Carlos Santana.

Santana

"We connected with hip-hoppers. … We connected with middle white America, we connected with Latin America, Africa, Asia, Australia. It's like the Champs-Elysées in Paris: This CD is connected to all the streets." — Carlos Santana on Supernatural, 1999

When Santana's 17th studio album, Supernatural, was released in 1999, the group had been playing live together for longer than the likes of Martin, Lopez and Iglesias had been alive. The album's lead single, "Smooth," featuring Matchbox 20's Rob Thomas, was an absolute phenomenon that year. It spent an astonishing 12 weeks in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Santana's first chart-topping song.

For The Record: Carlos Santana

Supernatural would net Santana a total of eight GRAMMYs at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards, including Album Of The Year and Best Rock Album, with "Smooth" taking home Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year and Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals. Commercially, Supernatural would eventually sell more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. Due to its equally strong chart performance, "Smooth" would be the final song of the decade to stand atop the Hot 100.

The Latin GRAMMY Awards

Following the incredible explosion of Latin pop music in 1999, the year 2000 heralded the inception of the Latin GRAMMY Awards, hosted by the Latin Recording Academy, which was established in 1997 as a counterpart to the Recording Academy.

Nuyorican Marc Anthony would become the first artist to take home the inaugural Latin GRAMMY for Song Of The Year, Record Of The Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "I Need To Know (Dímelo)," from his Top 10 1999 self-titled album.

While some later argued that the 1999 Latin explosion was a brief high-gloss blip on the pop culture radar, its impact cannot be underestimated. The 2000s and beyond have seen a steady stream of Latin artists dent the Billboard charts — including Shakira, Juanes, Luis Fonsi, J Balvin, and Nicky Jam, among others. The past year has seen the continuing dominance of Latin sounds in the modern pop scene, with crossover hits such as Fonsi and Daddy Yankee's "Despacito" serving as but one example.

And the Latin GRAMMY Awards has emerged as The Biggest Night in Latin Music, honoring top Latin music talent and featuring top-shelf performances that thrill millions worldwide — a testament to the staying power of Latin music.

"To have a song in Spanish, and to be in the top of the Hot 100, that's something that rarely happens," Fonsi told CNN regarding "Despacito." "I'm just very proud that Latin music has grown so much and people are just really connecting to it."

GRAMMYs

Carlos Santana

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Santana's Seminal Second Album 'Abraxas' Turns 50 | For The Record

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Relive the magic of Santana's 1970 sophomore album containing some of the band's most recognizable songs such as "Black Magic Woman" and "Oye Como Va"
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Sep 16, 2020 - 12:48 pm

Half a century ago, and almost three decades before Carlos Santana and company went Supernatural, psychedelic Latin rockers Santana released their legendary second studio album, Abraxas, on Sept. 23, 1970.

For The Record: Santana's 'Abraxas'

The band borrowed the album's aptly dazzing title from a book called Demian credited to Emil Sinclair, a pen name of author Hermann Hesse, who also wrote Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and The Glass Bead Game. Watch the latest edition of For The Record in the video above to find out where the band got the colorful artwork on the album cover.

The music of Abraxas yielded some of Santana's biggest hits: "Black Magic Woman," "Oye Como Va" and "Hope You Feel Better." The band went on to win eight GRAMMY Awards and rock music has never been the same since Abraxas.

In 1999, the album was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame. Learn more about the classic status of Abraxas by watching the episode above. 

Read More: Santana's "Smooth" GRAMMY Feat: For The Record

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Carlos Santana

Carlos Santana

Photo: Kevin Winter/WireImage

News

Santana, 'Abraxas': For The Record

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Revisit the album that proved rock music's emerging ability to experiment could integrate diverse traditions and intoxicate young audiences
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Sep 28, 2018 - 5:42 pm

After their success at the summer rock festival Woodstock in Aug. 1969 and the contemporary release of their debut self-titled album, guitarist Carlos Santana and his band Santana put out their follow-up, Abraxas, in Sept. 1970. His lead guitar and the album's eclectic combination of rock, Latin rhythms and experimental creativity captured the spirit of the times, filled with a sense of potential new experiences.

For The Record: Santana's 'Abraxas'

By Oct. 1970, Abraxas reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200. On the Hot 100 in early 1971, its single "Black Magic Woman" peaked at No. 4, and "Oye Como Va" reached No. 13 a few months later — reinterpreting the Tito Puente cha-cha as rock and helping to prove the flourishing genre's ability to bring new relevance to compositions from other musical traditions.

A San Francisco Bay local, Carlos Santana got his break from Fillmore promoter Bill Graham. An origin myth Santana doesn't remember the same way has Graham discovering the youngster after he snuck into the venue's office. "I was a kid right out of high school and nobody else was putting on shows like Bill did then," he remembered, explaining why he was always around.

As locals, they could fill in for missing bands on the schedule in a flash. Graham wrote in his autobiography, "To this day, Santana is still the only band ever to headline the Fillmore without having made a record."

Thanks to their excellence and reflecting the cultural moment, happenstance became legend. The band's second album was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2016. Shortly before the close of the millennium, Abraxas was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame, in 1999 — the year Carlos Santana's album Supernatural was released, taking him to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for the third time, from a career-total of four times so far. At the 42nd GRAMMY Awards, he won in eight categories, including Album Of The Year and Best Rock Album.

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