Want to see the full capabilities of the high-definition Blu-ray medium when it comes to rock concerts? Look no further than Eagle Rock's brilliant release of Santana's Greatest Hits-Live at Montreux 2011. This, my friends, is one of the best live concert Blu-rays I've seen, period. Recorded on the bands stop at the famous Montreux Jazz Festival in Geneva, Switzerland in 2011, this near 3 hour concert event features practically every song you'll ever want to hear from the legendary Carlos Santana and his band (though the early 80's hit "Winning" is absent, but I'm nitpicking), delivered in such crystal clear quality, both video and audio, that you'll feel like you are sitting right there in the front row.
The band was spot on that evening as they tore into Santana classics old and new in front of a very lively Montreux crowd who obviously loved every minute of it. Carlos and his singing guitar as always are front and center, flanked by vocalists Tony Lindsay and Andy Vargas, percussionists Raul Rekow & Karl Perazzo, drummer Dennis Chambers, Bill Ortiz on trumpet, Jeff Cressman on trombone, longtime bassist Benny Rietveld, guitarist/vocalist Tommy Anthony, David Mathews on keyboards, and Carlos' wife Cindy Blackman on drums. A real treat is seeing the husband & wife team of Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks jamming with the band on "Make Somebody Happy / Right On Be Free", as Susan's sultry vocals and Derek's searing slide guitar licks fit right in with the Santana band. Other highlights include a rousing "Maria, Maria", the percussion heavy "Jingo", the latin salsa of "Foo Foo", and of course sterling renditions of the classics "Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen", Oye Como Va", and "Evil Ways". A semi rap version of AC/DC's "Back in Black" is the lone weak moment here, but Santana was out promoting his album Guitar Heaven at the time, which included a number of bizzarre covers for him, so this and Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love" are included here.
Bonus features include interviews with both Carlos and Cindy, plus some behind the scenes footage from the festival. The concert was filmed in high-definition and recorded in DTS-MD Master Audio, Dolby Digital 5.1 and LPCM Stereo, and as I mentioned earlier the results are fantastic.Three hours of rock, jazz, latin funk, pop, soul, and psychedelia doesn't get much better than this!
Track Listing
1. Spark Of The Divine
2. SOCC
3. Back In Black
4. Singing Winds, Crying Beasts
5. Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen
6. Oye Como Va
7. Maria, Maria
8. Foo Foo
9. Corazon Espinado / Guajira
10. Benny & Cindy Solo
11. Jingo
12. Carlos Speaks / Novus
13. Europa (Earth's Cry, Heaven's Smile) / I Want You
14. Batuka / No One To Depend On
15. Duende / Open Invitation
16. Make Somebody Happy / Right On Be Free
17. Evil Ways / A Love Supreme
18. Sunshine Of Your Love
19. Smooth / Dame Tu Amor
20. Soul Sacrifice / Dennis Drum Solo
21. Samba Pa Ti
22. Into The Night
23. Love, Peace And Happiness / Freedom
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