Carlos

Greetings again from the darkness. Although I was too young to attend Woodstock in 1969, I vividly recall the first time I saw the 1970 concert film, as I was stunned by the energetic performances, the dedicated attendees, and the mass of people making the best of rain, drugs, and music. By this time, I was attuned to Hendrix, The Who, Joplin, and most of the others, but the band that shook me was Santana. Familiar with only one song, "Evil Ways", off their debut album, I was mesmerized by the pure force of their live "Soul Sacrifice" performance - the relentless drumming of Michael Shrieve (20 years old) and the blazing guitar work from band leader Carlos Santana (a 22-year-old).

With this documentary, Rudy Valdez (THE SENTENCE, 2018), delivers so much more than the typical musician biography. Sure, we get the basic background information, but thanks to chats with Carlos Santana himself, we learn more about the man and how his being is meshed with the music. Born in Mexico, Carlos' dad played in a mariachi band and taught him to play the violin. The unusual route to rock and roll stardom began when Carlos switched to guitar and the family moved to San Francisco. His blending of Latin Jazz and Blues with rock and roll delivered a sound we had not previously heard. Carlos' began playing regular gigs at the Fillmore West, and things kicked into gear once promoter/producer Bill Graham got involved.

Carlos formed a band and Graham instituted 'festival training' culminating in the live performance at Woodstock. Carlos tells an incredible story about Jerry Garcia (of The Grateful Dead) handing him some drugs, and the next thing Carlos knew, the band was called on stage in the midst of his acid trip. If you've seen the movie, the facial expressions will make complete sense once Carlos recalls what he was seeing with that trusty guitar in his hands. It's one of the best rock stories you'll hear. A week after Woodstock, Santana's debut album was released by Clive Davis at Columbia Records.

The family background is interesting enough, but the real value here is in the self-reflection from Carlos. Apparently, the interview was conducted over a period of time, so we see variations and moods from the man with magic music. Carlos even discusses his time as a disciple of spiritual guru Sri Chinmoy ... including haircut, white suits, and self-discovery. Carlos confesses how once "Smooth", recorded in 1999 with Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, became a monster hit, he finally felt validated.

Not many musicians get to have a professional career that spans more than fifty years ... or have a wife who is a skilled drummer ... or have a 'slithering snake' story with a spot in rock lore. But Carlos Santana, now 76 years old, has all of that, and has recently been battling a public relations nightmare after a statement he made regarding the trans community. As for the documentary, the interviews and archival footage and photos provide a nice look at the man behind the music.

Opening in select theaters on September 23, 2023 and going wide on September 29.

I, first off, have to say I haven't seen this yet, but I will!!! I was so amazingly blessed when you blew my mind that momentous day on September 4th, 1982 afternoon. It wasn't Woodstock (I was too young for that) but US Festival '82 was my Woodstock. I was 24, but naïve to most the bands at that time in my life. Even so, I had been to the California Jam (April 6, 1974) when I was just a junior in high school. Nevertheless, when you came onto the stage and played that guitar, I was mesmerized and you had my complete, undivided attention.

Carlos Santana, you were bar none, the most memorable, heart and soul awakening to music I had ever experienced. To this day, no other band has made such an impact on my soul. I know no other way to reach out to such a legend as you, but to tell you my story of how you impacted my life in just a few hours.

I'm certain that all who have experienced your unique music have been touched, if not changed, by your talent, your skill. You're a gifted man, an icon, with a beautiful, natural ability to touch hearts and lives.

I can't wait to see this new release. Dude, you rock! <3.

Have you ever heard of Carlos Santana, the musician widely known as a guitarist and singer? The new documentary, Carlos, combines old and new footage to tell his story as he navigates many elements of his life, not just his career. With so much excellent footage and informative narration, Carlos is a must-see for everyone, especially the musically inclined.

Carlos follows legendary guitarist Carlos Santana as he starts off playing ukulele with his family and ends up producing music that we know today. From leaving his job, sacrificing the major support system of his family to pursue his passion, to performing at Woodstock with hundreds of thousands of people in the audience, to the band eventually breaking up, the story of Carlos Santana is explored. While the primary focus of this film is on Santana's career and the obstacles he faced there, it also touches on how his decisions and his career have affected his family life.

The structure of Carlos is part of what makes this film so informative and easy to follow. The documentary follows his life in chronological order, and includes a variety of footage that helps tell his story clearly. For the early parts of his life Carlos Santana narrates as photographs and videos of his beginnings with family and performances are shown on screen. Newer interviews define more current parts of his life. For fans of Carlos's music or anyone interested in creating music, the behind-the-scenes footage of his music is being produced is sure to be an attention-grabber. Hearing Carlos's own thoughts about events of his life makes the film very interesting, as they provide a depth and understanding to the actions he took and why he took them. While the structure provides a lot of information, it occasionally leads to losing focus or being overwhelmed. However, Santana's humorous narration as well as the editing of new and old footage prevents being disinterested for very long.

The theme of Carlos is to never give up. Pursuing your dreams and your interests is so important, and dreams really can come true if you put your mind to them and work hard. Santana also reminds us of the importance of keeping in touch with loved ones and maintaining positive relationships no matter what your personal goals are. The film does contain some profanity and other mature content.

I give Carlos 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. You can watch Carlos in theaters beginning September 29, 2023. By Kyla C., KIDS FIRST!

Legendary people are few and far between but Carlos Santana is more than worthy of the title! I have been into this guy's music since I was a young kid; through my DJ' years to where I am today.

Although I did find this documentary to have some interesting moments I, have to admit that I think it was a bit scrappy. It jumped about a lot and a lot of the used previously unseen footage was fairly dull and only of interest , most likely, to the superfans. He has a good outlook on what he wants to do but came over to me as finding it hard to know who he is; maybe that is why in some of his younger days footage he comes across as a total dick! I don't think I would ever watch it again as it just wasn't of a very high standard.

This covers the life and career of Carlos Santana through archive footage and talking (not really interview) mainly by Carlos as well as his current wife and sisters.

Almost the first half of this film (38 out of 88 minutes) goes by until the first Santana album is released. I found that section incredibly interesting as it gets into the how and why he got to that point. The next section is interesting but it doesn't really get into the how and why of the progression of the band, musicians or his music. Then it gets a bit boring with too much emphasis on his spirituality. Plus he sometimes speaks in Spanish but there are no subtitles for it so I had no idea at all what he was saying there.

This was an excellent documentary until it wasn't.