Carlos Santana and John Mclaughlin Live - Flame Sky 1

[anthropomorphicide]

just listened to part two and am sincerely stunned of just how excellent the quality of the recording is. My personal love for what is categorically called "fusion jazz" has, over the years became what I personally consider to be equal to (to put it politely) of anything Beethoven or in particular Bach did, during that whole earth tilting golden period of composition and performance.IMHO this observation is like touching first base after taking a big lead. thanx so much for posting.

[shadowmalik009]

iv never listened to alot of santana (really loved caravanserai though) but for the people talking about the emotional comparisons of him a john id like to share what iv heard by listening. what john lakes in melody he easily makes up for in dynamic. he is incredibly fast but more importantly, with that speed is precision and control. for people doubting this just listen to his rendition of goodbye porkpie hat. just enough left now to say frank zappa is amazing and u should listen to waka jawaka

[GavesaQuadrada]

cooL

[strangemscetc]

I wish i had could participate to these performance by that time at every concert but i wasn't still born....they let me feel like in paradise.

[KASHI3000]

I've been a M O devotee since 1971. Saw the original line up whenever they toured NYC. I attended both Between Nothingness concerts in Central Park.

Got to see Mahavishnu and Devadip do a couple of acoustic concerts at Hunter College in 1973, accompanied by Alice Coltrane and her trio. I remember only paying $10.00 for the tickets!

A blissful trip all the way! I still love and revere this timelessly divine music today as I did 40 years ago.

All Glories to the Supreme Musician SRI KRISHNA!

[DenverGuy11111]

John McLaughlin is probably the best all-around guitarist of all time.

[edshift]

John McLaughlin is the most complete guitarist I've ever heard. He plays sublime picking, pad sounds, rhythm and godly lead. Truly my guitar hero.

[Alchaeon1]

there are speed monsters on guitar but they lack the emotion and creativity - two very criticl elements of musical composition and enligtenment.

....carlos and john are freaks. This composition is a classic example of how the emotion and creativity isnt lost throughout the track irrespective of how many notes per nanosecond are played.

Its like listening to a couple of sitar masters ascend to a trance-like state

[Wobble2009]

@Alchaeon1 : John only is a "speed master", as you put it... Santana was and still is a master of feeling... Sorry... Ask other people -- they'll tell you the same think...

[metamorphosis67]

@Wobble2009 Other people are all a million & one tone-deaf idiots. McLaughlin can play with just as much overrated 'feeling' as Santana but Santana couldn't play half the chord changes that McLaughlin can play at any speed, much less at McLaughlin warp speed, because he doesn't know the scale & note combinations. You wanna hear McLaughlin blow Santana away with 'feeling' ? Listen to "Lila's Dance' from "Visions of the Emerald Beyond" or "Blue In Green" from "Live At Royal Festival Hall"

[metamorphosis67]

@Alchaeon1 Fuck emotion. Emotion is overrated. Most people's emotions aren't even their own, they're conditioned from birth to feel this way or that like Pavlov's dogs. Chinese music doesn't mean much to Westerners but Chinese probably cry over it. Something masterfully composed & extremely hard to play, so hard that only a computer can play it will still be 'emotionally satisfying' if you de-program yourself from standard responses. A perfect example is the "Jazz from Hell" album by Zappa. 

[TheRipper999]

One of the greatest songs of all time.

[jazzynet1]

man i was so strung out on Mavishnu and John. Man i just couldnt play as fast :)

[LiloEmyoung]

There are 2 idiots who shouldn't be rating even a trash can !

[Neidhardt84]

You mean, John McLaughlin is always good, no matter who he plays with.

[mrjubalo]

This brings back great memories, I wish that i could turn back the hands of time care free 15yrs. old when i heard this in 1974. THANK YOU Captain for posting this!

[portlandjohn8]

Joyfully moving. Very beautiful. Thank you for sharing this, Captain. So much! What a band. Larry Young, and Billy C. i of course love to the nth degree. Doug and Armando are new to me. This could go on and on for me.

[niueroo]

devadip and mahavishnu...legends

[dal028]

Planant et techniquement merveilleux.

[SHEMAMAN]

as much as I appreciate Johns musical knowledge, his sense of melody leaves me completely cold. Carlito has all the chops I like.

[Oneness100]

@jeffbeckgeek1 I was 13 when I got into these guys, but that was in '73. Fortunately, I was able to attend one of the last Mahavishnu concerts in 73, but saw the other versions several times. Those days of fusion were the best. It's too bad they don't have pristine audio and video recordings of the live shows.

[alexansbe]

@Oneness100 At least there are good sound recordings after digital re-mastering.

[metamorphosis67]

@Oneness100 The Montreux box set concerts have excellent sound. It's the "Apocalypse" band with Jean-Luc Ponty & Michael Walden but it still kicks a lot of ass. The One Truth Band concert with Sonship Theus on drums is also very Mahavishnu like as well. They do a 17 minute version of "Meeting of the Spirits" that just rips. Theus got booted out of the band though for doing too much acid. The early Mahavishnu boot with the best sound & perfromance is Cleveland 1972. Search for it on you tube.

[69MC97gc]

@metamorphosis67 Thank  You

[Oneness100]

Jeffbeckgeek1

[diagreen]

THANX great pic to

[verbaud]

Saw them together in SF (Winterland?), 72-73? Amazing.

[Snegg161]

what a difference a Guru makes

[ysbnnews]

GREAT JOB BRINGING THESE SONGS BACK TO MEMORY.

[95thanasis]

supreme music. 

[ysbnnews]

COLD FLAMES BURN BLUE...

[teddingtontcu]

Special memories of someone I knew back then.

No need for any drugs. This music, her, testosterone,endorphines were enough for me. Were we blessed in this part of the sevenities or what!

Santana................Caravan­seri

JM.....................Nothing­ness and eternity

C Corea................Romantic Warrior

and on and on........................

[mayoche52]

I think thst someone is of keys on this track????

[gianca60]

@jeffbeckgeek1 You've been enlighted by the god of guitar (Mclaughlin)

[Bruce097]

I've gotta say that John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana together, truly did bring the whole thing together. Love, Devotion and Surrender is a wonderful Album which I base my comment. With Carlos, John was more at home and the two had a wonderful affinity with each other. ( Just my opinion, obviously) Birds of Fire - Mahavishnu Orchestra is a whole different story, loved every minute, although it scared the heck out of me !

[GirlSuperGenius]

I had sex with Johnny(Mahavishnu) after this gig......and Careles Satana watched!

What a crazy night!......we were all tripping on mescaline......

[CraftyGtrist]

@GirlSuperGenius you are so full of $#!% since you werent even a glint in your mothers eye then... pretty stupid thing for a "genius" to say, and I know for a fact that neither one of them were doing drugs in those days... Why am I responding to someone who is obviously gone from reality????? idiot.

[MMRD50]

@GirlSuperGenius  Whoa!

[gianca60]

@GirlSuperGenius By chance did you give birth to a baby nine month later? it could be a blessing...

[TheFigueroa007]

@GirlSuperGenius Yeah right, john mclaughlin is such a virtuso, I bet he gets the hottest chicks ever. Your just full of SHIT. GO FUCK YOUSELF.

[omerthekat]

Nice guitar section soli. Sounds gorgeous to me. Very rich and moving. Both players balance and contribute so well.

[osensei2987]

I like the Album version! But McLaughlin sorta walked over Carlos solos at times when they played live which I found to be distasteful. Also they didn't always sound as though their guitars were in tune. Mclaughlin also played outside and at times his outside playing ruined it for me. Even though McLaughlin was technically better, I hated his tone the most! His tone was dry and harsh, like fingernails on a chalkboard!

[firstbooob]

SORRY4FUCKPISSU...

[Mrbiggerjobs1000]

@osensei2987 Yes he was a little bit of a show-off back then wasn't he?

[ybyainc]

@Mrbiggerjobs1000 Yea, even by his own admission he was a show off, but certain things occurred while he was showing off that created absolute gems of extremely rare and pure quality. Listen to his solos from Love Supreme and Lilas Dance, flashy- no doubt, but also artistically PHENOMENAL .. nothing else like it.. i always argue that his speed was part of the creative process its self, not a merely a gimmic, certain melodic structures only come about in high energy/velocity environments.

[ybyainc]

@osensei2987 Yah but... dude. man.. they were both "unleashing" totally letting the lion out of the cage .. full release.. you cant blame JM for having a bigger lion, its not fair to expect him to hold back just because he's got more mojo to release.. Besides, Santana pretty much looked up to JM anyway.. learned a lot from him and what not... i read somewhere that Carlos sought him out.. kinda sought him out as a teacher.. So why complain when both artists are simply being themselves.

[osensei2987]

@ybyainc So what? There's no excuse for playing over another player's solo. What ..? Are you kidding me? That's just fucking rude! It doesn't matter how good JM was. That was just wrong of him and bad taste on his part.

[ybyainc]

@osensei2987 dude, They BOTH played over each other "mingling"!! JM n' CS were totally immersed in indian spirituality, with the same guru. JM was deep into indian music- common for different players to interplay statements, questions and replies and often times coming together in an intimate kind of chatter. Truth is, they were BOTH playing the SAME GAME. JM is just the better guitar player, at least technically. JM was simply the more athletic of the two, so fucking GET OVER IT dude!!!

[metamorphosis67]

@osensei2987 McLaughlin's tone was 'harsh' & aggressive on purpose. Mahavishnu Orchestra was intended to rip people's heads to shreds, completely no-compromise music, not give them something sweet like Samba Pa Ti or Oye Como Va to dance to. Santana plays with a sweet tone because he was a rock player & playing with a sweet tone is all Santana can do really, he doesn't have the knowledge of scales & modes that McLaughlin has, so his improvisation is stricktly limited to a few cliche runs.

[visog]

Wow - they don't make them like this anymore - unfortunately. Music from another time and place altogether. Can't believe it happened really in these days of X Factor...

[69MC97gc]

It is Naima,then Flame Sky...all live from the short tour back in 1973,a tour Carlos hated since half of the  crowd had no idea,and the rest were so stoned it did not matter...and too loud...which is interesting.Mahavishnu was always loud...so were all of John´s Bands...and are todY TOO. I like.But Carlos saying they played too loud,when Santana play at 120 db....not complaining but loving ebery decibel

[osensei2987]

@69MC97gc

Sorry, but the first tune is called Meditation.

[firstbooob]

OKSORRYME...

[rarebully]

This track is just so beautiful. I really apprceciate the album version from the Santana album ' Welcome' but this is sublime.

[firstbooob]

INTHEEPRESENCEOFOURCREATOR...

[benthemiester]

Devadip no mas. When chimoy told Carlos he would wither like a dried flower without him, he walked away.

[osensei2987]

The wiki states that Chinmoy wouldn't let Debra and Carlos start a family w/o his permission! Carlos stayed w/ Chinmoy for many years in spite of this fact! I would have told that ugly ass sammie to suck my dick!

[benthemiester]

I heard some Yogi's do. I hope i never get to witness it. I saw Ron Jeremy do it in a porn movie it wasn't my favorite part of the movie until he was relieved by a beautiful blond that took over, at which point he replied, WHAT A SPORT. My girlfriend couldn't stop laughing but latter she turned out to be a sport too.

[flamesky9]

No the best is the studio version but this is nice too

[TheyCallMeGroucho]

While the guitar work here is nice, the studio version is SO much better to hear Michael Shrieve's sensitive stick work. Any background info on the players of this live version? Appreciate the upload.

Larry, Taiwan

[ruben1956]

Hey! Youre right. Michael Shievre is one of the best drummers. And, yes, background would be quite o.k.

Greetings from Cologne

[OneHeart75]

M. Shreive is one of most able set players I've ever heard...

[Bonedalas]

They played just one tour, about three weeks August-September 1973.

The personnel is:

John McLaughlin g

Carlos Santana g

Larry Young org

Doug Rauch b

Armando Peraza perc

Billy Cobham dr

[Bonedalas]

This is from the concert in Toronto, 1973-08-29

[szumo1982]

who is playing organ? larry young?

[sergelapelle]

I have a similar gig where his the player. The rest of the band is from santana except for billy cobham on drums.

[amsedelm]

btw, GREAT CLIP! Awesome!

[amsedelm]

Saw John and Carlos around '74 or '75 at Hunter College in NYC, acoustic. Their wives were playing some string instruments. John killed. Carlos was having problems. I think he was nervous.

[oobaloobajo]

Wow!!!!

[RayPaganJr]

I said God's voice.  Go preach somewhere else.

[elevenart]

god

[robertbicho]

tanto talento y sensibilidad ,emocionan.los vi en Buenos Aires ,en los 70 .show que pasaran a la historia .con Jimi Hendrix los guitarristas de una generacion.

[osensei2987]

If anyone is lucky enough to have the Welcome LP version of Flame Sky then go listen to the last 40 seconds of the tune!!! Then tell me if you think any sound like that has every been heard in this Earthly relm before!

[PowderSpirit3]

Santana brings back so many memories

.. ampitheatres, night life, friends...

and here with Mclaughlin is like a double flashback from the past WOWOW !!!

Thank YOU 4 posting & sharing this :)

[aliensporebomb]

Sounds like Phoenix 9/12/73 perhaps? I loved the Chicago version where Larry Young got all quiet on the organ and the whole band cools out on the 10/8 progressiona all of a sudden Billy switches it to a cool and syncopated 9/8, then back to 10/8 before John goes nuts on the guitar. Sweet.

[aliensporebomb]

Definetely not the Chicago show, I've heard it so many times I know it note for note. I'll check "the archives" to see what this one. This one is a little shorter too. I've got versions that stretch to close to 20 minutes.

[valambiguous]

O' my goodness.....to the soul....to the soul....to the very soul and passion of me.

[passjay]

excellent!!

[kartopscowboy]

This is BLISSFULLY ORGASMIC. Bloody beautiful. Fu_kin hell this is so good. To CaptainCoconut87, your a genius. thanks for this video.

[forearthbelow]

Does music - REAL music - get any more brilliant than this?

No, I personally do not thnk so.

I have seen Santana live in excess of 38 times over the years: the Caravanseria-Borboletta period is the best music I have heard from anyone at any time. Music of and for the gods and we should be grateful and honoured (yes, I'm English!) that some of it has been recorded for posterity and great people like the Captain share it with us all.

Thanks guy! This isn't Chicago show, btw

Tony

[RayPaganJr]

First time I heard Flame-Sky is when I first heard God's voice.

[dorian411]

Ray, NOT god's, but MEN!!!!

[siddhaam]

not ordinary men...

musical avataras...

[nishant6199]

Santana's "Abraxas" and this album "Love,Devotion and Surrender" are so beautiful,unmatched.

[mjnmjd]

Carlo's playing on here and during his time with Mc was on another level. They should've made a live album of the Chicago show. They STILL should. It's fantastic, the best Carlos has played!

[osensei2987]

That Boogie Mark I was new back then! That amp really enhanced Carlos' sound a lot more than the Fenders he play before. Boogie had more power which gave him that creamy sustain and added more balls to his tone.

[drklang86]

What a band! I just wanted to hear som more Mclaughlin & Santana, after listening to 'Friends' from 'Johnny Mclaughlin Electric Guitarist' .

[MarshallAmpMan]

How can I get this? this is great...I would have liked to seen them do another CD...I saw them in Chicago in '73 at the Amphitheatre...awesome...Carlo­s played Fool On the Hill and My favorite things quotes....one of the best shows I've ever seen....

[mario21128]

agreed they shoulda put out a live album of these two guys

[mloaks]

toronto

[mario21128]

i dont like how Carlos was playing during this performance...it seemed like just b/c he was playing with John he needed to play fast. he shoulda stuck with the latin soul man!

[flamesky9]

i love this live version of the great FLAME SKY!

[69MC97gc]

From Chicago ,I believe.A short tour with John,with half Santana,half Mahavishnu...This is as good as it  can be...which is in my mind the best.

[BacksidePL]

Nope, it surely isn't Chicago - i can check from where it is.

[SHEMAMAN]

I've followed carlos and his music for decades and as much as I love flame-sky the way it was controlled on 'Welcome', he's up against some very heavy duty riffing from the John and the band in this live excursion.

Still, the magics all there.

I thought it was an odd pairing back in 73 with Love, Devosion and Surrender, but Carlos always delighted me when he got his breaks with that album.

Jeff Makor

[osensei2987]

Wow! Santana had such a sweet touch back in the day! He was one of the few popular guitarists who used a full range of dynamics when he played. Crescendos and decrescendos. Sometime his guitar would whisper and at other times it would roar! And his phrasing was to die for! Listen to that little fill he plays at 1:04!

Sadly, his playing today lack all of the sensitivity he had back then.

[willmercury]

Actually, Noontard (one ad hominem deserves another), Santana is a superb musician, an authentic and original voice with great chops, tone, taste and soul second to none. Whatever your age and preferences, your comment displays a startling ignorance of the history of 20-21st century music. Like it or not, the man's ability and influence are indisputable, so learn to listen and stop being a philistine.

[LucasontheAxe]

I totally agree! rock on man

[jimdep1]

Great! Thank you!

[noonward]

Thx Bro Santana Is Always not that Good No Matter Who He Plays With!!

[sfdog1369]

Thx Bro Santana Is Always Good No Matter Who He Plays With!!