Santana
Marathon
CBS

This being the last menu over at Luna Kafé, I grab the chance to present a seriously underrated album, a vinyl record that I have played so many times that I have literally worn it out and had to get replacement. It is also the first album I play when setting up my stereo at a new place, to check that everything works as it should. And it still sounds just as fresh as it did when I played it the first time.

The album I'm talking about is Marathon by Santana, released in 1979, their second album after they got on to the major commercial track again in the 70's, after a string of less commercial albums with a soul-searching experimental mix of jazz, soul, latin, pop and rock. The predecessor Inner Secrets from 1978 marked this turn-around, another fine Santana album, with a superp sound production that also should attract the interest of audiophiles. Still, it was a typical Santana album in regards to the content: Write a few new songs, play some instrumentals, and pick some songs to cover. (The following Zebop! (1981) also falls into that category.) Marathon deviates from this, all songs are originals, and several of them are also written with band members contributing. So except from perhaps the three first albums, we could say that Marathon is by far Santana's premium band effort.

Like Inner Secrets, Marathon is also studio perfection, but has a more advanced mix, gaining personality and "largeness". There'a unique lushness and depth to the instrumentals and solo-breaks, combined with a rollicking excitement when they rock out, which they certainly do occasionally here. The musicianship is top notch all over, the arrangements are skillful on a completely new level, there's nothing loose here, but still very lively. Add to this a continuous string of superbly crafted songs, and you have a classic. Scottish Alex Ligertwood sings his heart out on this, his first album with Santana. The bass playing of David Margen is very exciting, sharp and fresh, often up in the mix and a thrill to listen to on its own. And of course we have Carlos Santana's guitar playing, his solos are pin-pointed and perfect everywhere, sounding incredibly sharp on every occasion. Sure, the lyrics are all love and light and some songs are very pop-oriented, but I have never skipped a track when listening to this album. It's an overlooked jewel, simply a thrilling and colourful listening journey, from beginning to end. Great cover too.

Copyright © 2017 Knut Tore Breivik