Santana, Isley Brothers team up on album 50 years in the making
NEW YORK CITY -- Long before Carlos Santana made his mark at Woodstock when he was newly arrived in this country from Mexico, the teenager first heard the music of the Isley brothers. Flash forward to the present day where we find the guitarist, now a legend himself, working with the brothers and backed by his wife.
From the house that Jimi Hendrix built in Lower Manhattan comes a collaboration more than half a century in the making: the Isley brothers and Santana are playing together on a new album.
They call their joint effort "The Power of Peace" and speaking of power, the force behind this ensemble is Santana's wife, drummer Cindy Blackman.
"We have made a conscious decision to utilize our light, our energy to alleviate this planet from disharmony," Carlos Santana said.
Cindy's played behind the likes of Lenny Kravitz, but this began when his regular drummer wasn't available a few years back and she got a call to substitute.
"They said 'Would you do a gig with Carlos Santana?' Yes! They didn't even have to finish the sentence," Cindy Blackman Santana said.
Instant rapport onstage led to a permanent relationship off-stage.
"It's a divine flow, you know, when you have finally arrived together receiving what we prayed for," Santana said.
"When we reach those really special moments when the music is just really soaring and every thing's high, sometimes he comes over to the drums and gives me a wink. There's so much exuberance and power in the magic of it," she said.
Ernie Isley said it best: together Cindy and Carlos are "a powerful, one-two musical punch." The couple that plays together stays together.
