Description

Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA, USA 9th August 1985 (Late Show) STEREO SBD
★Super high-quality stereo soundboard!!

　In recent years, Santana’s “Beyond Appearances” era has been gaining renewed appreciation as a major source of high-quality soundboard recordings. Now, a live album of their homecoming performance in their home city joins that collection.

　This release contains a recording of their San Francisco concert on August 9, 1985. It’s a scorching hot stereo soundboard recording from their home venue, the legendary Warfield Theatre. The ‘BEYOND APPEARANCES’ era was once considered a “recording wilderness” with few good recordings available, but in recent years, a steady stream of excellent soundboard recordings have emerged. So, what is the position of this release in this context? Let’s start by taking a look at their activities at that time.

●1985
(February 25th: “BEYOND APPEARANCES” released)
– April 27th – May 10th: North America #1 (11 shows)
– May 30th – August 22nd: North America #2 (42 shows) ←★HERE★
– November 15th: Albany show
●1986
– January 18th / May 24th: North America #3 (2 shows)
– June 1st: SOUND MARKET ’86 appearance
– June 5th – 12th: Australia + Hawaii (6 shows)
– July 12th – August 17th: North America #4 (21 shows) ←※MOUNTAIN VIEW 1986
– September 19th – November 1st: North America #5 (14 shows)
– December 13th: Bournemouth show

　This is Santana in 1985/1986. This San Francisco performance is part of “North America #2,” but this leg is actually a treasure trove of superb soundboard recordings. Our store’s proud collection of masterpieces such as “Cuyahoga Falls 1985 (Uxbridge 1346),” “Kansas City 1985 (Uxbridge 2715),” “Chicago 1985 (Uxbridge 2680),” and “Miller Music Festival 1985 (Uxbridge 2648)” are all concentrated in “North America #2.” Let’s take a closer look at the dates and confirm their relative locations.

■ Details of “North America #2”
– May 30th + 31st (2 shows)
* June 1st “CUYAHOGA FALLS 1985”
– June 2nd + 4th (2 shows)
* June 6th “KANSAS CITY 1985”
– June 7th – 11th (4 shows)
* June 12th “CHICAGO 1985”
– June 14th – July 8th (12 shows)
* July 9th “MILLER MUSIC FESTIVAL 1985”
– July 10th – August 9th (15 shows)
* August 9th: San Francisco (late show) ←★This work★
– August 10th – 22nd (3 shows)

[Top-notch sound from young masters]
…As you can see, this album is from much later than their previously released masterpieces, a show from around the time when their “North America #2” tour was nearing its end. In fact, this album is from the very end of their ‘BEYOND APPEARANCES’ support tour, which lasted about three months. It’s a night where the band, whose bond has been strengthened by running through a long tour, delivers a fiery performance in front of their local audience.

　This recording, which captures such a show, is a superb soundboard recording. While it belongs to a different lineage than the recent series of unearthed collections of relics that have been attracting attention, its quality is surprisingly similar. It uses the young generation master, currently known as the best, and has a raw, lifelike quality as if it were directly connected to the mixing console. There are absolutely no traces of repeated overdubs, and the sound is incredibly fresh.

　And the otherworldly directness that comes from a direct connection is striking. The roar of the crowd recedes like distant ripples, and in its place, the raw, unadulterated live performance rages inside your skull. Carlos’s guitar, of course, but also Thompson and Crewe’s keyboards, and even the individual notes pounded out by the three percussionists, Virato, Peraza, and Rekou, are all delivered with unmistakable clarity. Yet the mix is well-balanced, making it perfectly suitable even for home playback. This is a truly “discovered official release” worthy of the title, as it combines the realism of a live performance with the perfection of a musical work.

[The full set of the homecoming concert, which evolved during the US tour]
　This superb sound delivers a fulfilling full show befitting a homecoming. In fact, the setlist changed during “North America #2,” making this release different from previous masterpieces. Let’s compare and organize it here.

●Beyond Appearance
: Brotherhood / Breaking Out / Say It Again / Two Points of View / Right Now
●Others
: Santana: Savor / Soul Sacrifice
/ Heaven’s Guardian: Incident at Neshabur / Gypsy Queen
/ Santana III: Batuka / No One To Depend On
/ Others: Primera Invasion / Open Invitation / She’s Not There (Marbles) / Waited All My Life / Body Surfing / Super Boogie / Hong Kong Blues / Now That You Know (★) / Europa (Earth’s Cry, Heaven’s Smile) / By The Pool (★)
*Note: Tracks marked with “★” were not heard on other “North America #2” soundboard recordings.

…And that’s how it is. There’s a cut at the beginning of “Say It Again,” but the complete set is incredibly satisfying to listen to. The style, which centers around tracks from their latest album “BEYOND APPEARANCES” while sprinkling in their greatest hits from their debut album, is consistent with their previous masterpieces, but it also includes new material such as “Now That You Know” and “By The Pool.”

　And the highlight is the triumphant performance that unfolds from that setlist. After all, the Warfield concert that year was officially recorded, and some of it was actually included in the official compilation album “VIVA SANTANA!”. The sheer intensity and passion are poured into your brain through this ultra-direct soundboard recording.

　This new masterpiece captures the fiery live performance at their home base in San Francisco, the culmination of a long tour, in its fresh, vibrant soundboard recording. Please enjoy it to the fullest.

★A stereo soundboard recording of the “August 9, 1985 San Francisco concert (late show).” This is a top-of-the-line release based on the now-famous Young Generation master, boasting a raw, direct-to-the-mix-board sound and a fresh, unadulterated quality free of overdubs. This newly discovered, official-quality sound lets the raw, unadulterated live performance rage in your mind, pouring the triumphant return performance from the end of the tour into your brain—a new masterpiece.

Disc:1 (77:38)
1. Brotherhood
2. Primera Invasion
3. Open Invitation
4. She’s Not There / Marbles
5. Incident At Neshabur
6. I’ve Waited All My Life
7. Body Surfing
8. Breaking Out
9. Bass Solo
10. Super Boogie
11. Hong Kong Blues
12. Savor > Percussion Solo

Disc:2 (59:09)
1. Now That You Know / Gypsy Queen
2. Say It Again
3. Soul Sacrifice
4. Batuka
5. No One To Depend On
6. Two Points Of View
7. Europa (Earth’s Cry, Heaven’s Smile)
8. By The Pool
9. Right Now / Band Introductions