Santana Members, Gear & Sound

US Latin, blues, & rock band

Genre

Rock Jazz Latin Pop rock Blues rock Funk rock Psychedelic rock Jazz fusion Hard rock Funk Chicano rock Rock en Español Classic rock Jazz rock Latin rock mexican classic rock

Members

Select a Santana band member to check out the music gear they use live and in the studio.

Carlos Santana

Roles:

Guitarist

Groups:

Santana Brothers Carlos Santana & Willie Nelson John Lee Hooker & Carlos Santana Angelique Kidjo with Carlos Santana Lauryn Hill & Carlos Santana Carlos Santana & Alice Coltrane Santana & Chad Kroeger

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Neal Schon

Roles:

Singer Guitarist Composer

Groups:

Journey Bad English The G3 Jam Hardline Hagar, Schon, Aaronson, Shrieve Paul Rodgers and Company Sy Klopps Blues Band Abraxas Pool Azteca Soul SirkUS Planet Us

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Alphonso Johnson

Roles:

Bassist Composer

Groups:

Weather Report Jazz Is Dead Abraxas Pool Bobby & The Midnites

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Benny Rietveld

Roles:

Bassist

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Chester Thompson

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Genesis Weather Report The Mothers of Invention Tower of Power Santana & Chad Kroeger R.O.A.R.

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Walfredo Reyes, Jr.

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Chicago Traffic

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Dennis Chambers

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Funkadelic Parliament Niacin Gonzalo Rubalcaba's Jazz Trio Parliament-Funkadelic World-Wide-Funkdrive Victor Wooten Trio CAB Uncle Moe's Space Ranch George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars Double Edge Chroma

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Karl Perazzo

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Santana & Chad Kroeger

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Michael Shrieve

Roles:

Drummer Composer

Groups:

Automatic Man Chef Salad & The Crew Tones Go Hagar, Schon, Aaronson, Shrieve Abraxas Pool Michael Shrieve & David Beal Bumberdrum XIV Stomu Yamashta's Go Novo Combo

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Gregg Rolie

Roles:

Singer Keyboardist

Groups:

Journey Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band Abraxas Pool

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Jorge Santana

Roles:

Guitarist

Groups:

Malo Santana Brothers East Bay Rhythm

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David Sancious

Roles:

Keyboardist Music Producer

Groups:

E Street Band The Bruce Springsteen Band Southside Johnny and The Kid The Big Bad Bobby Williams Band The Friendly Enemies The Red Hot Mammas The Sundance Blues Band Dr. Zoom & The Sonic Boom

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Tom Coster

Roles:

Keyboardist Music Producer

Groups:

Vital Information Bullmark

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Alan Pasqua

Roles:

Keyboardist Music Producer

Groups:

Giant The New Tony Williams Lifetime Alan Pasqua, Dave Carpenter & Peter Erskine Trio Pino Daniele Project

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Tommy Anthony

Roles:

Singer Guitarist

Groups:

Tactics

Needs more gear

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Leon Ndugu Chancler

Roles:

Drummer Music Producer

Groups:

Weather Report The George Duke Band

Needs more gear

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Armando Peraza

Roles:

Singer Drummer

Groups:

The Cal Tjader Quintet The Santana Band Percussion Section R.O.A.R.

Needs more gear

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Michael Carabello

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Abraxas Pool

Needs more gear

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Luther Rabb

Roles:

Singer Bassist

Groups:

War Aalon

No gear added

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Freddie Ravel

Roles:

Keyboardist Music Producer

Groups:

Earth, Wind & Fire

No gear added

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Alex Ligertwood

Roles:

Singer Guitarist

Groups:

The Average White Band Troc Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express R.O.A.R. Go Ahead

No gear added

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Wendy Haas

Roles:

Singer Keyboardist

Groups:

Fanny Azteca

No gear added

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Greg Walker

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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Joel Badie

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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Gaylord Birch

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Reconstruction

No gear added

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Cindy Blackman Santana

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Spectrum Road

No gear added

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Pablo Tellez

Roles:

Singer Bassist

Groups:

Malo

No gear added

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Raul Rekow

Roles:

Singer Drummer

Groups:

Malo The Santana Band Percussion Section R.O.A.R. Sapo

No gear added

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David Margen

Roles:

Bassist Drummer

Groups:

Go Ahead

No gear added

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Russell Tubbs
No gear added

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Chris Rhyne

Roles:

Keyboardist

No gear added

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Tommie Bradford

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Richard Baker

Roles:

Keyboardist

No gear added

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Sterling Crew

Roles:

Keyboardist Music Producer

No gear added

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Walfredo de los Reyes

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Chicago

No gear added

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Andy Vargas

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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David K. Mathews

Roles:

Keyboardist

No gear added

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Thomas Escovedo

Roles:

Composer

Groups:

Azteca

No gear added

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Horacio ‘El Negro’ Hernández

Roles:

Drummer Music Producer

Groups:

Jack Bruce And The Cuicoland Express

No gear added

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Oran Coltrane
No gear added

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Lawrence Rogers

Roles:

Keyboardist

No gear added

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Vorriece Cooper

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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Rodney Holmes

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Tom Frazier

Roles:

Guitarist

No gear added

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Tony Lindsay

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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Chris Solberg

Roles:

Composer

No gear added

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Keith Jones

Roles:

Bassist

Groups:

Oceana Wicked Tinkers

No gear added

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Jeff Cressman

Roles:

Music Producer

Groups:

Pete Escovedo Orchestra

No gear added

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Jose "Chepito" Áreas

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Curtis Salgado

Roles:

Singer

No gear added

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Orestes Vilató

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Cuba L.A. The Santana Band Percussion Section R.O.A.R.

No gear added

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Buddy Miles

Roles:

Singer Drummer

Groups:

Band of Gypsys

No gear added

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Graham Lear

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

REO Speedwagon

No gear added

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Myron Dove

Roles:

Bassist

No gear added

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Bill Ortiz
No gear added

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Greg Errico

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Quicksilver Messenger Service Sly & the Family Stone The French Fries Sy Klopps Blues Band

No gear added

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Ricky Wellman

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Chuck Brown & The Soul Searchers

No gear added

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Leon Patillo

Roles:

Singer Keyboardist

No gear added

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Jules Broussard
No gear added

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Rod Harper

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Gus Rodriguez

Roles:

Bassist

No gear added

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Bob Livingston

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Marcus Malone

Roles:

Drummer

No gear added

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Francisco Aguabella

Roles:

Drummer Music Producer

Groups:

Jazz on the Latin Side Allstars

No gear added

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Pete Escovedo

Roles:

Singer Drummer

Groups:

Pete Escovedo Orchestra Woody Herman & His Big Band Sheila E. and the E-Train Pete & Sheila Escovedo The E Family Azteca

No gear added

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Victor Pantoja

Roles:

Drummer

Groups:

Malo Azteca

No gear added

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Rico Reyes

Roles:

Singer Drummer

Groups:

Azteca

No gear added

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Coke Escovedo

Roles:

Singer Drummer

No gear added

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Tom Rutley

Roles:

Bassist

No gear added

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James Mingo Lewis

Roles:

Drummer Keyboardist

No gear added

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Richard Kermode

Roles:

Drummer Keyboardist

Groups:

Malo

No gear added

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Doug Rauch

Roles:

Guitarist Bassist

No gear added

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Leon Thomas

Roles:

Singer Drummer

No gear added

See Gear

About

Santana is an iconic American rock band founded in San Francisco in 1966, known for their groundbreaking fusion of rock, Latin, and jazz elements. The group was spearheaded by virtuoso guitarist Carlos Santana, whose distinct playing style and visionary leadership defined the band's sound. Over the years, Santana's lineup has included key members such as Gregg Rolie (keyboards, vocals), Michael Shrieve (drums), David Brown (bass), and a rotating cast of talented percussionists and musicians who contributed to their rich, multicultural sound. The band is celebrated for genre-defying albums like Abraxas and Supernatural, blending Latin rock, jazz fusion, and psychedelic rock to create music that resonates across generations.

How to Sound Like Santana

Santana's music is characterized by its vibrant, melodic guitar work and rhythmic complexity, often featuring percussive Latin grooves that drive their songs. The band's sound is an intricate tapestry of soulful, expressive guitar solos, which Carlos Santana achieves using guitars like the Gibson SG Special and Yamaha SG-175B, often run through effects like the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer for added warmth and sustain. Their music is both energetic and fluid, often incorporating jazz-inspired improvisation and dynamic shifts that give their performances a lively, spontaneous feel. The combination of lush, rhythmic textures and expressive melodic lines captures the essence of Santana's enduring appeal.

Discography

Santana

1969

Abraxas

1970

Santana (III)

1971

Caravanserai

1972

Welcome

1973

Borboletta

1974

Amigos

1976

Festival

1977

Moonflower

1977

Inner Secrets

1978

Marathon

1979

Zebop!

1981

Shango

1983

Beyond Appearances

1985

Freedom

1987

Spirits Dancing In The Flesh

1990

Milagro

1992

Sacred Fire: Santana Live In South America

1993

Dance Of The Rainbow Serpent

1995

Live At The Fillmore - 1968

1997

Supernatural (Legacy Edition)

1999

Shaman

2002

All That I Am

2005

All That I Am... Live From New York

2005

Santana: The Woodstock Experience

2009

Corazón (Deluxe Version)

2014

Corazón (Track by Track Commentary)

2014

Corazón - Live From Mexico: Live It To Believe It

2014

Santana IV

2016

Santana IV (Spotify Commentary)

2016

Power Of Peace

2017

Woodstock Saturday August 16, 1969 (Live)

2019

Africa Speaks

2019

Splendiferous Santana

2021

Blessings and Miracles

2021

Sentient

2025

Get the Santana Sound

Want to sound like Santana? This gear comes straight from the setups of the band's members, based on proven sources. Dive into each artist's page for more detail and inspiration.