The 1981 Listening Post - Santana - Zebop!

Santana - Zebop! #132 By Jon Rosenberg April 29 1981 Santana Zebop! Genre: Rock/Latin Rock/Jazz Rock Allen’s Rating: 3 out of 5 Jon’s Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: Winning Changes Tales of Kilimanjaro Genre: Rock/Latin Rock/Jazz Rock Santana hits the 80’s! With an album called Zebop! And yes, the exclamation point is part of the title, so clearly someone was very excited about this music. After spending the latter half of the 70’s putting out jazz fusion that seemed to alienate many of their Woodstock Nation fans, Zebop! is something of a return to form. Gone are the Fillmore-length jams and lysergic lyrics, and in their place shorter, more radio friendly songs. But fear not, there is still a lot of fantastic guitar-work, and the requisite Latin percussion that envelopes you like a warm comfy blanket – and without which this wouldn’t be a Santana album. There’s nothing here of the caliber of “Evil Ways,” “Black Magic Woman,” or “Nobody to Depend On” from the first three albums. But “Winning” is a catchy-as-hell pop song -written by Russ Ballard - that gave Santana their first Top 20 hit single in a decade - and their last until “Smooth” in 1999. It’s still a great song, which fortunately hasn’t been co-opted (yet) by any douchebag politicians who don’t pay attention to the lyrics. “Changes” - a Cat Stevens cover - is a fantastic opener, that Santana make their own. And “Tales of Kilimanjaro” is a swirling Santana instrumental that brings to mind the chill vibe of “Singing Winds, Crying Beasts” from Abraxas. So, while some may not appreciate the pop sensibilities and brevity of the tunes, Zebop! is a minor classic in the Santana discography and definitely worthy of reappraisal by fans who may have dismissed it back in the day. https://open.spotify.com/album/6xneJ1pKj47GhKZOKv7OGD?si=i7CL7uYsSe2sLKmdsq6Qqw