Santana / FL, USA 10.03.1974 Soundboard Edition

This recording captures a nearly complete 1 hour and 28 minute performance from the October 3rd show in Tampa, Florida, during their North American tour immediately following the release of “The Butterfly” in 1974. The recording, sourced from a recently leaked stereo soundboard master, is a near-complete recording. While it suffers from some imperfections, such as a fade-out at “The Incident at Neshabul” and a fade-in at “Soul Sacrifice,” and lacks some of the live atmosphere due to being a direct board recording from the mixing console, the sound balance is impeccable. The sheer power of the sound is overwhelming, offering a level of realism far beyond edited and processed official live albums. The setlist evokes the second Japan tour that took place the following month, with the opening medley and key “ABRAXAS” numbers reminiscent of their previous year’s Japanese live performance, “LOTUS,” and new songs from “The Butterfly” being performed from the middle of the set onwards. Furthermore, the fact that you can hear songs like “Savor” from their first album, which were only performed in the mid-70s, makes this a must-see for longtime fans, and it captures a heated performance just before they reached their peak, with official bootleg-level quality. Live at Curtis Hixon Hall, Tampa, Florida, USA October 3rd 1974 : stereo soundboard recording DISC 1 : 1. Going Home/2. A-1 Funk/3. Every Step Of The Way/4. Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen/5. Oye Como Va/6. Mirage/7. Just In Time To See The Sun/8. Bambele/9. Give And Take/10. Incident At Neshabur (fade out) DISC 2 b: 1. Soul Sacrifice (fade in)/2. Samba Pa Ti/3. Savor/4. Toussaint L’Overture Carlos Santana – guitar, percussion, vocals / Armando Peraza – percussion, vocals / Jules Broussard – flute, sax / David Brown – bass / Leon Patillo – keyboards, vocals / Tom Coster – keyboards, vocals / Jose “Chepito” Areas – percussion / “Ndugu” Leon Chancler – drums