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Santana — Singing Winds, Crying Beasts
Album: Abraxas
Avg rating:
7.6

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1873









Released: 1970
Length: 4:38
Plays (last 30 days): 0
(instrumental)
Comments (162)add comment
This is a very unique Santana cut.  There is no other quite like it in all of the catalogue.  
 Jelani wrote:

Dung-ish. as far as guitar playing goes.




Your comment is "Dung-ish"!
Dung-ish. as far as guitar playing goes.
This is great. I've never considered myself a Santana fan as I've only heard the couple of Santana songs that get overplayed on FM radio. Now I understand what the fuss is all about.      
 On_The_Beach wrote:

Some people actually seem proud of their ignorance.



Ignorance? Pray, look in the mirror my friend.
 memoryboxer wrote:

1979 or so. Hitchhiking home from my girlfriends around 2am - 12 miles between our towns. There was a point outside of her town where if I'd made it to there without a ride I knew I'd be in for a long walk and would usually fire up a bowl. Had just done so when out of the night came a pair of headlights - a black 63 split window Corvette. Driver never said word, just cranked up this song and put his foot down. The night unwound into stars and slipstreams and I floated along with it. Each time I hear this I'm taken back to that night.




Might be totally antithetical to the story, but i have to ask... did you actually make it home that night?
 still zesty
 goodenough wrote:

I've had the "Abraxus" album in my collection since the 70's and it has never sounded so good as hearing the FLAC version through my Ruark MR1 speakers. Go RP!🐨




YES!!  Also very superb in FLAC w/ great phones, amp & DAC!!  
GODLIKE!!!
I still remember the first time I heard this track in 1970 - completely blown away. 41 years later I still am, every time. 
I've had the "Abraxus" album in my collection since the 70's and it has never sounded so good as hearing the FLAC version through my Ruark MR1 speakers. Go RP!🐨
 unclehud wrote:

Only the timables and electric piano during the intro.  Expand your vision, brother!  Hear the singing wind?  Hear the crying beasts?


There's no need of fatuous comments like that. I too am reminded of Riders On The Storm. So there!🐨
 On_The_Beach wrote:

Some people actually seem proud of their ignorance.

Sadly, they are ignorant of their ignorance.
 memoryboxer wrote:

1979 or so. Hitchhiking home from my girlfriends around 2am - 12 miles between our towns. There was a point outside of her town where if I'd made it to there without a ride I knew I'd be in for a long walk and would usually fire up a bowl. Had just done so when out of the night came a pair of headlights - a black 63 split window Corvette. Driver never said word, just cranked up this song and put his foot down. The night unwound into stars and slipstreams and I floated along with it. Each time I hear this I'm taken back to that night.




In 1979 I was living near the Kings Road in London. I went into the Chelsea Drug Store, which was more of a cool shop than a chemist, when I was surrounded by this beautiful sound. They had a great sound system and it was turned up.
I asked what was playing, and it was Singing Winds, Crying beasts. I bought it immediately. A few years later I was working in Holland, and later in the literal and artistic desert of Oman, and this album, along with Caravanserai and Dark Side of the Moon, kept me sane.
It's a 10 from me.
Use to drive my parents nuts when I would crank up the Marantz while this was spinning on the turntable. 
 ciarataylor wrote:

Press auto orchestra
Press auto drums
Do we have a song yet?
Add some ahhh sound -- that will make it totally listenable.
Not. 


Some people actually seem proud of their ignorance.
 lindaurq wrote:
reminds me of riders on the storm 
 
Only the timables and electric piano during the intro.  Expand your vision, brother!  Hear the singing wind?  Hear the crying beasts?
Clearly need to have your speakers or brain checked. One of them is not working properly.

 ciarataylor wrote:
Press auto orchestra
Press auto drums

Do we have a song yet?

Add some ahhh sound -- that will make it totally listenable.

Not. 
 

Ye man Ive been stoned out of my tits too....!!!   Manchester Heaton Park ... Happy Mondays Rockin Large...WHAT A WEEKEND!!! Whiskey drugs and mayhem !! Great days ... 
 ciarataylor wrote:
Press auto orchestra
Press auto drums

Do we have a song yet?

Add some ahhh sound -- that will make it totally listenable.

Not. 
 
Auto orchestra? Auto drums? Umm, this was 50 years ago. When usually fine and often unusually fine musicians actually played instruments. Digital this and that was barely a twinkle in the eye. So to what do you refer?
Michael Shrieve, Greg Rolie, Jose Areas, Michael Carebello, David Brown, Carlos Santana.  There's the (first, initial) Santana orchestra, albeit on this album with some studio guest players. None of them were on automatic.
 ciarataylor wrote:
Press auto orchestra
Press auto drums

Do we have a song yet?

Add some ahhh sound -- that will make it totally listenable.

Not. 
 
Oh dear!  I'm glad they had me totally fooled since 1970!
Sublime, psychedelic, and yet ... still rock and roll.
reminds me of riders on the storm 
1979 or so. Hitchhiking home from my girlfriends around 2am - 12 miles between our towns. There was a point outside of her town where if I'd made it to there without a ride I knew I'd be in for a long walk and would usually fire up a bowl. Had just done so when out of the night came a pair of headlights - a black 63 split window Corvette. Driver never said word, just cranked up this song and put his foot down. The night unwound into stars and slipstreams and I floated along with it. Each time I hear this I'm taken back to that night.
Press auto orchestra
Press auto drums

Do we have a song yet?

Add some ahhh sound -- that will make it totally listenable.

Not. 
It's a wonder none of them fell asleep while playing this.
Gteat music after all the years, saw him live last summer at the Citadel in Berlin.
 colt4x5 wrote:

Pink who?

 
Flamingoes. 
This track is almost unique to the Santana catalogue.  In many ways, Abraxas is the most unusual Santana album. No other subsequent Santana (band or guitarist) tracks ever came close in tone or style to this one or Incident at Neshabur and Hope You're Feeling Better.  A hybrid of blues, Latin and jazz, some consider this their best album. I think it's the next one, III, but I can sure see why anyone would choose Abraxas. 
 Proclivities wrote:

It seems like every song in the RP library has a comment alleging that it is somehow a rip-off of some song by Pink Floyd - even if it's anachronistic.  Is Pink Floyd really the only reference point for some people?  There was music long before they existed.

 
Pink who?
 ce wrote:
This sounds a LOT like parts of Sheep of the Animals album. Oops, Abraxas was released seven years BEFORE Animals, so perhaps Santana inspired Pink Floyd?
 
It seems like every song in the RP library has a comment alleging that it is somehow a rip-off of some song by Pink Floyd - even if it's anachronistic.  Is Pink Floyd really the only reference point for some people?  There was music long before they existed.
 Relayer wrote:
 
Posted: Mar 04, 2005 - 06:34
 

ce wrote:
This sounds a LOT like parts of Sheep of the Animals album. Oops, Abraxas was released seven years BEFORE Animals, so perhaps Santana inspired Pink Floyd?

Yep, I came here just to post that the keyboards sound A LOT like the intro to Sheep.. But this song does it for 4 minutes too long.



 
Maybe it has something to do with Singing Winds, just sayin...
 
Posted: Mar 04, 2005 - 06:34
 

ce wrote:
This sounds a LOT like parts of Sheep of the Animals album. Oops, Abraxas was released seven years BEFORE Animals, so perhaps Santana inspired Pink Floyd?

Yep, I came here just to post that the keyboards sound A LOT like the intro to Sheep.. But this song does it for 4 minutes too long.


This sounds a little like Return to Forever. 
new album out the other day, "Santana IV", he got the old band back together
I first saw the original band at the Carousel Ballroom, not long thereafter christened Fillmore West—Graham's marketing prerogative. They were other worldly. Michael Carabello and Dave Brown (congas and bass respectively) stood out in a band dominated by Carlos and Greg Rolie. This was after their eponymous debut album but before Abraxas. They had us all mesmerized with their tightness, technical brilliance, not to mention the utter novelty of their sound. Amazing band. Don't get the brickbats thrown Carlos's way. He, as much as anyone, defined the Gibson SG sound.
First found this on the shelf of a mate's older brother. Of course we loved Cover Art in those days, sure — but wow, the music sizzles.
Always love the Mati Klarwein album covers {#Hearteyes}
 sajitjacob wrote:
Hah! Great segue from Zero7 to this.
When I was a kid (in the 70s and early 80s) I hated this kind of easy listening elevator music.
It was typical of the music played during the daytime testcard on the BBC and my brother and I would have to endure it while waiting for the children's programs to start.
I still don't 'get' Santana but I have all Zero7's albums (even 'another late night' which is rubbish.) Perhaps the sound of Santana turns me back into that impatient 7 year old.

We will fix it we will mend it we will make it new new new,

 
Ha ha.  Bagpuss!!!  You remember it too!  
the cover and the songs are brilliant
 unclehud wrote:
YEAH BABY! 
All us old guys are up from our hemorrhoid cushions, dancing inside our walkers, and checking that our pacemakers are keeping up!  Hope somebody's bringing the ibuprofen and liniment for afterwards!
 
Don't give Stingray any ammunition.  {#Wink}
{#Bananajam}

10++
YEAH BABY! 

All us old guys are up from our hemorrhoid cushions, dancing inside our walkers, and checking that our pacemakers are keeping up!  Hope somebody's bringing the ibuprofen and liniment for afterwards!
That was the longest intro to "Black Magic Woman" I've ever heard. And then they didn't even play the song.
I feel so abused. 
Hah! Great segue from Zero7 to this.
When I was a kid (in the 70s and early 80s) I hated this kind of easy listening elevator music.
It was typical of the music played during the daytime testcard on the BBC and my brother and I would have to endure it while waiting for the children's programs to start.
I still don't 'get' Santana but I have all Zero7's albums (even 'another late night' which is rubbish.) Perhaps the sound of Santana turns me back into that impatient 7 year old.

We will fix it we will mend it we will make it new new new,
 Guodlca wrote:
Only Santana can manage to use such an unpleasant guitar tone.
 
I don't find it particularly unpleasant, but it seems to be the only guitar tone he uses.
 Guodlca wrote:
Only Santana can manage to use such an unpleasant guitar tone.
 
lol...and I might add...for a long duration of time too.
Only Santana can manage to use such an unpleasant guitar tone.
great track 
 4merdj wrote:
Every once in a while, I peel the the cardboard, and the plastic off of the vinyl, and play this LP ... I then listen to the following set of tunes without interruption (as they were meant to be appreciated) while admiring the sensual power of that amazing woman on the cover who is offering the dove a warm and moist nest ...

Singing Winds, Crying Beasts ;
Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen;
Oye Como Vá;
Incident at Neshabur;
Se acabó (a.k.a. "Se a cabo" ... not Spanish ;-))

... and I go back to that time that will never ever be again ... god bless us humans for our brains {#Devil_pimp}
 

Whoa...  I hear ya!
My first multi-channel experience was this tune........... Discreet 4 channel tape. Wow!
From their best album.
Why do I keep reading “Crying Breasts”? Maybe it's the album cover.

 helgigermany wrote:
For me, one of their Best,ever!
 
Me too
 4merdj wrote:
Every once in a while, I peel the the cardboard, and the plastic off of the vinyl, and play this LP ... I then listen to the following set of tunes without interruption (as they were meant to be appreciated) while admiring the sensual power of that amazing woman on the cover who is offering the dove a warm and moist nest ...

Singing Winds, Crying Beasts ;
Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen;
Oye Como Vá;
Incident at Neshabur;
Se acabó (a.k.a. "Se a cabo" ... not Spanish ;-))

... and I go back to that time that will never ever be again ... god bless us humans for our brains {#Devil_pimp}
 
I hear you.  I understand.  I agree.

Every once in a while, I peel the the cardboard, and the plastic off of the vinyl, and play this LP ... I then listen to the following set of tunes without interruption (as they were meant to be appreciated) while admiring the sensual power of that amazing woman on the cover who is offering the dove a warm and moist nest ...

Singing Winds, Crying Beasts ;
Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen;
Oye Como Vá;
Incident at Neshabur;
Se acabó (a.k.a. "Se a cabo" ... not Spanish ;-))

... and I go back to that time that will never ever be again ... god bless us humans for our brains {#Devil_pimp}
 agaran wrote:
I lost my cherry while listening to this album, in about, uh, 1969. (I was 14.) Great memories. Thanks.
 
{#Yell} thanks for sharing!
The beginning of this really reminds me of the beginning of Les Miserables, for which I just played in the pit orchestra.  I bet the guy who composed that had listened to this.
 helgigermany wrote:
For me, one of their Best,ever!
 



For me, one of their Best,ever!
 raga wrote:
Ok Carlos, now you can start... PLEASE!!! {#Yell}
 
LOL!
 mgkiwi wrote:
Wow, not heard this in many a moon. Takes me way back, way back to a very peaceful place, a place where we had values and respect. {#Meditate}
 

I hadn't heard it in a very long time, either, but I recognized it immediately!  It took me back to my college days.
 nampelkafe wrote:

It's a kind of mantra for me. It doesn't get anywhere 'cause it takes you to nowhere. Look at the title, he's not promising  an easy 3 minutes song.
 
It gets somewhere as side one of the lp. Not quite the same played as a single. 
 Jelani wrote:
Q: What goes on and on and on and on and on and never gets anywhere?
A: A Santana tune. 
 
It's a kind of mantra for me. It doesn't get anywhere 'cause it takes you to nowhere. Look at the title, he's not promising  an easy 3 minutes song.


I wish this was a two-fer
 Third World - Satta Massagana {#Arrow} Santana - Singing Winds, Crying Beasts

Q: What goes on and on and on and on and on and never gets anywhere?
A: A Santana tune. 
Ok Carlos, now you can start... PLEASE!!! {#Yell}

 mgkiwi wrote:
Wow, not heard this in many a moon. Takes me way back, way back to a very peaceful place, a place where we had values and respect. {#Meditate}
 
Like when slower drivers made certain to get over in right lane as quickly as possible?
Wow, not heard this in many a moon. Takes me way back, way back to a very peaceful place, a place where we had values and respect. {#Meditate}
 HarrO wrote:
I love Santana but this has always been the really long intro to Black Magic Woman for me.
 
Heh - me too. When the DJs cut it off I always find myself humming the first few bars of Black Magic Woman.

time to turn the volume down.
 radiojunkie wrote:
I can name that song in two notes!
 
Pity it's any longer than 2 notes - another meandering overly long dirge

Not too shabby for a "one-trick pony."  
Now see, I like this.  I play the wind-chimes too, so I can really dig it, in my own special way. 

My needle actuallly made a new groove on this LP ,When I was young. Burn this whole album into my DNA

{#Sunny}
I can name that song in two notes!
Okay, I'm lying. I actually thought it was another song until I heard the first tinkling sound.

this is what "Third World" music is when it intermarries with electric instruments, sweeeeet!
I love Santana but this has always been the really long intro to Black Magic Woman for me.
Please, make it stop!!!
Om! Ay Dios! Que musica de los cielos! Santana mixes the spirits together so well. Viva los 60's! Cuando la musica tenia sentido y inteligencia.
When Carlos Santana gets inspiration!
I saw Santanta at a concert in Göteborg, Sweden. They were opening for Bob Dylan who was the reason I went. I was not a Santana fan at the time. After seeing them live I was hooked. The energy was amazing! Carlos simply rocked.
thewiseking wrote:
Breaking Wind, Cutting Cheese. schlock rock defined.
I wouldn't go that far, but this one goes in one ear and out the other - 3 tops. Out of the last 14 numbers I've not rated one higher than 5, and most are 3 or less. This surely has to be one of the worst stretches I've ever suffered on RP. Either that, or it's that time of the month...
Breaking Wind, Cutting Cheese. schlock rock defined.
tigerbeetle wrote:
A guitar is the same instrument for one and all. How can an artist achieve such a trademark sound, as Carlos has? Jimi may have been the greatest but Carlos has surely prefected, above all, an all-time identifiable guitar signature -- the sign of ultra-excellence.
Yeah, true...like the other responses though...you can pick Pagey, Hendrix,Knopfler, Roy Buchanan, Clapton, Beck's sounds a mile away whatever song they're playing. But I agree Santana's is the most instantly recognisable and inimitable. Shame he's a bit too commercial in his old age.
rtkmusic wrote:
More wind chimes!
How about cowbell?
ginniet wrote:
Ahhh--memories of college days in the '70s (and everything that went with that)!
Right on, I'm with you on that thought.
Oh man, this whole set is really making me wish it were July and that I were slowly floating around my pool with a cold drink!
first album I owned out right, played it till it warped. the best Santana. Then made a fresbiee out of it one after noon
Fantastic song choice from a fantastic album. Carlos and company rule!
What a great way to start an album, from this into Black Magic Women then right into Oye Como Va. what a great side (back from the days when you listened to records one side at a time)
ruthless wrote:
Yes, I hear it.
Yes, but Riders was recorded at the Doors Workshop in December 1970, Abraxas was released at January 1970.
Kevstar wrote:
It all sounds the same and is annoying.
Ah, then what a perfect segue to the Empress of Insipid, Joni Mitchell.
tigerbeetle wrote:
A guitar is the same instrument for one and all. How can an artist achieve such a trademark sound, as Carlos has? Jimi may have been the greatest but Carlos has surely prefected, above all, an all-time identifiable guitar signature -- the sign of ultra-excellence.
As has MK.
Singing Winds, Crying Beasts, Grooving Listeners (well, this one anyway)
More wind chimes!
tigerbeetle wrote:
A guitar is the same instrument for one and all. How can an artist achieve such a trademark sound, as Carlos has? Jimi may have been the greatest but Carlos has surely prefected, above all, an all-time identifiable guitar signature -- the sign of ultra-excellence.
I'd add Frank Zappa to your pair.
TonyBear wrote:
Riders on the Storm
Yes, I hear it.
The remastered Abraxas sounds great; crank this puppy up and make the walls rattle!
Ahhh--memories of college days in the '70s (and everything that went with that)!
A storm is on the horizon here, and this song is playing it in.
A guitar is the same instrument for one and all. How can an artist achieve such a trademark sound, as Carlos has? Jimi may have been the greatest but Carlos has surely prefected, above all, an all-time identifiable guitar signature -- the sign of ultra-excellence.
"Abraxis" has to be Santana's best album ever. It certainly far outshines his more recent commercially focused efforts such as "Supernatural."
Samba Pa Ti is the best song on this album. It is the best song sanatana has ever done IMO.
Dang! I always liked this album cover, but I've never owned the album, hence never heard this track. Now I gotta get it!
Riders on the Storm
Fantastic song. 10.
SuzieB wrote:
Nice, except the intro reminds me of my old neighbors who had about a hundred windchimes on their patio...a little bit goes a long way on those things.
i think i lived on the other side of that dude. and i swear the kind of people that have the wind chimes also have speakers in their flower gardens, just to make sure the wind chime sound is there even when there is no wind.
Yawn....7..at 6:52 a.m.
Nothing distinct or unique about this song or Santana. It all sounds the same and is annoying.
Ahh, yes...this remains among the very best for spacing out, meditating, or tying together all the moments along the great curve of life lived to the soundtrack of the various voices of Grace... Dig it!
Wow! That begins in a very annoying way. MUTE.
Wow! What a distinct and unique piece out of his catalog.
Nice, except the intro reminds me of my old neighbors who had about a hundred windchimes on their patio...a little bit goes a long way on those things.
Abraxas good! Santana good! Santana in August 06... concert time! yea!
Oh the memories.... So many bongs. So little time..
So, ummm, when does the song start??
It's like The Doors without Jim.
mag wrote:
Clearly, Trekhead does not speak English English... :)
I believe it's 'Klingon'