A song in honor of our modern celebration of the Celtic pagan harvest festival Samhain.
Peter Green, the founder and original guitarist for Fleetwood Mac, wrote it about his girlfriend. Carlos Santana and his eponymous band made it a classic rock staple. On only one occasion did they play it together.
By coincidence, or perhaps not given the twin trusses of bias and commercialism that undergird the Rock Hall of Fame, Santana and Fleetwood Mac both were inducted into the institution in 1998. By then the all-star Super Jam, kicked off by the late Jerry Lee Lewis at the inaugural event, had become a tradition, so it was only natural that the reclusive Green join Santana to play what had become a signature tune for both. Green, considered one of the best guitarists of the British blues revival, died in 2020.
Fleetwood Mac’s recording, released as a stand-alone single in 1968, made No. 37 on the UK charts. The band kept it in their concert list long after drugs and mental illness forced Green to leave the band for good in 1971. By the late ’80s John McVie insisted they stop playing it because it was too strongly associated with Santana.
Santana’s arrangement differed from the original, not least because of the Latin-flavored percussion that marked the band’s classic lineup. The song appeared on their second LP, 1970’s”Abraxas,” and as a single reached No. 4 on the Hot 100 in 1971.
