MFSL 2-LPs UD1S-2-001: SANTANA - Abraxas - 2016 SEALED #d Ltd Ed 45rpm

	C$		1,000
	$		725

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Background -

Santana is the primary exponent of Latin-tinged rock, particularly due to their combination of Latin percussion (congas, timbales, etc.) with bandleader Carlos Santana's distinctive, high-pitched lead guitar playing. The group was the last major act to emerge from the psychedelic San Francisco music scene of the 1960s and enjoyed massive success at the end of the decade and into the early '70s. The musical direction then changed to a more contemplative and jazzy style as the band's early personnel gradually departed, leaving the name in the hands of Carlos Santana, who guided the group to consistent commercial success over the next quarter-century. By the mid-'90s, Santanaseemed spent as a commercial force on records, though the group continued to attract audiences for its concerts worldwide. But the band made a surprising and monumental comeback in 1999 with Supernatural, an album featuring many guest stars that became Santana's best-selling release and won a raft of Grammy Awards.

Mexican native Carlos Santana (born July 20, 1947, in Autlan de Navarro, Mexico) moved to San Francisco in the early '60s, by which time he was already playing the guitar professionally. In 1966, he formed the Santana Blues Band with keyboard player and singer Gregg Rolie (born June 17, 1947, in Seattle, Washington) and other musicians, the personnel changing frequently. The group was given its name due to a  musicians' union requirement that a single person be named a band's leader and it did not at first indicate that Carlos was in charge. Bass player David Brown (born February 15, 1947, in New York, New York) joined early on, as did Carlos' high-school friend conga player Mike Carabello (born November 18, 1947, in San Francisco), though he did not stay long at first. By mid-1967, the band's lineup consisted of Carlos, Rolie, Brown, drummer Bob "Doc" Livingston, and percussionist Marcus Malone. The name was shortened simply to Santana and the group came to the attention of promoter Bill Graham, who gave it its debut at his Fillmore West theater on June 16, 1968. Santana were signed to Columbia Records, who sent producer David Rubinson to tape the band at a four-night stand at the Fillmore West December 19-22, 1968. The results were not released until almost 30 years later, when Columbia/Legacy issued Live at the Fillmore 1968 in 1997.

Livingston and Malone left the lineup in 1969 and were replaced by Carabello and drummer Michael Shrieve (born July 6, 1949, in San Francisco), with a second percussionist, Jose "Chepito" Areas (born July 25, 1946, in Leon, Nicaragua) making Santana a sextet. The band recorded its self-titled debut album and began to tour nationally, making an important stop at the Woodstock festival on August 15, 1969. Santana was released the same month. It peaked in the Top Five, going on to remain in the charts over two years, sell over two million copies, and spawn the Top 40 single "Jingo" and the Top Ten single "Evil Ways." Santana's performance of "Soul Sacrifice" was a highlight of the documentary film Woodstock and its double-platinum soundtrack album, which appeared in 1970.

The band's second album, Abraxas, was released in September 1970 and was even more successful than its first. It hit number one, remaining in the charts more than a year and a half and eventually selling over four million copies while spawning the Top Five hit "Black Magic Woman" and the Top Ten hit "Oye Como Va." By the end of the year, the group had added a seventh member, teenage guitarist Neal Schon (born February 27, 1954).

Santana's third album, Santana III, was performed by the seven bandmembers (and marked guitarist Neil Schon's debut with the group), though several guest musicians were also mentioned in the credits, notably percussionist Coke Escovedo, who played on all the tracks. Released in September 1971, the album was another massive hit, reaching number one and eventually selling over two million copies while spawning the Top Ten hit "Everybody's Everything" and the Top 20 hit "No One to Depend On." But it marked the end of the Woodstock-era edition of Santana, which broke up at the end of the tour promoting it, with Carlos retaining rights to the band name.

Following a tour with Buddy Miles that resulted in a live duo album (Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live!), Carlos reorganized Santana and recorded the fourth Santana band album, Caravanserai; each track featured individual musician credits. From the previous lineup, Rolie, Shrieve, Areas, and Schon appeared, along side pianist Tom Coster, percussionist James Mingo Lewis, percussionist Armando Peraza, guitarist/bassist Douglas Rauch, and percussionist Rico Reyes, among others. (Rolie and Schon left to form Journey.) The album was released in September 1972; it peaked in the Top Five and was eventually certified platinum. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance with Vocal Coloring. Carlos, who had become a disciple of the guru Sri Chinmoy and adopted the name Devadip (meaning "the eye, the lamp, and the light of God"), next made a duo album with John McLaughlin, guitarist with the Mahavishnu Orchestra (Love Devotion Surrender).

Meanwhile, the lineup of Santana continued to fluctuate. On Welcome, the band's fifth album, released in November 1973, it consisted of Carlos, Shrieve, Areas, Coster, Peraza, Rauch, keyboard player Richard Kermode, and singer Leon Thomas. The album went gold and peaked in the Top 20. In May 1974, Lotus, a live album featuring the same lineup, was released only in Japan. (It was issued in the U.S. in 1991.) Carlos continued to alternate side projects with Santana band albums, next recording a duo LP with John Coltrane's widow Alice Coltrane (Illuminations). Columbia decided to cash in on the band's diminishing popularity by releasing Santana's Greatest Hits in July 1974. The compilation peaked in the Top 20 and eventually went double platinum.

The sixth new Santana album, Borboletta, followed in October. The band personnel for the LP featured Carlos, Shrieve, Areas, Coster, Peraza, a returning David Brown, saxophonist Jules Broussard, and singer Leon Patillo, plus guest stars Flora Purim, Airto Moreira, and Stanley Clarke. Borboletta peaked in the Top 20 and eventually went gold. Carlos steered Santana back to a more commercial sound in the mid-'70s in an attempt to stop the eroding sales of the band's albums. He enlisted Santana's original producer, David Rubinson, to handle the next LP. The band was streamlined to a sextet consisting of himself, Coster, Peraza, Brown, drummer Ndugu Leon Chancler (Shrieve having departed to work with Stomu Yamashta), and singer Greg Walker.

The result was Amigos, released in March 1976, which returned Santana to the Top Ten and went gold. The band was back only nine months later with another Rubinson production, Festival, for which Santana consisted of Carlos, Coster, returning members Jose "Chepito" Areas and Leon Patillo, drummer Gaylord Birch, percussionist Raul Rekow, and bass player Pablo Telez. This album peaked in the Top 40 and went gold. Never having issued a live album in the U.S., Santana made up for the lapse with Moonflower, released in October 1977; that band consisted of Carlos, Coster, Areas, Rekow, Telez, returning member Greg Walker, percussionist Pete Escovedo, drummer Graham Lear, and bass player David Margen. The album peaked in the Top Ten and eventually went platinum, its sales stimulated by the single release of a revival of the Zombies' "She's Not There" that peaked in the Top 20, Santana's first hit single in nearly six years.

Turning to producers Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, Santana returned to the studio for Inner Secrets, released in October 1978. The revamped lineup this time was Carlos, Rekow, Walker, Lear, Margen, and returning members Coke Escovedo and Armando Peraza, keyboard player Chris Rhyne, and guitarist/keyboard player Chris Solberg. The album was quickly certified gold, and a revival of the Classics IV hit "Stormy" made the Top 40, but Inner Secrets peaked disappointingly below the Top 20. Once again adopting his guru name of Devadip, Carlos issued his first real solo album (Illuminations/Oneness) in February 1979. Marathon, the tenth Santana band studio album, followed in September, produced by Keith Olsen; the band here comprised Carlos, Rekow, Lear, Margen, Peraza, Solberg, singer Alex Ligertwood, and keyboard player Alan Pasqua. The album equaled the success of Inner Secrets, peaking outside the Top 20 but going gold, with "You Know That I Love You" becoming a Top 40 single. Again, Carlos followed in the winter with another solo effort (The Swing of Delight).

Santana (Carlos, Rekow, Lear, Margen, Peraza, Ligertwood, keyboard player Richard Baker, and percussionist Orestes Vilato) spent some extra time on their next release, not issuing Zebop! until March 1981, and the extra effort paid off. Paced by the Top 20 single "Winning," the album reached the Top Ten and went gold. The band lavished similar attention on Shango, which was released in August 1982. The same lineup as that on Zebop! was joined by original member Gregg Rolie, who also co-produced the album. A music video helped Santana enjoy their first Top Ten single in more than a decade with "Hold On," but that did not translate into increased sales for the album, which peaked in the Top 20 but became the band's first LP not to at least go gold. Carlos followed with another solo album (Havana Moon), but did not release a new Santana band album until February 1985 with Beyond Appearances, produced by Val Garay. By now the lineup consisted of Carlos, Rekow, Peraza, Ligertwood, Vilato, returning member Greg Walker, bass player Alphonso Johnson, keyboard player David Sancious, drummer Chester C. Thompson, and keyboard player Chester D. Thompson. "Say It Again," the album's single, reached the Top 40, but that was better than the LP did.

Santana staged a 20-year anniversary reunion concert in August 1986 featuring many past bandmembers. The February 1987 album Freedom marked the formal inclusion of Buddy Miles as a member of Santana, alongside Carlos, Rekow, Peraza, Vilato, Johnson, Chester D. Thompson, and returning members Tom Coster and Graham Lear. The album barely made the Top 100. Carlos followed in the fall with another solo album (Blues for Salvador), winning his first Grammy Award in the process (Best Rock Instrumental Performance for the title track). In 1988, he added Wayne Shorter to the band for a tour, then put together a reunion edition of Santana that featured Areas, Rolie, and Shrieve beside Johnson, Peraza, and Thompson. In October, Columbia celebrated the 20-year anniversary of the band's signing to the label with the retrospective Viva Santana! The next new Santana album was Spirits Dancing in the Flesh, released in June 1990, for which the band was Carlos, Peraza, Thompson, returning member Alex Ligertwood, drummer Walfredo Reyes, and bass player Benny Rietveld. A modest seller that made only the lower reaches of the Top 100, it marked the end of the band's 22-year tenure at Columbia Records.

In 1991, Santana signed to Polydor Records, which, in April 1992, released the band's 16th studio album, Milagro. The lineup comprised Carlos, Thompson, Ligertwood, Reyes, Rietveld, and percussionist Karl Perazzo. Polydor was not able to reverse the band's commercial decline, as the album became Santana's first new studio release not to reach the Top 100. The group followed in November 1993 with Sacred Fire: Live in South America, which featured Carlos, Thompson, Ligertwood, Reyes, Perazzo, singer Vorriece Cooper, bass player Myron Dove, and guitarist Jorge Santana, Carlos' brother. The album barely made the charts. In 1994, Carlos, Jorge, and their nephew Carlos Hernandez released Santana Brothers, another marginal chart entry. The same year, Areas, Carabello, Rolie, and Shrieve formed a band called Abraxas and released the album Abraxas Pool, which did not chart.

Santana left Polydor and signed briefly to EMI before moving to Arista, run by Clive Davis, who had been president of Columbia during the band's heyday. Carlos and Davis put together Supernatural, which was stuffed with appearances by high-profile guest stars including Wyclef Jean, Eric Clapton, Lauryn Hill, Rob Thomas (Matchbox Twenty), and Dave Matthews. Arista released the album in June 1999, followed by the single "Smooth" featuring Thomas. The album and single hit number one and in 2000, a second single, "Maria Maria," also topped the charts. Supernatural's sales exploded; its sales exceeded ten million copies. The album garnered 11 Grammy nominations, and Carlos himself took eight awards: Record of the Year ("Smooth"), Album of the Year; Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Maria Maria"); Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals ("Smooth"); Best Pop Instrumental Performance ("El Farol"); Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Put Your Lights On"); Best Rock Instrumental Performance ("The Calling"); and Best Rock Album. "Smooth," written by Thomas with Itaal Shur, also won the Grammy for Song of the Year.

The follow-up, Shaman, appeared in 2002 with appearances from Macy Gray, Michelle Branch, and Chad Kroeger (Nickelback), among many others. While it was not a blockbuster on the level of Supernatural, it sold over two million copies in the U.S. Three years later, All That I Am arrived with yet another assortment of collaborators, including Steven Tyler, Branch, Big Boi, Joss Stone, and Bo Bice. Guitar Heaven appeared in 2010 and featured Carlos with several guest vocalists taking on some of the most popular guitar-based rock tracks of all time, including "Whole Lotta Love" (with Chris Cornell), "Sunshine of Your Love" (with Thomas), and "Photograph" (with Chris Daughtry). While it peaked at number five on the Billboard 200, it failed to reach gold status. In 2012, the guitarist switched gears with Shape Shifter, the debut recording for his own Starfaith label. Carlos wrote or co-wrote all but two of its 13 tracks (all but one an instrumental), and produced the sessions. One year later, he announced the re-formation of Santana's classic late-'60s lineup, including Neal Schon, Gregg Rolie, Mike Shrieve, Mike Carabello, and Marcus Malone (the last of whom had been homeless until being discovered by a reporter and reunited with the guitarist). Santana's next solo album, 2014's Corazón, again placed him in a duets context, this time with an A-list of vocalists and musicians from the world of Latin music, including Gloria Estefan, Juanes, Pitbull, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, and Lila Downs.

In a 2013 interview, Carlos Santana revealed that he was pursuing a reunion of the personnel that recorded Santana III. Nearly two years later, the guitarist, Rolie, Schon, Shrieve, and Carabello reconvened in a studio -- only Jose "Chepito" Areas was absent -- with bassist Benny Rietveld and percussionist Karl Perazzo. "Anywhere You Want to Go," written by Rolie, was issued as a pre-release single in March 2016, followed by Santana IV in April.

In 2004, Carlos Santana had been at PBS Soundstage concert where he saw the Isley Brothers in concert with Burt Bacharach. Though the guitarist had been a fan of both artists, he was deeply moved by Ron Isley's performance. A decade later he was touring with Rod Stewart, whose band included Kimberly Johnson-Breaux, sister-in-law of Ron. When the singer popped backstage he and Santana met for the first time. The guitarist invited Isley on-stage to sing "It's Your Thing" and "That Lady." It worked so well, the pair began discussing a collaboration. First, Isley contributed vocals to Santana IV. Following its release, the guitarist and his wife, jazz drummer Cindy Blackman Santana, joined the Isley Brothers in a Las Vegas studio -- without prep -- to record material for what would become 2017's Power of Peace. The material consisted primarily of classic soul, pop, and blues covers including Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground," Marvin Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)," Burt Bacharach's and Hal David's "What the World Needs Now Is Love," Willie Dixon's "I Just Want to Make Love to You" Swamp Dogg's "Total Destruction to Your Mind," and Curtis Mayfield's "Gypsy Woman," among others. The 13-song album was released in July, a week after Santana's 70th birthday. - William Ruhlmann

Santana Abraxas Numbered Limited-Edition Ultradisc One-Step 45rpm Vinyl 2LP Box Set From Mobile Fidelity - Limited To 2,500 Copies

Mobile Fidelity's Premier Ultradisc One-Step Release: Mastered From The Original Master Tapes, Santana Abraxas UD1S 45RPM Box Set Reaches Sonic Heights Never Before Achieved By Analog

Deluxe Packaging Includes Opulent Box, Special Jackets, Unique Insert, And Fine-art Print Of The Original Mati Klarwein Painting: No Expense Spared On Very Limited Audiophile Pressing

Get Literally And Figuratively Closer To The Music Of Santana's 1970 Masterwork: Set Ranked By Rolling Stone As 205th Greatest Album Of All Time Includes "Black Magic Woman" And "Oye Como Va"

Abraxas stands alone as the consummate Latin rock album. The confident sound of Santana stretching out and carving out a distinctive new genre, the 1970 set is daubed with psychedelic accents and Afro-Latin grooves. Not surprisingly, Abraxas immediately captured the public’s ear, spending six weeks as the nation’s #1 album and spawning the cosmic “Black Magic Woman” as a Top 5 single that’s since become one of the most widely recognized songs in history. Befitting such a classic, Mobile Fidelity’s 45RPM 2LP version of this ambitious work presents the music in the richest, most dynamic and realistic sound it’s ever enjoyed.

Improving upon the label's critically acclaimed 180g LP pressing, Mobile Fidelity's deluxe 45RPM set is mastered from the original master tapes and overflows with the information, clarity, textures, and colors afforded by wider grooves. The result: Spacious, airy, and you-are-there  sonics that trump all prior versions. Experience Abraxas the way it is meant to be heard, with the instruments and musicians placed in the proper channels. In addition to correcting the imaging, Mobile Fidelity’s collectable version captures the full tonal range of Santana’s guitar and nuances of his distinctive touch. Every imaginable detail is brought to the forefront and properly scaled, bringing you closer to the music and enhancing your emotional connection to this legendary record.

A confluence of celebratory vibes, bluesy jams, mellow vocals, and hip-shaking grooves, Abraxas is a cornerstone of any music collection. Picking up on the momentum of its excellent 1969 self-titled debut and drifting into more versatile territory, Santana reimagines what’s possible in melding various disciplines and styles. Mysticism and spirituality abound amidst cohesive performances involving a vibrant mélange of purring organs, conga beats, and fluid bass lines. And that says nothing of the bandleader’s extraordinary playing.

Wild, free, and loose, the group conjures the feeling of mountains and rivers on the lead-off instrumental “Singing Winds, Crying Beasts,” leads a salsa parade on the definitive version of Tito Puente’s “Oye Como Va,” and explores its sensual side on the stellar showcase “Samba  Pa Ti,” a tune indicative of the album’s Latin vibes and percussion. Sonically, Abraxas takes advantage of studio techniques such as cross-fading and mixing lacking on its predecessor.

As stated in The Mojo Collection: “Dissatisfied with the sound of their debut, the group brought in as a co-producer veteran jazz engineer Fred Catero, whose skills proved invaluable in balancing the new range of musical flavors Santana [was] bringing into its sound: the result was a giant step on from [the band’s] debut.”

But just like 1969’s equally essential Santana, Abraxas lays claim to one of the biggest (and unfortunate) production gaffes in music history. Until Mobile Fidelity fixed the error with its 180g LP and 24K Gold CD releases, Abraxas had never been heard correctly. For nearly four decades, copies were produced with the left and right channels reversed, meaning that everything was placed in a backwards manner. This even extended to compilations on which individual songs from Abraxas were included. Rest assured that, in addition to enjoying reach-out-and-touch it sound, this 45RPM 2LP edition gets all the specifications exactly right.

Before you pay $100 for any record you have to ask yourself if you really like the music, right? Then the question becomes is this version that much better than the one you already have, assuming you already have one. The record is Santana's Abraxas the group's second album was released in 1970. If you're of a certain vintage you know the music and especially the hit "Black Magic Woman", which is known to music fans of all ages. The version is the new "one-step" edition 1/2 speed mastered at 45rpm..

There's nothing new about the process. But because of the cost involved it's not commercially practical.

For those who don't know: records are made by first cutting grooves in a lacquer, which is an aluminum disc coated with a soft paint-like compound. The cut lacquer is quickly metal-plated. Prying the metal from the lacquer produces a ridged metal part that can be used to press records. That is how Mobile Fidelity is doing it, and why it's called a "one step" process.

The advantage of course is that you're one generation from the tape. The disadvantage is that once the stamper wears out after around a thousand records you have to cut another lacquer. In the real world of record manufacturing the metal part (called "the father") is again plated   resulting in a playable grooved disc commonly referred to as "the mother". The "mother" can be plated to produce a second generation stamper that's used to press records.

The "mother" can then be reused many times to produce well more than one hundred stampers, each of which is capable of pressing many hundred or thousand records. The few times you rely on the same mother to produce stampers and fewer records you press with each stamper, the better the records generally will sound.

Here Mobile-Fidelity produces from the original master tapes a "one step" Abraxas pressed as two 45rpm records packaged in a box reminiscent of but far more opulent and value-packed than the old Mo-Fi's "UHQR" boxed records.

But first the music. That's your call of course. Mine is that I was never much of fan of this album. To me it was like Persuasive (Hispanic) Percussion—a mildly interesting, percussion-heavy, high drama, swaggering entrant into the hyphen rock genre as in "folk-rock", "jazz-rock", "raga-rock" and in this case "latino-rock" or something similar. It's the rock spirit and vibe with something grafted to the body, whether a tabla and sitar as in "tabla-rock" or lilting latino rhythm exclaimed by meaty percussion .

So i paid only minor attention to the record when it first came out though I have two or three versions to which I paid very little attention...until now.

Halfway through this "one step"'s side one I said to myself "This might be the best record I've ever heard". I meant by that the technical quality of the record and how much it resembles tape in four critical parameters: the wide dynamics and low bass response, the unlimited dynamic range, the tape-like sense of flow and especially the enormity of the soundstage presentation. More importantly I got a greater appreciation for the music, the musicianship and the showmanship too.

I had to refresh my sonic memory with the alternative versions I have here that include two originals, a German pressing from the 1990s and the Columbia "Mastersound" half-speed mastered version. First of all, about half of this record is magnificently recorded and hard work would  be necessary to make it sound bad but this "one step" version is mind-glowingly better than any of the other versions I have beginning with the earth shaking bass that extends to near-impossible depths, moving on to the enormity of the stage width and especially depth and the transparency and the dynamic slam plus the blackest backdrops you'll hear on a record. I'm telling you, if you love the album it's worth spending $100 on it. Compared to this version the half-speed mastered Columbia sounds like a cassette tape.

The first two sides are so spectacularly recorded and reproduced even if you're not a big fan of the music, you'll find yourself luxuriating in the sonic riches.The spectacular sound got me to listen often just for he sonic thrill, but doing so made me appreciate more the muscular music, now unleashed as never before. The louder you play it the better this record sounds and that 's something that doesn't happen that often.

The percussion explodes forward from the speakers perfectly focused with a dead-black background intensifying the picture. Instrumental textures are visceral while attack is supple yet sufficiently gritty to engage. Sustain is impossibly long and decay into black is audible down to bottom of the sonic pit, which means Carlos Santana's guitar comes to life before you as you're never before heard it—and that's not hyperbole (ok, it is, but....) . If you hear this record on your system as I do on mine and you crank it up to sufficiently realistic SPLs you'll likely  exclaim a "wow" or two through side one.

I don't know much about this record's production but it takes a weird sonic turn about half way through. Sonically the first half is truly astonishing and then it head south fast as if the group got tossed from the more costly studio to one they could afford. Not saying the second half sounds bad but it doesn't sound as spacious or textural suave as the first half though it sounds better than any of the other versions.

The packaging puts to shame Mo-Fi's '70s-'80s era "UHQR" boxes. Mo-Fi retains the black foam.The box is finished in a supple, soft matte black stock with gold leaf accents and an especially well reproduced though smaller than the standard cover image of Mati Klarwein's original  artwork. Each of the two records repeats the cover motif. The records in a rice paper sleeve are each contained in an inner folded sleeve that  produces a tight fit. Also inside is a generously sized cover image reproduced of course without the wrap-around required on the album cover. Also included is a one-sheet explaining the "one-step" process.

So will this limited edition record become a collectible? No doubt. Should you buy a copy to listen to and one to leave sealed? That's up to your investment strategy but if this among your faves, you'll be glad you invested $99 in a copy. (The sound rating is especially for the first of the two records). - Michael Fremer

I’ll get right to the point: Abraxas fans, do not miss Mobile Fidelity’s astonishing new reissue of Santana’s 1970 Latin-spiced, blues-rock masterpiece. It will blow your mind. Never before have I heard such inner detail, texture, and wide dynamics, the music emerging from such a deeply quiet background, with such intense immediacy—or derived such sheer musical pleasure from this title.

More on the revelatory sound below, but first a bit on the technology behind it. Abraxas represents the first fruit of MoFi’s UltraDisc One-Step plating process, in which the mother and stamper steps are removed, thus eliminating two generations of loss from lacquer to LP. Put another way, that’s two generations closer to the original master tape. To explain, the traditional three-step process, which is used to maximize efficiency while pressing very large numbers of LPs, goes something like this: from tape to lacquer (positive), to father (negative), to mother (positive), to the stamper (negative), from which the LP is pressed. By contrast, MoFi’s UltraDisc One-Step plating process, to quote from company literature, “begins with the original master tapes and a meticulously cut set of lacquers. These lacquers are used to create a very fragile, pristine UD1S stamper called a ‘convert,’” which becomes the stamper for pressing the final LP.

There isn’t room here to describe every methodical step involved, but during a phone conversation with Josh Bizar of MoFi’s parent company  Music Direct, I learned that it took two-and-a-half years for MoFi and RTI to perfect the One-Step plating and pressing process. And because the “convert” stampers are extremely delicate, requiring the utmost care in handling, once it “goes,” i.e., breaks, so too goes the prospect of pressing any more LPs. MoFi hopes to press 2500 copies of each One-Step title, but there are no guarantees.

Sonically, as I said, prepare to be astonished. From the almost ghostly emergence of Gregg Rolie’s opening piano chords and the shimmering percussion that introduce “Singing Winds, Crying Beasts,” you’ll hear exactly what I mean. We like to talk about black or quiet backgrounds, but I’m not sure I’ve heard any better than what’s embedded in these grooves. The instruments are so “there” I felt as if I were sitting in the control booth. And then, Carlos Santana’s signature stinging guitar tone cuts through the air like a rapier, settling into a dirty-sweet toned moan as bass and percussion move into the next section. David Brown’s funky, chugging electric bass digs clean and deep, and the Latin drums sway the groove forward with a delicacy and texture like you’ve never heard. Rolie’s electric piano again changes the mood until his organ riff appears that brings forth Peter Green’s “Black Magic Woman.” It’s sonically thrilling in the best sense of the word, breathing fresh life into well-known music. MoFi’s previous Abraxas reissue (2007) was excellent, but this new One-Step edition blows it away.

The packaging, by the way, is deluxe in every way, from the beautifully made box to the individual jackets and sleeves for each LP. Finally, MoFi plans to release only two to three titles a year that will receive this extra-special handling. Like I said, don’t miss it.  - Wayne Garcia, TAS

Second studio album from the Carlos Santana band and widely acclaimed as his masterpiece, presented here with corrected stereo channel orientation, newly remastered and sounding better than ever as the result of being expertly remastered from the Original Analog Master Tapes by MFSL with the new Ultradisc One-Step UD1S process!

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rated 207/500

Featured in Vinyl Gourmet Audiophile TOP 100

• Limited Edition Box Set
• Numbered Edition
• UltraDisc One-Step UD1S
• 180 Gram High Definition Vinyl 
• 2LP 45rpm Pressed at RTI, USA
• Half-Speed mastering on MFSL Gain 2 Ultra Analog System
• Cut from the Original Analog Master Tapes
• Mastered by Krieg Wunderlich
• Deluxe gold-foiled box set
• Contains special jackets and unique insert
• Fine-art print of the original Mati Klarwein cover painting

Picking up on the momentum of the band's excellent 1969 self-titled debut and drifting into edgier, more versatile territory, Abraxas is the confident sound of Santana stretching out and carving its own Latin rock subgenre. The 1970 set immediately captured the public's ear, spending six weeks as the nation's #1 album and spawning the cosmic "Black Magic Woman" as a Top 5 single that's since become one of the most widely recognized songs in history. A confluence of celebratory vibes, bluesy jams, mellow vocals, and hip-shaking grooves, Abraxas is a cornerstone of any music collection and nothing short of legendary.
Mysticism and spirituality abound. Wild, free, and loose, Santana conjures the feeling of mountains and rivers on the lead-off instrumental "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts," leads a salsa parade on the definitive version of Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va," and explores its sensual side on the stellar showcase "Samba Pa Ti," a tune indicative of the album's Latin vibes and percussion. Sonically, Abraxas takes advantage of studio techniques such as cross-fading and mixing lacking on its predecessor.

"Dissatisfied with the sound of their debut, the group brought in as a co-producer veteran jazz engineer Fred Catero, whose skills proved invaluable in balancing the new range of musical flavors Santana [was] bringing into its sound: the result was a giant step on from [the band's] debut." – The Mojo Collection book on the Greatest Albums of All Time

Mobile Fidelity's Premier UltraDisc One-Step Release: Mastered from the Original Master Tapes, Santana Abraxas UD1S 45RPM Box Set Reaches Sonic Heights Never Before Achieved by Analog. Deluxe Packaging Includes Opulent Box, Special Jackets, Unique Insert, and Fine-Art Print of the Original Mati Klarwein Painting: No Expense Spared Exclusively Limited to Just 2500 Copies. Get Literally and Figuratively Closer to the Music of Santana's 1970 Masterwork: Includes "Black Magic Woman" and "Oye Como Va".

Santana's iconic Abraxas, the debut release in Mobile Fidelity's exclusive UltraDisc One-Step (UD1S) series, reaches three-dimensional sonic and emotional heights never before attained by analog recordings on this extremely limited 180g 45RPM vinyl 2LP box set. Created in finite batches for the ultimate in sound quality, UD1S uses a one-step lacquer process that yields vinyl with the lowest-possible noise floor, exponentially greater details, and significantly enhanced dynamics. This ultra-hi-fi audiophile edition literally and figuratively brings you closer to the music of this 1970 masterpiece, which spent six weeks atop the charts and spawned the cosmic staple "Black Magic Woman." Experienced via UD1S, Abraxas is the ultimate confluence of celebratory vibes, bluesy jams, mellow vocals, and hip-shaking grooves. You've never heard Santana's peak creations come to life in such lifelike fashion or against such dead-quiet, squid-ink-black backgrounds.

The deluxe packaging and gorgeous presentation of this Abraxas pressing befit its extremely select status. Housed in an opulent box, this UD1S edition contains special jackets and a unique insert that further illuminate the genius of the recording. A special fine-art print of the original Mati Klarwein painting used on the cover, and which depicts the image in its entirety, is also included. No expense has been spared. Aurally and visually, this Abraxas is the intentional opposite of the modern era's mindlessly dismissive ways of hearing music. It is a curatorial artifact meant to be preserved, poured over, touched, and examined. Intended to be passed on to future generations. it is made for discerning listeners that prize sound and creativity, and who desire to fully immerse themselves in the music – and everything involved with the album, from the graphics to the textures.

Most fans don't require any introduction to the exotic worlds conjured by Abraxas. Thematically, mysticism and spirituality abound. Wild, free, and loose, Santana evokes the feeling of mountains and rivers on the lead-off instrumental "Singing Winds, Crying Beasts," leads a salsa parade on the definitive version of Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va," and explores its sensual side on the stellar showcase "Samba Pa Ti," a tune  indicative of the album's Latin vibes and percussion. Abraxas also takes advantage of studio techniques such as cross-fading and mixing lacking on its predecessor. These aspects – as well as the finest nuances of Santana's guitar tones, decay of Gregg Rolie's organ, percussive ripple of Jose Areas' timbal and conga beats, and low-end sway of Dave Brown's bass – can be enjoyed in complete full-range, spectacularly balanced glory on UD1S.

More About Mobile Fidelity UltraDisc One-Step and Why It Is Superior

Instead of utilizing the industry-standard three-step lacquer process, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab's new UltraDisc One-Step (UD1S) uses only one step, bypassing two processes of generational loss. While three-step processing is designed for optimum yield and efficiency, UD1S is created for the ultimate in sound quality. Just as Mobile Fidelity pioneered the UHQR (Ultra High-Quality Record) with JVC in the 1980s, UD1S again represents another state-of-the-art advance in the record-manufacturing process. MFSL engineers begin with the original master tapes and meticulously cut a set of lacquers. These lacquers are used to create a very fragile, pristine UD1S stamper called a "convert." Delicate "converts" are then formed into the actual record stampers, producing a final product that literally and figuratively brings you closer to the music. By skipping the additional steps of pulling another positive and an additional negative, as done in the three-step process used in  standard pressings, UD1S produces a final LP with the lowest noise floor possible today. The removal of the additional two steps of generational loss in the plating process reveals tremendous amounts of extra musical detail and dynamics, which are otherwise lost due to the standard copying process. The exclusive nature of these very limited pressings guarantees that every UD1S pressing serves as an immaculate replica of the lacquer sourced directly from the original master tape. Every conceivable aspect of vinyl production is optimized to produce the most perfect record album available today. - Vinyl Gourmet

The San Francisco Bay Area rock scene of the late '60s was one that encouraged radical experimentation and discouraged the type of mindless conformity that's often plagued corporate rock. When one considers just how different Santana, Jefferson Airplane, Moby Grape, and the Grateful Dead sounded, it becomes obvious just how much it was encouraged. In the mid-'90s, an album as eclectic as Abraxas would be considered a marketing exec's worst nightmare. But at the dawn of the 1970s, this unorthodox mix of rock, jazz, salsa, and blues proved quite successful. Whether adding rock elements to salsa king Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va," embracing instrumental jazz-rock on "Incident at Neshabur" and "Samba Pa Ti," or tackling moody blues-rock on Fleetwood Mac's "Black Magic Woman," the band keeps things unpredictable yet cohesive. Many of the Santana albums that came out in the '70s are worth acquiring, but for novices, Abraxas is an excellent place to start.  - Alex Henderson

This listing is for a BRAND NEW & FACTORY SEALED 2-LP box set issued by the famous audiophile label, "MFSL / MOFI - Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab" - super RARE audiophile title, out of print and limited to a very small number of copies for worldwide sales! 

The 2-LP boxed set was made by MFSL - this is a highly collectible title from their catalog - a superb title featuring - 

Santana

Abraxas

Track Listing -

Credits / Performers (see performer details in track listing above) -

Other Information -

The title is from the ultra-rare MFSL series of audiophile LPs.

• MFSL / MOFI / Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab RECORDS
• LPs made in the USA
•  Pressings are in STEREO
• Made with 180-gram vinyl, comes in a luxurious boxed set
  
• Record vintage = limited and numbered edition, made in 2016
  
• LP catalog # UD1S 2-001

CONDITION Details:

The BOX SET is in Mint condition. Everything is factory sealed and perfect.

A Short Note About LP GRADING -

• Mint = Only used for sealed items.
• Near Mint = Virtually flawless in every way.
• Near Mint Minus = Item has some minor imperfections, some audible.
• Excellent = Item obviously played and enjoyed with some noise.
• Very Good Plus = Many more imperfections which are noticeable and obtrusive.

For best results, always properly clean your LPs before playing them (even for brand new LPs).

The LP is an audiophile quality pressing (any collector of fine MFSL, half speeds, direct to discs, Japanese/UK pressings etc., can attest to the difference a quality pressing can make to an audio system).