Battle of the Bands

When Carlos Santana and his Blues Band formed in 1966, the ‘60s had unfolded into a heavy rock era that saw Santana, who is from Tijuana, climb from gigs at the Fillmore to his star-making performance at Woodstock.

But that was then.

Several generations of rock bands have evolved in those 30 years, including Mana, a Latin soft-rock pop band, and Ozomatli, which blends salsa, hip-hop and funk. Both represent the new rock en espanol genre.

Calendar Weekend invited two writers with an age gap of more than two dozen years to talk about Santana’s old-style rock and the new rock en espanol bands--all three groups play triple bills Aug. 11-14 at the Pond of Anaheim.

(Gen-Xer Chris Ceballos covers south Orange County beach cities for the Times Community News, and baby boomer David Reyes covers county government for the Times Orange County edition.)

Chris: Dave, do I take it you’re leaning to Santana as being the only entertainer here? Meaning Mana and Ozomatli can’t hold a candle to Carlos?

Dave: Hey, Santana has been around since Woodstock and he’s still strong. Did you hear his new CD? It’s killer.

Chris: I have and I like it. I would say that Santana is a stronger songwriter than Mana will ever be, but Santana doesn’t have the kick that Mana and Ozomatli have.

Dave: What do you mean by “kick”?

Chris: Look, Santana is the ‘70s psychedelic guitar rocker. You know, akin to groups like the Doors and the Grateful Dead.

Dave: Whoa. Bow your head when you say Grateful Dead.

Chris: May I continue?

Dave: Sorry. What about this kick?

Chris: Mana is a band that gets people off their butts and dancing, and even more so with Ozomatli.

Dave: Ozomatli. Ozomatli. Their name sounds like a corn oil. I’m not trying to cut them down, but these groups bring too much of a Latin mix here. They’ve added salsa, hip-hop and congas. Everything but the kitchen sink. I like the sound, but is it rock?

Chris: You have a very narrow definition of rock.

Dave: Look, maybe it is my generation. Would Chuck Berry or Eric Clapton stray from rock’s three basic chords? You don’t make rock’s hall of fame with a confusing blend of this and that. Besides, rock started in the U.S. and migrated south. Many of those bands are imitators, hybrid rockers.

Chris: Maybe this will help. Let me read to you from a Rolling Stone interview that your man Santana did in May 1976 . . .

Dave: Hey, he was on psychedelics then. You expect him to make any sense?

Chris: He makes a lot of sense. Here’s what he said: “Whatever type of music you play, whether it be Mexican folk music or rock ‘n’ roll, if you’re sincere, what you are projecting has life and joy.”

And that’s really the point. I mean you can talk about the three basic chords of rock and guitar, bass and drum, but rock ‘n’ roll is about the spirit. It’s about the energy and the zest that people have for playing. And when you go to see Ozomatli perform or Mana, you just want to explode!

Santana is a kind of guy who can fill a 50,000-seat stadium and get into an 18-minute guitar solo and have nobody understand it because they’re so stoned.

Dave: Are you saying my generation cannot understand Ozomatli?

Chris: Ozomatli is tough. You don’t really know what you’re getting into until you sit down and listen to them.

Dave: And Mana?

Chris: Mana’s easier.

Dave: Yeah, so is elevator music.

Chris: I believe that rock ‘n’ roll is a pastime of youth, and that’s me as a Gen-Xer saying this. Santana hasn’t produced a studio album in 10 years and now he has a new album, but the only way he can sell CDs is by having young artists on it like Lauryn Hill and Rob Thomas, from Matchbox 20.

Dave: You mean Santana’s lost his audience?

Chris: No, his inspiration.

Dave: Ouch!

Chris: He needed to get that youthful spirit back. I remember a quote of his once, something about how he lost his zest, how even if the Queen of England were in the audience he was sick of touring and how he needed to take a walk in the woods at his home to revitalize.

Dave: You’re saying he’s lost it and that his new “Supernatural” CD is bogus and that he needs new blood?

Chris: Yeah, like a vampire. It’s kind of what he’s doing now with Ozomatli and Mana. It’s rock. But rock with a hook.

Dave: You’ve been watching too much “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer.”

Chris: Mana did do a cut with Santana on his “Supernatural” CD, and they have immense respect for the man. As far as Ozomatli is concerned, he is a father figure to them, offering advice and direction on how to survive in the business.

Dave: So he’s gone from vampire to Ozzie Nelson? You shift with the wind. Let’s face it, he’s the man and they’re not. And another thing, I don’t foresee Mana and similar bands making it into rock’s hall of fame. Even though the word “Ozomatli” means the Aztec god of dance. Maybe we won’t ever agree.

Chris: Well, that’s OK. You know, if I go to the show and dance to Ozomatli, I’m going to need to get a hot dog and soda for sustenance and then I’d be willing to settle down for a while and listen to Santana. . . .

Dave: Well, you should listen and learn. Because without Santana starting it all. . . .

Dave and Chris: There would probably be no Mana or Ozomatli.

Dave: So you’re beginning to see what I mean?

Chris: Either that or your lecture is getting predictable. But seriously, that is one thing we can agree on: Santana is a major influence on a lot of rockers en espanol.

Dave: You got it, dude.