Smooth
Santana feat. Rob Thomas, 1999, from Supernatural. Solo by Carlos Santana.
A number-one hit for twelve weeks, with Santana's fills and solo cutting through a modern pop production.
Smooth, with Rob Thomas on vocals, spent twelve weeks at number one, and Carlos Santana's guitar is as much a hook as the chorus. Playing his PRS Santana, he threads fills between the vocal lines and takes a solo that cuts cleanly through the dense modern pop production. His tone is warm but piercing, with long sustain and expressive bends, and his phrasing draws on Latin rhythms and blues licks. The record reintroduced his sound to a new generation. Listen for how his guitar answers the vocal almost like a second singer, and how his solo climbs steadily in intensity while staying tightly locked to the song's driving percussion.
Smooth by Santana feat. Rob Thomas is ranked #263 in our consensus of 79 guitar-solo lists. The solo is played by Carlos Santana and the song was released in 1999. It appears on 2 lists, placing as high as #5 (ADCI).
In our lists
Sources
- ADCI: Essentials - I 10 assoli di chitarra elettrica più iconici — #5
- Magazyn Gitarzysta: 100 solówek wszech czasów [100 solos of all time] — #93
Who played the guitar solo on Smooth?
Carlos Santana played the solo on Santana feat. Rob Thomas's Smooth (1999).
What guitar was used on the Smooth solo?
A prs santana, according to widely reported accounts.
Where does Smooth rank among the greatest guitar solos?
#263 in the GreatestSolos consensus of 79 published lists; it appears on 2 of them.