MARATHON

Santana's "Marathon" has a soft spot in my heart while growing up in rural Canada. My brother had this on LP. I wasn't sure what to think of it at the time, but; I do remember the radio track "All I Ever Wanted" was rather unique with the bongos/timbales compared to what I was hearing on the radio coming out of Detroit at the time (i.e. Bob Seger, Ted Nugent and The Rockets). If you enjoy both the commercial and fusion eras of Santana (comparing early '80s Genesis, Side 'A' being the radio friendly side, Side 'B' being the "progressive" side), this is a great addition to any Santana fan's collection. I may add, this album is worth the price alone for Santana's best instrumental of all time, IMHO - "Aqua Marine". The imagery created in this tune, for me personally...is indescribable. Words like _Sheer beauty_ and _sublime_ come to mind. In conclusion, buying Santana's "Marathon" is on par with buying Camel's "I Can See Your House From Here" for the incredible instrumental "Ice". Few albums can make you fork out $10.00 for one track alone...the aforementioned are the ones. Santana's "Marathon" has a variety of R&B, progressive rock and power rock radio (not unlike Camel's "I.C.S.Y.H.F.H"). I personally give this LP 4**** stars, but; being safe for the discriminating progressive rock listener, I'll give it 3*** stars. Actually, I think any fan of the Alan Parsons Project would thoroughly enjoy Santana - "Marathon" for the production values within.