Beyond Appearances

Beyond Appearances
Studio album by Santana
Released	February 1985
Recorded	March 28–November 1, 1984
Studio	Record One, Los Angeles, California — Additional Recording: Plant Studios, Sausalito, California
Genre	Rock
Length	44:39
Label	Columbia
Producer	Val Garay
Santana chronology
Shangó (1982) Beyond Appearances (1985) Freedom (1987)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Rolling Stone	(unfavorable)
The Rolling Stone Album Guide

Beyond Appearances is the fourteenth studio album by Santana, released in 1985 (see 1985 in music).

The album took seven months to make, and (apart from Carlos Santana himself) involved a completely different line-up from Santana's previous album (released two and a half years earlier). It was firmly in the style of the 1980s, making much use of synthesizers and drum machines. Beyond Appearances performed relatively poorly, reaching only fifty on the Billboard album chart; one of its tracks, "Say It Again", reached number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart (though it performed better on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, reaching number fifteen).

The album is notable for the presence of both drummer Chester Thompson and his namesake, keyboards player Chester D. Thompson on the same record with the same band.

Track listing

Original vinyl release side one

1. "Breaking Out" (Alphonso Johnson, Alex Ligertwood) – 4:30
2. "Written in Sand" (Mitchell Froom, Jerry Stahl) – 3:49
3. "How Long" (Robbie Patton) – 4:00
4. "Brotherhood" (David Sancious, Carlos Santana, Chester D. Thompson) – 2:26
5. "Spirit" (Johnson, Ligertwood, Raul Rekow) – 5:04

Original vinyl release side two

1. "Say It Again" (Val Garay, Steve Goldstein, Anthony La Peau) – 3:27
2. "Who Loves You" (Santana, Thompson, Orestes Vilato) – 4:06
3. "I'm the One Who Loves You" (Curtis Mayfield) – 3:17
4. "Touchdown Raiders" (Santana) – 3:08
5. "Right Now" (Ligertwood, Santana) – 5:58

CD release

1. "Breaking Out" (Johnson, Ligertwood) – 4:30
2. "Written in Sand" (Mitchell Froom, Jerry Stahl) – 3:49
3. "Brotherhood" (Sancious, Santana, Thompson) – 2:26
4. "Spirit" (Johnson, Ligertwood, Rekow) – 5:04
5. "Right Now" (Ligertwood, Santana) – 5:58
6. "Who Loves You" (Santana, Thompson, Vilato) – 4:06
7. "I'm the One Who Loves You" (Mayfield) – 3:17
8. "Say It Again" (Garay, Goldstein, La Peau) – 3:27
9. "Two Points of View" (Ligertwood, Santana) – 4:54
10. "How Long" (Patton) – 4:00
11. "Touchdown Raiders" (Santana) – 3:08

Personnel

• Carlos Santana – guitar, acoustic 12-string guitar, vocals
• Alphonso Johnson – bass
• Chester D. Thompson – synthesizer, bass, keyboards, organ
• David Sancious – rhythm guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, guitar
• Chester Cortez Thompson – drums, bass pedals
• Greg Walker – lead and background vocals
• Alex Ligertwood - rhythm guitar, lead and background vocals, harmony
• Bryan Garofalo - bass
• Steve Goldstein - synthesizer, keyboards
• Craig Krampf - drums, DMX drum machine
• Armando Peraza - bongos, percussion, shakers, congas
• Orestes Vilato - bells, timbales, percussion, cymbals, woodblocks, vocals
• Mitchell Froom - string synthesizer
• Raul Rekow - chekere, congas, shakers, vocals
• David Adelstein - synthesizer, DMX drum machine, synthesizer bass
• John Woodhead - guitar
• Anthony LaPeau - background vocals
• Craig Hull - guitar
• F. Bob Getter - string bass

Credits

• "How Long" arrangement: Robbie Patton, David Adelstein
• "Say It Again" associate producer: Steve Goldstein
• Mitchell Froom appears courtesy of Slash Records
• Recorded by Val Garay & Richard Bosworth at Record One, Los Angeles
• Assisted by Duane Seykora
• Mixed by Val Garay at Record One
• Additional recording: Plant Studios, Sausalito
• Assistant engineer: Wayne Lewis, Glen Holguin
• "Right Now" mixed by Jim Gaines
• All information gathered from back cover of vinyl release.