Those who were fortunate enough to witness any of Santana's shows on their recent 'Shamen' tour of Australia would have marvelled at the musicianship displayed, not only by Carlos himself but also the members of his unbelievable band. Christie Eliezer spoke to Carlos about the tour and all things spiritual.

Santana takes very seriously the idea of performing music, and of music's link with spirituality. Each day he wakes at 6 am on his property in California's San Rafael, heads to his study (which is filled with guitars, jazz bootlegs and a Spider Man pinball machine) to light incense and candles to meditate and communicate with his angel Metatron. He swears by Metatron. In 1996, the angel appeared to him as an eye inside a triangle, and told him his career would change. That he would be heard on radio, that he would start to draw huge crowds and he'd spread his spirituality to them. "Be patient, gracious and grateful," he had told the guitarist.

In those days, Santana records were selling 500,000 copies each - typical of a Baby Boomer hero from the Woodstock era. Then, of course, "Supernatural" went on to sell 20 million worldwide, followed by his tribute to Metatron, "Shamen".

Q: You must have been surprised to be told back in 1996 that you would one day be on radio again.

A: "Totally, because after having had hits with 'Soul Sacrifice' and 'Black Magic Woman' and 'Evil Ways', by 1972 when I made 'Caravanserai' I thought my relationship with radio was over. I wanted to play with people like Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and thought that ambition meant that radio was out of the question. But I had just been close minded. I had forgotten that the real masters had never seen such boundaries. Miles Davis did a version of Cyndi Lauper's 'Time After Time' and John Coltrane did 'My Favourite Things'. So you can do both."

Q: How do you best describe your concerts these days?

A: "It became like a holy experience. We see people dancing, laughing and crying at the same time. It's like a revival meeting. Mohawks, suits, straight hairs, grandchildren, grandmothers, tie-dyes, metal T-shirts... Do they all get the same thing from Santana music? Yes, because we're all unique but we all feel the same."

Q: It's funny that while you're idolised as a pioneers of Latin rock, initially when you were a teenager you didn't like that kind of music.

A: "I didn't feel anything for it. I loved blues and rock. It didn't impress my dad who played in a mariachi band and wanted me to do the same. I went to San Francisco, this poor kid from Tijuana, to see B.B. King at the Fillmore. I hero worshipped B.B. He came on, and the audience gave him a standing ovation, and he got tearful. Then he played one note - ONE NOTE - and that changed everything for me. That was the sound that I'd always followed. I hadn't found it in my father's band. But it was right there with B.B's music."

Q: One of the reasons why the band Santana sounds so distinctive is that the congas is approached as a melodic instrument.

A: "That's what I learned from listening to jazz drummers. They see congas as melodic instruments, even though most people don't think so. I think of them as bass patterns. It's funny but I always see myself as the sole female in the band. Because I play the melody. To me, melody is feminine and rhythm is masculine."

Q: What drew you to play with POD?

A: "Their passion and their Christian beliefs."

Q: Are you at a disadvantage if you don't know how to read music?

A: "Just remember, the birds outside your window each morning cannot read music. Yet they have beautiful songs. What you need to know about the note that you play is what's ripe and what isn't ripe."

Q: How do the 11 members psyche up before a show?

A: "Ten, or twenty minutes before the show, we commune. We wait in silence, we breathe together and we think enlightening thoughts."

Q: How do you cope with the pressures of fame?

A: "The beautiful actress, Ingrid Bergman said to treat success and failure as the same impostor. I've been married to the same incredible woman for 30 years, I've lived in the same house. My greatest moment is still going on holiday with my wife and our three children to our place in Maui (in Hawaii) and spend time together, play tennis, read books, listen and share each others' experiences. My family is sacred, my experiences with them are as sacred to me as, say, my experiences with celebrities like Desmond Tutu or Wayne Shorter or Nelson Mandela. Money and fame don't change me, I refuse to let them."

By Christie Eliezer (Pix by Marty Williams)