Rob Thomas Was Thinking of George Michael When He Wrote This Santana Hit in 1999

In 1999, Santana had their first No. 1 hit with “Smooth”. The song, coming an astonishing 30 years after their debut “Jingo” single, is the first single from their Supernatural record. “Smooth” was written by Itaal Shur and Matchbox Twenty’s Rob Thomas. A big hit for Thomas as a songwriter, he surprisingly wasn’t thinking about Santana when he created what became “Smooth”. Instead, Thomas was thinking of one of his favorite artists: George Michael.

It was Shur who had the first iteration of what became “Smooth”. When he took it to Arista, Santana’s record label, they liked his melody but not the lyrics. Undeterred, Arista paired Shur with Thomas, who was thrilled to be able to write for another artist.

“This was going to be my first time writing a song that I didn’t perform on, setting me up as a writer,” Thomas recalls to Billboard.

Thomas was so intent on being the songwriter, not the artist, that he initially wasn’t planning on singing the demo of “Smooth”. 

“When we finished the song, the conversation came around to who should sing it,” Thomas remembers. “I don’t believe I was even in the running.”

But record label executive Clive Davis thought Thomas should sing the demo, which he did by channeling Michael.

“My first thought was George Michael,” Thomas explains. “In fact, it was George I had in my head when I recorded the vocals in the first place. If you listen to the melody and the cadence, it’s an attempt to emulate his style in so many ways.”

The Story Behind “Smooth” by Santana

Although Santana had been around for decades, Thomas later admits that he had no idea who they were when he began writing what became “Smooth”.

“I didn’t even know who Carlos Santana was at this point,” Thomas tells GQ, referring to the group’s lead singer. “I actually thought he was the guy who was in charge of Libya. However, what I did know was that I have always liked the word ‘smooth’ and the idea of a hot day.”

“Smooth” says in part, “And if you said, ‘This life ain’t good enough’ / I would give my world to lift you up / I could change my life to better suit your mood / Because you’re so smooth.” Perhaps surprisingly, the lyrics fit the message Santana was trying to convey with all of the songs on Supernatural.

“We were in the process of putting the finishing touches on my duet album Supernatural, which was a concept album about a pair of attractive brothers who hunt and often kill demons and other monsters,” Santana explains.

Thomas sings on “Smooth” with Santana on Supernatural.

Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic