Carlos Santana didn’t always worry too much about wooing the pop charts. He and his band Santana delivered a few hit singles here and there, but usually when the audience met them at their fusion-loving ways.
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On the 1981 song “Winning”, Santana covered a song by one of rock’s finest writers-for-hire. And it put the band back in the Top 20 for the first time in a decade.
Crafty Carlos
Santana hit the scene in 1969 with a thrilling debut album that arrived just weeks after the band wowed the crowd at Woodstock. Carlos Santana’s guitar-playing took center stage, along with the outstanding instrumental interplay that emerged from the band’s jam sessions.
The lyrics were almost an afterthought on Santana records. And yet they delivered four Top 20 singles from their first three albums. That well started to dry up as Carlos Santana himself pursued musical excursions that drifted far from the contemporary pop scene.
These flights of fancy didn’t always sit well with the music executives, who were always looking for a hit. But Santana still sold a lot of albums and shone as a touring act. And then, when people least expected it, came “Winning”, easily one of the most pop-friendly songs the band ever recorded.
A Ballard Boost
Glen Ballard made an impact on the rock and roll scene as a member of the band Argent in the early 70s. He sang on the band’s hit “Hold Your Head Up”. But it was his writing that would eventually set him apart in the rock world. By the early 80s, he was collaborating regularly with artists in search of a radio smash.
Ballard released some solo albums after leaving Argent, one of which included the song “Winning”. Santana did their own version of it on the album Zebop! in 1981. Carlos Santana’s guitar work is exquisite on the song, but lead singer Alex Ligertwood steals the show on the song with his towering vocals.
Santana released two other songs as singles from the Zebop! album before giving “Winning” a chance. It was a case of third time’s a charm, as the song took off on the radio. It made it to No. 17, the band’s biggest hit since 1971.
Behind the Lyrics of “Winning”
“Winning” features some of Ballard’s sharply written lyrics, with lines that you remember easily, smoothly locked into a standout melody. The song piles on the misfortune for the narrator. “You know and one day I was one of life losers,” Ligertwood sings. “Even my friends were my accusers.”
Over and over, fate batters this poor sap. “I had a dream but it turned to dust,” he explains. “And what I thought was love that must have been lust.” He can’t even count on his timing. “Too bad it belonged to me,” he laments. “It was the wrong time and not meant to be.”
And yet, at the end of it all, he somehow prevails. “I’m winning,” Ligertwood belts. “And I don’t intend on losing again.” The sentiment likely felt relatable to Carlos Santana. His pop-star fortunes turned on a dime the moment “Winning” hit the airwaves.
Photo by Christian Rose/Roger Viollet via Getty Images
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