Jorge Santana, a musician and the youngest brother of guitarist Carlos Santana, died of natural causes on Thursday. He was 68.
Carlos Santana announced the death of his brother on his Facebook page on Friday.
“We take time to celebrate the magnificent spirit of our beloved brother Jorge,” Carlos wrote. “He transitioned unto the realm of light that cast no shadow. The eyes of my heart clearly see him right in between our glorious and magnificent mother Josefina and our father Jose.”
Born in Jalisco, Mexico, Santana was the youngest of three brothers and started playing the guitar after Carlos did. When he was 14, Santana began playing the guitar in San Francisco where he joined a high school band called The Malibus in the 1960s. The band later changed its name to Malo, Spanish for “bad.” The new name came from the band’s frontman’s mother who would tell them, “todos ustedes son malos,” meaning “all of you are bad.”
The band went on to sign with Warner Brothers and in 1972, became known for their top 20 hit for the song “Suavecito.” The group would later perform on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand” that same year.
Malo produced three more albums before the band broke up. Santana had also been playing with the New York-based salsa collective Fania All-Stars and got to play at the Yankee Stadium in 1973. Five years later, he released two solo albums, “Jorge Santana” and “It’s All About Love.”
Santana also went on to work with Carlos and his management company as a director of artist relations. In 1993, Santana toured with his famous brother, and the following year they recorded an album, “Santana Brothers,” with their cousin, Carlos Hernandez.
