Viva Carlos
Various Artists
Tone Center

Who: Guitar greats saluting one of their own

Sounds like: electric guitar heaven

Is it any good? I guess the real question to ask is whether or not we need to hear Carlos Santana’s classic material reinterpreted by other guitarists. If your answer is yes, this CD is heaven-sent. Ten giants of jazz, rock and blues guitar—including Pat Martino, Eric Gale, Mike Stern, Frank Gambale and Robben Ford—pay tribute to the superstar six-string slinger by putting their own distinctive individual stamps on “Jingo,” “Oye Como Va,” “Blues for Salvador” and more. Martino is the most subtle, planting a gorgeous “Flor D’Luna (Moonflower)” in the midst of a garden of mostly blazing hot licks, but Albert Lee throws a countryish Telecaster tone onto “Samba Pa Ti” that works very nicely.