Black Magic Woman Guitar Lesson (Santana)

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Black Magic Woman Santana Guitar Lesson + Tutorial
Today let’s dive into a “Black Magic Woman” guitar lesson. "Black Magic Woman" is a song that has captivated music lovers for decades. It started with Peter Green and the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac.
But the song found its true magic in the hands of Santana, becoming one of his most iconic and beloved tracks.
In this post, I’ll break it down for you step-by-step. So make sure you’re tuned up, and let’s get started!
Who is Black Magic Woman originally by?
"Black Magic Woman" was originally written and recorded by the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac. The song was released as a single in 1968 and was included on their album English Rose in the United Kingdom.
But Santana's cover of "Black Magic Woman" is undoubtedly the most famous and well-known version of the song. It was included on his 1970 album titled Abraxas and released as a single. Santana's interpretation of the song took a different direction from the original Fleetwood Mac version, infusing it with their signature Latin rock sound.
Carlos Santana's mesmerizing guitar work became the centerpiece of the track. His distinctive playing style, blending rock, blues, and Latin influences, brought a fresh and captivating energy to "Black Magic Woman."
Santana's rendition of "Black Magic Woman" received significant radio airplay and climbed high on the charts, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. The song's success helped propel the "Abraxas" album to great heights, cementing Santana's place in the music industry and earning them widespread acclaim.
To this day, Santana's version of "Black Magic Woman" remains an iconic and influential track.
Black Magic Woman Chords
To play “Black Magic Woman” you’ll only need to know 4 chords Dm, Am, Gm, and A7.
The progression for “Black Magic Woman” is 12-bars long. Each chord starts off lasting 2 bars.
Dm (2 bars)
Am (2 bars)
Then we do the same thing again but trade out the Am for Gm like this:
Dm (2 bars)
Gm (2 bars)
After this, we get to the final 4 bars. Here we have a bar of Dm, then a bar of A7, and then we’ll finish with 2 bars of Dm like this:
Dm (1 bar)
A7 (1 bar)
Dm (2 bars)
These last 4 bars function like a turnaround progression. The rate of chord changes gets a little quicker and this puts a button on the progression.
Altogether it goes like this:
Dm (2 bars)
Am (2 bars)
Dm (2 bars)
Gm (2 bars)
Dm (1 bar)
A7 (1 bar)
Dm (2 bars)
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[@jonmaclennan]

👉Discover the 5 MUST-KNOW chords and scales to play in ANY style anywhere on the neck FREE PDF GUIDE→ www.jonmaclennan.com/fretboardguide

[@rickforliberty2174]

One of my favorite licks ever, what made me want to pick up a guitar waaaay back.

[@2309612]

Note for note with feeling phrasing….Jon nails it yet again. Best teacher on the net.

[@sideman7117]

I’m gonna have to quit watching these videos. You give me too many new things to work on. I can’t keep up! 😊

[@johnc4480]

Great lesson of one of my favorite old songs! You have some of the best lessons on youtube, Jon. Thanks

[@BlpBud]

A great one from a boomer fan to stay out of the dreaded rut! Great technique builder.

[@davelackey5943]

Another oldie, but a goodie now just listening to it. I can actually try it. The hybrid picking is a problem yet. I’ll work on that.

[@johnwilliams3197]

John, I love your videos. They are enlightening and educational. Please continue to post these great videos. Thanks a lot.

[@hpelisr]

Nice job Jon, I will do more work on this one, so thanks.

[@nelsonvu1220]

Can you teach the last part solo for this song please 🙏I love this song! The way you teach it is very easy for me to learn. Thanks

[@daverench2327]

Excellent breakdown!

[@dyingforpie6879]

Just found your channel- loving it thanks

[@thomassawyer6523]

Sounds awesome, but I have a difficulty with those massive bends at around 5:00 onward - you seem to do that so easy - what guage strings did you use for string 1 (8, 9 (Slinky's, D'Addario, ?????). Subscribed.

[@kerryfromaj9032]

That’s a good one Jon, really nice lesson. How would we learn the Peter Green version? Do you have any suggestions? Thanks again.

[@RobertPickeringBucketList69]

Great stuff! Could you please tell us how you got that sound?

[@capricorn1971ad]

I hate to have to tell you but this song wasn't by Carlos Santana, it was by Fleetwood Mac.

[@Pilot141]

It was, however this is on the more popular Santana cover

[@capricorn1971ad]

@Pilot141 little more than a zerox copy really. I like the original better.

[@BHK0000]

I’m here out of appreciation I don’t even play the guitar

[@stevehillsdon5956]

Not Santana but Fleetwood Mac!

[@Decapitorr]

its so annoying santana stole everything from peter green, nobody even heard of peter green

[@psych336]

Seriously? No one’s heard of Peter Green? The founder of Fleetwood Mac, that is in the rock and roll hall of fame? People have definitely heard of him. Santana stole everything from Peter green? Where are you getting that from? They were friends and Santana has always credited Peter Green.