Love, Devotion, Surrender
Carlos Santana And John McLaughlin
Columbia, 1973
REVIEW BY: David Bowling
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 02/25/2026
Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin have been two of the best and most influential guitarists walking this earth for over a half century.
Still, they would seem to have little in common. One fuses jazz and Eastern Mysticism while the other is rooted is Latin American rock rhythms. However, their paths crossed a little over 50 years ago when they combined to produce an album titled 
Love, Devotion, Surrender. Their union may not have always been successful, but it was interesting in many respects.
Love, Devotion, Surrender is an album of five tracks, three of which are John Coltrane covers. “Naima” is an acoustic piece with Santana driving the rhythms and McLaughlin riffing in the background. “A Love Supreme” is a vehicle for the two guitarists to trade solos. As the first track, it sets the tone for much of what will follow. “A Love Divine” is in many ways over nine minutes of Santana and McLaughlin trying to pull each other in different directions with improvisation and riffing in the background.
“Meditation” is a McLaughlin composition and may be the oddest track in which Carlos Santana ever participated. It is a typical McLaughlin exploration of Indian mysticism. McLaughlin doodles on the piano, while Santana tries his best to interject some Latin rhythms into the mix. It is a constant push-pull on the part of the two artists.
The last track is a sprawling 16-minute version of the traditional gospel song “Let Us Go Into The House Of The Lord.” It provides a vehicle for extended riffing.
Love, Devotion, Surrender is a brave attempt to fuse two different musical approaches that do not necessarily always fit together well. It is ultimately an album that is only for hard-core fans of the two artists involved.