Carlos Santana adds spring dates to Vegas residency

Carlos Santana has unveiled the next set of dates for his "Supernatural Santana - A Trip through the Hits" engagement, which continues to run at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is signed on to perform about 36 shows per year at the casino, and will return with 11 dates next month, kicking off Feb. 3, and again in April and early May for another eight shows. Details are included at right.

Santana will be joined onstage by the same crew that has backed him throughout the last year--Karl Perazzo (timbales), Benny Rietveld (bass), Dennis Chambers (drums), Raul Rekow (congas), Andy Vargas (vocals), Tony Lindsay (vocals), Tommy Anthony (rhythm guitar), Jeff Cressman (trombone) and Bill Ortiz (trumpet)--with recent addition Freddie Ravel stepping in for Chester Thompson on keyboards. The shows will continue to take place on a set designed by the same production team that designed Madonna's 2008-2009 "Sticky & Sweet" tour set.

The Vegas performances feature a broad selection of tracks from throughout Santana's career, reaching back to the legendary guitarist's first charting single, 1969's "Jingo." Tickets start at $51. Visit Santana's website for more information.

Santana's most recent studio release, "All That I Am," surfaced in 2005. The album debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200 chart, moving more than 140,000 copies in its first week on store shelves.

Santana recently expanded his creative impulses into the culinary world, opening Maria Maria, a chain of upscale Mexican restaurants, with chef Roberto Santibanez. The chain currently boasts locations in Austin, TX, and Tempe, AZ, along with three Northern California outlets: Danville, Walnut Creek and Mill Valley.