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Cindy Blackman Santana–Give the Drummer SomeOver the course of her incredible three-decade career, virtuoso drummer CindyBlackman Santana has proved that there isn’t a single genre of music she can’t master,nor is there a musician she can’t swingwith.Even a cursory glance at her resumereveals such names as Lenny Kravitz, Ron Carter, Bill Laswell, Joss Stone, WallaceRoney, Buckethead,Angela Bofill, Vernon Reid, Jack Bruce, and as they say, the listgoes on.For the past decade, she’s been a mainstay on the drummer’s throne forthe bandSantana, led by her guitariconhusband, Carlos Santana. One might assume that theirpassion for music thatblurs genre labels andbreaksdown barriers is a bond theyshare, and Blackman Santana answers in the affirmative: “Absolutely. Both Carlos and Ibelieve that any kind of music can be great music. Whether it’s rock or jazz, blues orLatin,or anything else in-between,music can raise people’s consciousness. And asmusicians, there’s so many colors to paintwith. Why not use them all?”On her astonishing new solo album,Give the Drummer Some, Blackman Santanadoes just that. Throughout the record’s 17 tracks,which featuresan eye-popping host ofguitar titan guest stars (Carlos Santana,MahavishuOrchestra legendJohn McLaughlin,Living Colour’s Vernon Reid and Metallica’s Kirk Hammett),she takes listenersonanexuberant,compellingand beautifully sustainedmusicaljourneythat will leave thembreathless. “For this album, if I had any kind of agenda at all, it wasto be all-encompassing,” she says “Pop, funk, rock, jazz–I embrace the creativity in all of it, andI feel so inspired when I play it. That’s what I wanted people to feel when they listen tothe album–inspired.”Anybody expectingbravura drumming will be richly rewarded,asGive the DrummerSomefeatures impeccable stickwork throughout–Blackman Santana evendoes adizzying jazz solo turn on “Mother Earth.” But the major reveal of the record is a secretweapon she’s been hiding, and as it turns out, it’s one of her strongest assets: herbrilliant singing voice. On a number of standout cuts–the deliciously vibey“Everybody’s Dancin’,” the party jam doozy “She’s Got it Goin’ On’”andespecially onthe stunning rock-funk reinventionof John Lennon’s beloved classic, “Imagine”