Santana has was an avenue named after him as well as a statue of a guitar in the city where he was born (born in Autlán de Navarro, Jalisco, México) to honour him. The family moved from there to Tijuana In La Calonia Libertad, the city on Mexico's border with California, and then San Francisco, USA. Carlos stayed in Tijuana but joined his family in San Francisco later and graduated from James Lick Middle School and Mission High School there.
Most of his musical career has been spent with Santana, the band he formed in San Francisco in 1967. His music underwent large changes in 1973 when he was introduced to the spiritual leader Sri Chinmoy, by fellow guitarist "Mahavishnu" John McLaughlin. After this he adopted the title "Devadip" which he still uses. In 1998 he formed the Milagro Foundation along with his wife Deborah, which supports disadvantaged children. Later Carlos and Deborah divorced, but the Milagro Foundation is still alive and well.
Other huge influences of Carlos Santana are both Miles Davis (with whom he maintained a big personal connection), and John Coltrane, who unfortunately passed away in 1967.
Winning
Carlos Santana Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When I needed a hand
And it couldn't be found
I was so far down
That I couldn't get up
You know and
One day I was one of life's losers
Even my friends were my ac-cus-ers
Lost before I'd begun
I had a dream
But it turned to dust
What I thought was love
That must have been lust
I was living in style
When the walls fell in
When I played my hand
I looked like a joker
Turn around
Fate must have woke her
'Cause lady luck she was
Waiting outside the door
Chorus:
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
And I don't intend on losing again
Too bad it belonged to me
It was the wrong time
And I meant to be
It took a long time
And I knew for now
I can see the day
That I breath for
Friends agree there's a need
To play the game
And to win again
Chorus:
(repeat first line 5x's)
(repeat last line 4x's)
Repeat Verse II
Chorus:
(repeat first line 5x's)
The lyrics of Carlos Santana's song Winning is an ultimate expression of victory after a long period of struggle. The artist shares his story of being a loser and facing difficult times where he had no one to turn to. However, he opens up that he always had his dreams to hold on to, but as he progressed, they shattered, and he was defeated. He once lived in luxury, but soon everything fell apart, and he was just a jester in the game of life.
Despite the challenges, he was fortunate enough to have fate on his side, and with a twist of destiny, he found his way back to his feet. The chorus of the song reflects his triumphant state of mind after all that he had gone through. He says, "I'm winning, and I don't intend on losing again, " expressing his confidence and determination not to let any obstacle break him in the future.
Santana reminds us that everyone goes through tough times; however, it's important to keep holding on to your dreams, and with a little bit of luck, your time will come. The song is an uplifting message to keep a positive mindset and never give up, no matter how impossible the odds may seem.
Line by Line Meaning
One day I was on the ground
I was in a difficult situation
When I needed a hand
When I needed help
And it couldn't be found
No one could help me
I was so far down
I was in a state of despair
That I couldn't get up
I couldn't overcome my problems
You know and
You understand what I'm saying
One day I was one of life's losers
I was unsuccessful in life
Even my friends were my ac-cus-ers
My friends blamed me for my failures
And in my head
I was mentally struggling
Lost before I'd begun
I felt like a failure before even starting
I had a dream
I had a goal
But it turned to dust
But it didn't work out
What I thought was love
What I believed was love
That must have been lust
Actually was just lust
I was living in style
I was living comfortably
When the walls fell in
When everything went wrong
When I played my hand
When I made my move
I looked like a joker
I looked like a fool
Turn around
Things changed
Fate must have woke her
Luck must have changed
'Cause lady luck she was
Luck was on my side
Waiting outside the door
Opportunities were waiting for me
Chorus:
Refrain
I'm winning
I am succeeding
And I don't intend on losing again
And I am determined to never fail again
Too bad it belonged to me
It's unfortunate that it happened to me
It was the wrong time
It was not the right moment
And I meant to be
And I was destined to be
It took a long time
It took a while
And I knew for now
And I knew that it was temporary
I can see the day
I can envision the future
That I breath for
That I live for
Friends agree there's a need
Friends acknowledge the importance
To play the game
To engage in life
And to win again
And to succeed once more
Chorus:
Refrain
(repeat first line 5x's)
(repeat the first line of the refrain 5 times)
(repeat last line 4x's)
(repeat the last line of the refrain 4 times)
Repeat Verse II
Repeat the second verse
Chorus:
Refrain
(repeat first line 5x's)
(repeat the first line of the refrain 5 times)
Contributed by Jack J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@KeithElliott
One day I was on the ground
When I needed a hand
Then it couldn't be found
I was so far down that I couldn't get up
You know and one day I was one of life's losers
Even my friends were my accusers
In my head I lost before I begun
I had a dream but it turned to dust
And what I thought was love
That must have been lust
I was living in style
When the walls fell in
And when I played my hand
I looked like a joker
Turn around fate must have woke her
'Cause lady luck she was waiting outside the door
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
And I don't intend on losing again
Too bad it belonged to me
It was the wrong time and not meant to be
It took a long time and I'm new born now
I can see the day that I bleed for
If it's agreed that there's a need
To play the game and to win again
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
And I don't intend on losing again
I had a dream but it turned to dust
And what I thought was love
That must have been lust
I was living in style
When the walls fell in
And when I played my hand
I looked like a joker
Turn around fate must have woke her
'Cause lady luck she was waiting outside the door
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
I'm winning
And I don't intend on losing again
@zenmasterjay1
Long-lost Santana superhit right here. Only deep classic rock afficianados ever hear this one anymore! Congrats! That's you!
@Jeff-lu9wi
long lost? Hardly
@bobsmith-no4od
Are you calling me an old fart? Thank you
@lindamcpeek4253
I was there at the Forum Copenhagen on September 29, 1981! He played 1 whole hour extra! The whole crowd was on their feet. Best concert of my Life! SANTANA Forever! ❤🎸💙🤗❤️☮️🙏
@mrslabbulkhead
This is on the playlist at Lowes right now, I literally heard it when I was shopping today.
@garyjimenez3690
Love this song
@carlgrahangahan3418
If you're listening to this song you're winning
@ebayerr
Charlie Sheen, "Winning". :)
@eddieBoxer
I'm not listening to this song I'm losing.
@robyncoy7973
TRUTH!