Santana Once Teamed Up With Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger…And We Really, Really Liked It

Pair United For Hottest Song Of 2003

Released in 2002 to great fanfare, Carlos Santana’s Shaman saw the rock icon working closely with the music industry’s best and brightest for his eighteenth studio album; from a return appearance from “Smooth” collaborator Rob Thomas to Spanish opera legend Plácido Domingo, Shaman left no stone unturned when it came to the level of musical mastery showcased in its 16 tracks. With 4 singles to its name, Shaman’s crown jewel proved to be “Why Don’t You & I” – the collaboration between Santana and Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger that yielded not one but two versions of the same song, as fears of Kroeger appearing on a major single hindering excitement for Nickelback’s 2003 album The Long Road prevented Kroeger’s version from being released that summer as planned.

Fun Fact: This wasn’t the first time Santana enlisted Kroeger’s help. The two would again collaborate in 2007 for Santana’s compilation album Ultimate Santana, joining forces once again for lead single “Into the Night”.

Re-recorded as a single with The Calling’s Alex Band on vocals, “Why Don’t You & I” as performed with Chad Kroeger on vocals ultimately saw the light of day on Shaman and while we’ve always liked the single featuring Band’s vocals, we’ll admit: Kroeger brings something special to the song and while we may not be the biggest Nickelback fans, there’s no denying that Santana absolutely knew what he was doing when he enlisted Kroeger’s help for this track. Check it out in the audio below!