On the Scene with Benny Rietveld

Musician Benny Rietveld is Dutch-Indonesian by birth, but Hawaii is where he grew up. He played his first paid gig at the age of 12 and worked his way up until he was good enough to work with some of the major jazz groups that passed through the islands. But “good enough” wasn’t good enough.

Rietveld moved to San Francisco in 1983, joined Sheila E.’s band in 1984, played in the movie “Krush Groove” in 1985, and then worked with Miles Davis. He spent several years with Santana in the early 1990s and has been the group’s bassist and musical director since 1997. Rietveld also plays in the “classic lineup” when Carlos Santana reunites with the other surviving members.

Rietveld, 58, returns to Hawaii with Santana for a one-nighter April 30 at Blaisdell Arena.

JOHN BERGER: When Santana was here last year I noticed a Hawaiian melody in your bass solo. Do you have a favorite or do you switch it out?

BENNY RIETVELD: Sometimes I do “Waimanalo Blues,” sometimes I do “Kaulana Na Pua” or “Ku‘u Home O Kahalu‘u.” Those are specifically very important songs, especially “Waimanalo Blues,” which is one of the songs I grew up with.

JB: What’s next for you and Santana?

BR: We’re recording another album. It’s in its developmental stage now and Carlos’ recording sessions are like probably nobody else’s. We were with (producer) Rick Rubin in Malibu and tracked about 24 songs in a week. Some were jams and some were just moods and ambient. Part of the ethos is getting back to stuff that’s grittier and has just more soulfulness to it because we figured that’s what the world needs right now.

JB: Going back to the beginning, what attracted you to the bass?

BR: Like a lot of bass players, I kind of fell into it. I started playing drums with my cousin, (guitarist) Fred Schreuders. We had a little rock trio, and our bass player left. We didn’t know any other musicians except another drummer, so we decided that we’d get him and I’d play bass. That’s how it happened.

“On the Scene” appears weekly in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Sunday Magazine. Reach John Berger at jberger@staradvertiser.com.