Track Listing

1. Rock 'n' Roll Is Dead
2. Circus
3. Beyond The 7th Sky
4. Tunnel Vision
5. Can't Get You Off My Mind
6. Magdalene
7. God Is Love
8. Thin Ice
9. Don't Go And Put A Bullet In Your Head
10. In My Life Today
11. Resurrection

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #48927 in Music
• Released on: 1995-09-11
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
On the opening cut of Lenny Kravitz's Circus, the rock star falls just short of completely writing off his own existence. The song: "Rock and Roll Is Dead", a standard indictment of the fabled rock and roll lifestyle ("You're living for an image...you got five hundred women in your bed"). It's ironic, though, that Kravitz himself has always played rock star to the hilt--not in any gross display of decadence, but rather through his pronounced narcissism and pretentiousness. If rock and roll really is dead, surely the Lenny Kravitzes of the world would have slunk their way into extinction by now.

Kravitz's continued adherence to his ridiculous, often-parodied rock star stance is what makes him--even more than his decidedly retrograde music-- an anachronism. And while bands like Urge Overkill get away with Kravitz-like stud rock because they riff with their tongues firmly planted in their cheeks, Kravitz is all the more difficult to stomach because he's so lacking in irony.

If it's possible to separate the music from the silly rock star that created it (or if you actually dig Kravitz's pose), Circus turns out to be a better-than-average classic rock record. "Magdalene" bursts with as much melody and enthusiasm as Matthew Sweet power-pop; the mid-tempo "Can't Get You Off My Mind" sways like the country-flavoured rock of the 1970s; and "Don't Go and Put a Bullet in Your Head" is driven by a surprisingly non-retro drum machine beat.

Circus is interesting as well for its heavy religious content. Though Kravitz's hippified vision of world harmony goes back to his first single, 1989's "Let Love Rule", never has he sounded more overtly Christian than here on songs like "God Is Love" and "The Resurrection". Traditional Christians might find his mix of sexuality with religion offensive, and secular rock fans might find his beatitudes creepy. Still, if gangster rap or left-wing folk music are valid themes for pop music, there's certainly room as well for Kravitz's religious convictions and positive vibe. --Roni Sarig

Customer Reviews

Only 1 Poor Track
I love this album but the reason I've only given it 4 stars is because I really don't like the track Magdalene. Apart from that all the tracks are Lenny classics and it's a CD you can listen to again & again.

Favourtite tracks: Can't Get You Off My Mind & In My Life Today.

ROCK N ROLL IS DEAD(NOT)
Another good solid rocking album from Kravitz,I like to think of Kravitz as a 'safe bet' artist.If you want an album with good rocking tracks and solid song writing but you are not sure which artist/album to go for, just get a Kravitz album,I've never been disappointed yet and I've got most of 'em.I'm not even into religion but 'God is Love' must surely be the best religious song I've ever heard,very atmospheric.There's maybe no new ground ground covered here,but that's no bad thing in this case.There's something for every one here,from hard rockers to slower tempo yet still upbeat numbers,recommended for the real music enthusiast.Long Live Rock n Roll!.

Fantastic?
My first taste of Lenny Kravitz was his Greatest Hits collection. Whern I bought Circus, I thought it would be exactly like GH, great funk, good rock, songs I'd like to sing.
It opens with Rock And Roll Is Dead. Good. I know this song, I like it [Every time my older brother puts it on, he always screams the 'Oooh yeah!' bit, driving everyone nuts]. Circus was a pretty cool riff. Beyond the 7th Sky and Tunnel Vision I didn't like, because I had no idea what he was singing about. Can't Get You Off My Mind is another great song [though I still think it would have been better if the guitar parts weren't panned into different channels]. Magdalene and Thin Ice are good songs. God Is Love, what the hell was that about?! Don't go And Put a Bullet through You head and the last two songs are OK.
This is mainly a great album, but it'll never beat the style of Greatest Hits. For me anyway.