Track Listing

1. Mick Jagger's Introduction of Rock & Roll Circus - Mick Jagger
2. Entry of the Gladiators - The Rolling Stones
3. Mick Jagger's Introduction to Jethro Tull - Mick Jagger
4. Song for Jeffrey - Jethro Tull
5. Keith Richard's Introduction of the Who - Keith Richards
6. Quick One, While He's Away - The Who
7. Over the Waves - The Rolling Stones
8. Ain't That a Lot of Love - Taj Mahal
9. Charlie Watts' Introduction of Marianne Faithfull - Charlie Watts
10. Something Better - Marianne Faithfull, Charlie Watts
11. Mick Jagger's and John Lennon's Introduction of the Dirty Mac - Mick Jagger, John Lennon
12. Yer Blues - Dirty Mac, Dirty Mac
13. Whole Lotta Yoko - Dirty Mac, Dirty Mac, Ivry Gitlis, Yoko Ono
14. John Lennon's Introduction of the Rolling Stones/Jumpin' Jack Flash - John Lennon
15. Parachute Woman - The Rolling Stones
16. No Expectations - The Rolling Stones
17. You Can't Always Get What You Want - The Rolling Stones
18. Sympathy for the Devil - The Rolling Stones
19. Salt of the Earth - The Rolling Stones

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #43218 in Music
• Released on: 2000-01-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Dimensions: .33 pounds

From Amazon.com
Conceived in late-'60s London, this literal three-ring would-be "television spectacular" featuring the Stones and a select cadre of friends and associates became (along with the Beach Boys' Smile album and Bob Dylan's Albert Hall concert) one of the era's greatest unreleased projects. When it finally surfaced in the late '90s, those overinflated expectations all but guaranteed it a tepid response. Legend has it that the Stones originally nixed it because they felt overshadowed by the Who, but it's likely the shelving had more to do with the band's then-unsettled state of affairs. The Stones' raw, powerful set here both bridges the first Stones era with what was essentially the swan song of band's ill-fated cofounder Brian Jones, who would be fired for ongoing substance-abuse problems. (That really took some doing in a band that also featured Keith Richards!) Also notable is the one-time-only teaming of John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Richards, and Jimi Hendrix Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell (as "The Dirty Mac") for a long, loud, and lugubrious workout of Lennon's "White Album" standout "Yer Blues." --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Sheer Class
They are the two words that best describe this album. From the introduction by Mick Jagger to the final chords of "Salt of the earth", you really feel like you are in London in 1968. The stand out tracks are Jethro Tulls "A song for geoffrey", The Dirty Macs "Yer Blues"(better than the original) and the Rolling stones "You cant always get what you want" and "Sympathy for the devil", but as with every CD of this nature there is one terrible song and that is Yoko Ono's "Whole lotto Yoko" i mean the instrumentation in it is fabulous but the "vocals" are terrible all she does is sceech all the way through the song, even the normally terrible Marianne Faithful is quite exceptional on this. The Who are the exciting live band that they always have been and do not let the recording down performing one there best "A quick one while he is away". I was also surprised at how good Taj Mahal were, i hadnt really heard anything by them but they are very good and a welcome addition to the record.The Rolling stones take up the bulk of this recording and they do not let down, opening of course with the speed and livliness of "Jumpin Jack Flash" but then going into slower tracks such as "Parachute Woman" and "You cant always get what you want", before playing the epic "Sympathy for the devil" before finally ending with the mellowed out "Salt of the earth" with Keith Richards lending a hand in vocals. Basically if you dont mind listening to Yoko Ono screech for 5 mins then this album is for you, it is sheer class and personally i think that it is worth it for every other song on it, as they are supurb

What an absolute GEM
What a gem of an album. Starting with a stand-out Jethro Tull track with Ian Anderson at the top of his form on Song for Jeffrey, this album promises, and then delivers, great things. The Who are as ever a great live band and I was surprised by both the Taj Mahal and Marianne Faithful tracks - not expecting a lot but getting a great deal. The Dirty Mac is a great name for a one-off Supergroup and their track is up to expectations as is their backing for the awful Yoko screams. The Stones then finish off with a powerful set - what else could you expect? What I had not expected was the greatest performance I have ever heard of my favourite Stones track ever - Sympathy For The Devil. It was worth buying this album for that performance alone. Even the Yoko screams cannot stop me awarding this album (which I had never heard of until mentioned recently by Brian Matthew on 'Sounds of the Sixties') the full rating of 5 stars. Brilliant.

Underrated and under-listened
Don't be put off by the lacklustre cover image, strange title, or the fact that this album was only released in 1996. It is instantly clear that this is a fantastic live album; including some great performances all round, and which overall should have originally been released at the end of the 60's, but was dropped for reasons which are still shrouded in mystery. I would hazard a guess that had it been released as originally planned, it would by now have equalled the greatness achieved by "Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!" Whilst it may feature quite a bit of post-production here and there (for example, the over-dubbing on Jethro Tull's "A Song for Jeffrey", which makes it sound very similar to the studio version), you still very much get the raw sense of passionate atmosphere and excitement that resounds from everything.

There is a great range of musical talents exemplified here apart from just the Stones, everything from Marianne Faithfull (whose song is quite kitsch, but also beautiful) to Taj Mahal (an excellently rocking performance) and The Who, who apparently were so good during "A Quick One, While He's Away" that the Stones felt they had been overshadowed. However, they instantly show they are more than capable, giving one of the best renditions of "Sympathy for the Devil" to be found anywhere, as well as an early performance of "You Can't Always Get What You Want". Of special note is the short-lived "supergroup" of The Dirty Mac, comprised of John Lennon, Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix Experience), Eric Clapton (Cream) and Keith Richards. Together they performed "Yer Blues" from The Beatles White Album, which frankly is probably slightly better than the original. The weakest point of the show is easily the follow-up track "Whole Lotta Yoko", though featuring some good instrumental semi-improvisation from The Dirty Mac is ruined by the sound of Yoko Ono wailing for about two minutes.

For the most part, this is simply a trip back in time. It has the same quality of The Who's seminal "Live at Leeds", which makes you feel like you are almost there in the crowd. If you want a live album that shows off not just The Rolling Stones at the top of their form, but also a nice selection of other artists from the period, you can look no further than the Rock and Roll Circus. You might have heard of Piccadilly Circus, but this is something in a different league.