The Rolling Stones's "Rock and Roll Circus": 35 Years Later

It was on this day. 35 years ago, that the Rolling Stones taped their television special "The Rolling Stones's Rock and Roll Circus," which would not be aired until 1996. Mick Jagger had kept it on the shelf because he was dissatisfied with the group's performance. I have it on video. My favorite performances other than the Stones's were from Jethro Tull, who provided a scorching performance of "Song For Jeffrey," the Who with their performance of their mini-opera "A Quick One While He's Away," and the incomparable Taj Mahal with his (that's right, Taj Mahal is a solo artist, not a group) song "Ain't That A Lot of Love."

The Stones themselves were just fine, apart from Brian Jones, who was just plain stoned out of his head and eventually had to be forced out of the very group he started by Jagger and Keith Richards. (For more details on Jones, see my November 10 posting.) Otherwise, I don't see what was wrong with it. Their performance of "Sympathy For the Devil" was the highlight of the show, and it rocked even harder than the recording on Beggar's Banquet. A somewhat sardonic reading of a song that had not yet seen commercial release, "You Can't Always Get What You Want," is also a keeper, as is their take on "Jumpin' Jack Flash."

If you don't own this video, track it down now!