The Rolling Stones' 'Rock and Roll Circus' — Why It Sat on a Shelf for 28 Years

In December 1968, the Rolling Stones filmed a circus-themed TV special at a London soundstage, stacking the bill with The Who, Jethro Tull, Taj Mahal, and a John Lennon supergroup called The Dirty Mac (with Eric Clapton, Mitch Mitchell, and Keith Richards). The Stones closed the show, but when they watched the playback, they realized The Who had delivered an incendiary performance that made their own set look flat. Mick Jagger later said they felt “outclassed” — so they buried the whole thing.

The film sat in the vaults for nearly three decades, surviving only as grainy bootlegs and feverish rumors. The Stones repeatedly refused to release it, partly out of pride and partly because of legal tangles with the film’s ownership. It wasn’t until 1996 — after the band had negotiated a deal with the aborted project’s producer — that The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus finally saw an official VHS and DVD release. By then, the show had become a holy grail of rock documentation, capturing Lennon’s last major filmed performance before his death in 1980.