Cherry Red's Grapefruit imprint has invited listeners to join the Circus.  The Italian band Circus 2000 is the subject of I Am the Witch: The Anthology, a 2-CD set containing both of the Jefferson Airplane-esque group's albums, originally released in 1970 and 1972, plus singles, alternate mixes, and tracks intended for a never-completed third LP.

Circus 2000's charismatic lead singer, Silvana Aliotta, had successfully transitioned from a precocious teenage pop singer to a rock frontwoman as the 1960s turned to the 1970s.  She teamed with an existing band called either Genius or Best Genius - recollections vary - to form Circus 2000.  Guitarist Marcello "Spooky" Quartarone, bassist Gianni Bianco, and drummer Roberto "Johnny" Betti were inspired by the American sounds of Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Vanilla Fudge, Blood, Sweat and Tears, and Otis Redding.  The band members' jazz backgrounds gave them a tight, intricate sound, but rather than emulate the keyboard-driven sounds of Italian progressive rock, they made the choice to perform in English and put Quartarone's guitar out front.  Another key decision was to keep all of the songs on their 1970 self-titled debut album relatively short (all under four minutes) to emphasize the well-constructed melodic hooks.  With the full-throated Aliotta on lead vocals, Jefferson Airplane comparison were inevitable, though Circus 2000 more closely resembled the band's early days rather than their post-Volunteers style.  ("Magic Bean," for one, comes across as a sideways rewrite of "White Rabbit.")  Their own style shone most brightly on "I Am the Witch," the title track of the anthology.  It's an appropriately eerie psych-rock rave-up.

Disc 1 of Grapefruit's set has the full LP plus a complement of bonus tracks including the Italian language versions of "I Am the Witch" and the haunting "I Can't Believe;" the English language mono single versions of both songs; and another non-LP single sung in Italian on which they experimented with brass in the BS&T mold.

David Wells' comprehensive liner notes inform us that Circus 2000 shared a bill in 1971 with the likes of Manfred Mann and The Pretty Things as well as jazz organist Jimmy Smith and in 1972 with Argent and the embryonic Electric Light Orchestra.  1972 would see the release of the band's second album, An Escape from a Box, and the introduction of new drummer Franco "Dede" Lo Previte.  The title was an accurate one, as Circus 2000 declined to be boxed into one particular style.  This time, they leaned into the progressive milieu they had largely eschewed on their debut album, letting the songs extend in length and improvisation, with ample soloing.  The lack of the compact structures and clear hooks might have helped Escape earn an underground audience but held Circus 2000 back from much commercial success.

Disc 2's presentation of Escape adds the single edit of "Need" (one of just two songs on Side 2 of the original album), the single version of opening cut "Hey Man" in two parts, and two more tracks recorded in Italian for a proposed third LP that never materialized.  The collection does not include four tracks released in Turkey ("Exotic Nights" b/w "Il Rosso" and "Manana" b/w "Little Bitty Pretty One") and credited to Circus 2000 which the band members confirm were the work of a counterfeit outfit.  The band dissolved after a brief period in which they backed a solo Silvana.  She continued her association with Circus 2000's label home of Rifi Records; Marcello Quarterone and Roberto Betti went on to play together in a band called Living Life before opening a recording studio in Turin, Italy.

Circus 2000 may be destined to remain a footnote in any prog-rock history, but the material on I Am the Witch proves that they're indeed worthy of discovery today.  The collection's two discs are housed in a six-panel digipak.  The 24-page book has compilation producer David Wells' notes along with numerous photos and memorabilia images.  It's out now from Cherry Red and Grapefruit at the links below.

Circus 2000, I Am the Witch: The Anthology (Cherry Red/Grapefruit CRSEG127D, 2023) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. I Can't Believe
2. Try to Live
3. Must Walk Forever
4. Sun Will Shine
5. I Just Can't Stay
6. I Am the Witch
7. Magic Bean
8. While You're Sleeping
9. Try All Day
10. The Lord, He Has No Hands
11. Io La Strega (I Am the Witch)
12. Pioggia Sottile (I Can't Believe)
13. I Am the Witch (Mono Single Version)
14. I Can't Believe (Mono Single Version)
15. Regalami Un Sabato Sera
16. Ho Regalato I Capelli

CD 2

1. Hey Man
2. You Aren't Listening
3. Our Father
4. Need
5. When the Sun Refuses to Shine
6. Need (Edited Version)
7. Hey Man (Part I)
8. Hey Man (Part II)
9. Dove Va La Mia Gente
10. L'Ultimo Paese

CD 1, Tracks 1-10 from Circus 2000, Rifi RFL ST 14049, 1970
CD 1, Tracks 11-12 from Rifi single RFN NP 16424, 1970
CD 1, Tracks 13-14 from Rifi RFN NP 16443, 1971
CD 1, Tracks 15-16 from Rifi single RFN NP 16444, 1971
CD 2, Tracks 1-5 from An Escape from a Room, Rifi RDZ ST 14215, 1972
CD 2, Track 6 from Rifi jukebox single RM JB 98063, 1972
CD 2, Tracks 7-8 from Rifi single RFN NP 16466, 1972
CD 2, Tracks 9-10 first issued on Boxing Circus (Rare and Unreleased), Akarma CD AK 2014, 1999