i am the witch - the anthology

• First-ever complete anthology of hugely collectable early 70s Italian psych/folk/prog band.
• Heavily influenced by early Jefferson Airplane with lead female vocals and English language lyrics.

Fronted by Grace Slick-influenced singer Silvana Aliotta, Circus 2000 formed in Turin, north Italy in late 1969 in an attempt to emulate their British and American psychedelic heroes.

They made their vinyl debut a year later with a self-titled album featuring such superb, quasi-mystical songs as 'Magic Bean', 'The Lord, He Has No Hands' and the dramatic 'I Am The Witch'.

But the band struggled to find an audience, their guitar-led, song-based nature and English language vocals leaving them out of step with the complex, keyboard-based Italian progressive scene flourishing all around them.

After developing a more improvisational, underground-friendly sound on the thriving Italian festival circuit, they returned with a second album, 'An Escape From A Box'.

Now regarded by European psychedelic collectors as their masterpiece, this five-track album welded their original Jefferson Airplane leanings with expansive Pink Floyd-esque arrangements that peaked on Side Two with the epic 'Need' and the spooked, climactic closer 'When The Sun Refuses To Shine'.

Unable to make a commercial impact, the band broke up shortly afterwards, and it would be a couple of decades before Circus 2000's music began to receive the attention that it deserved.

The first-ever complete anthology of their career, ‘I Am The Witch’ naturally includes both of their highly sought-after albums as well as stand-alone singles, alternative versions and tracks that were intended for an aborted third album. Housed in a stylish digipak, it includes a new essay on their history, band quotes and some rare photos.

Tracklisting:

DISC ONE
• I CAN'T BELIEVE
• TRY TO LIVE
• MUST WALK FOREVER
• SUN WILL SHINE
• I JUST CAN'T STAY
• I AM THE WITCH
• MAGIC BEAN
• WHILE YOU'RE SLEEPING
• TRY ALL DAY
• THE LORD, HE HAS NO HANDS
Bonus tracks
• IO LA STREGA (I AM THE WITCH)
• PIOGGIA SOTTILE (I CAN'T BELIEVE)
• I AM THE WITCH
• I CAN'T BELIEVE
• REGALAMI UN SABATO SERA
• HO REGALATO I CAPELLI
1-10 The album Circus 2000, Italian Rifi RFL ST 14049, November 1970
11-12 Italian language single, Italian Rifi RFN NP 16424, November 1970
13-14 English language single, mono Italian Rifi RFN NP 16443, March 1971
15-16 Italian language single, Italian Rifi RFN NP 16444, April 1971
DISC TWO
• HEY MAN
• YOU AREN'T LISTENING
• OUR FATHER
• NEED
• WHEN THE SUN REFUSES TO SHINE
Bonus tracks
• NEED (edited version)
• HEY MAN (Parte 1)
• HEY MAN (Parte 2)
• DOVE VA LA MIA GENTE
• L'ULTIMO PAESE
1-5 The album An Escape From A Box, Italian Rifi RDZ-ST 14215, 1972
6 Jukebox single, Italian Rifi RM JB 98063, 1972
7-8 Single, Italian Rifi RFN NP 16466, May 1972 9-10 Recordings for proposed third album, not originally released