The Dirty Mac was a name given by

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

to a temporary

supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to: * Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields * Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry * Supergroup ...

he organised in December 1968 that featured Eric Clapton,

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943), often referred to during the 1960s and 1970s as "Keith Richard", is an English musician and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-princi ...

Mitch Mitchell John Graham "Mitch" Mitchell (9 July 194612 November 2008)In his book about the Experience, Mitchell states he celebrated his 21st birthday while on tour on 9 July 1967, which makes his birth year 1946.Mitchell's obituaries in '' Billboard' '' ...

and himself (as "Winston Leg-Thigh"). The band assembled for a one-off performance on

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

' TV special titled ''

The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus ''The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus'' was a concert show organised by the Rolling Stones on 11–12 December 1968. The show was filmed on a makeshift circus stage with Jethro Tull, The Who, Taj Mahal, Marianne Faithfull, and The Rolling S ...

''. The Dirty Mac played Lennon's

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

composition "

Yer Blues "Yer Blues" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as "the White Album"). Though credited to Lennon–McCartney, the song was written and composed by John Lennon during the Beatle ...

" and "Whole Lotta Yoko", an extended blues improvisation in which they were joined by Lennon's wife

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

and violinist

Ivry Gitlis Ivry Gitlis ( he, עברי גיטליס;‎ 25 August 1922 – 24 December 2020) was an Israeli virtuoso violinist and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. He performed with the world's top orchestras, including the London Philharmonic, New York Philh ...

. The TV special, which included appearances by the Rolling Stones,

the Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

and Jethro Tull, among others, did not air as originally planned and was not released officially until October 1996. Lennon and Clapton later appeared together on the first

Plastic Ono Band The Plastic Ono Band was a rock band formed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969 for their collaborative and solo projects based on their 1968 Fluxus conceptual art project of the same name. Lennon and Ono began a personal and artistic relati ...

album, ''

Live Peace in Toronto 1969 ''Live Peace in Toronto 1969'' is a live album by the Plastic Ono Band, released in December 1969 on Apple Records. Recorded at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival festival, it was the first live album released by any member of the Beatles separa ...

'', which also includes a performance of "Yer Blues".

Overview

Recorded on 11–12 December 1968, ''The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus'' was the first time since the formation of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

that Lennon – who was still in the group – had performed in public without them. Aside from singing "

All You Need Is Love "All You Need Is Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in July 1967. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The song was Britain's contribution ...

" live on the 1967 '' Our World'' TV special, it was also the first time he had performed live since the Beatles' final tour ended in August 1966. Before the performance, Lennon was filmed chatting with

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

while eating a bowl of noodles. He listed the other members of the Dirty Mac by their proper names but introduced himself as "Winston Leg-Thigh". The Dirty Mac performed a rendition of Lennon's Beatles track "

". They then went on to back up

and violinist

on "Whole Lotta Yoko", essentially an extended blues jam with Ono's improvised free-form vocalisations. The band's name, thought of by Lennon, was a play on that of

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their eponym ...

. When asked what type of guitar amp he wanted to use for the performance, Lennon answered: "One that plays." In 1996, the '' Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus'' album was issued, concurrently with the home video of the event. The DVD edition followed in October 2004. Fifteen years later, a limited US remastered theatrical release of the film ran during the first week of April 2019, in conjunction with the North American leg of the Rolling Stones'

No Filter Tour The No Filter Tour was a European/North American concert tour by the Rolling Stones which began on 9 September 2017 in Hamburg, Germany. The tour was scheduled to conclude in 2020 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour ...

. A remaster (4-disc and 3LP vinyl) reissue box set followed on 7 June 2019.

Members

(of

) – vocals, rhythm guitar * Eric Clapton (of the then recently dissolved

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

) – lead guitar *

(of

) – bass *

(of

the Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

) – drums Additional musicians on "Whole Lotta Yoko" *

– vocals *

– violin

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dirty Mac, The English hard rock musical groups English blues rock musical groups British supergroups Rock music supergroups John Lennon Musical groups established in 1968 Blues rock groups