''Circus'' was a monthly American magazine devoted to

rock music Rock is a Music genre, genre of popular music that originated in the United States as "rock and roll" in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of styles from the mid-1960s, primarily in the United States and the United Kingdo ...

. It was published from October 1966 to May 2006. The magazine had a full-time editorial staff that were prolific in rock journalism, such as Paul Nelson, Judy Wieder,

David Fricke David Fricke (born ) is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 ye ...

, and

Kurt Loder Kurt Loder (born May 5, 1945) is an American entertainment critic, author, columnist and television personality. He served in the 1980s as editor at ''Rolling Stone'', during a tenure that ''Reason'' later called "legendary". He has contributed ...

. It rivaled ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' in sales and surpassed ''

Creem ''Creem'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American rock music magazine and entertainment company, founded in Detroit, whose initial print run lasted from 1969 to 1989. It was first published in March 1969 by Barry Kramer and founding editor ...

''. In 1974, a sister publication was launched, titled ''Circus Raves'', and by 1977 that venture had been merged into ''Circus'' magazine, making ''Circus'' a biweekly publication. Gerald Rothberg originally published the magazine under the name ''Hullabaloo'' in 1966 (23 issues), before changing the name to ''Circus'' in 1969. In its early years it covered

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

acts like

the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...

and

Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in Flint, Michigan, in 1969 by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica), Don Brewer (drums, vocals) and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved pea ...

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...

wrote for ''Circus'', as did her bandmate Lenny Kaye. Rock critic Kurt Loder was also a contributor, as was

Lance Loud Alanson Russell "Lance" Loud (June 26, 1951 – December 22, 2001) was an American television personality, magazine columnist, and new wave rock-n-roll performer. Loud is best known for his 1973 appearance in '' An American Family'', a pione ...

of An American Family fame. A ''Circus'' reader could look forward to music reviews penned by

Ed Naha Ed Naha (born June 10, 1950) is an American science fiction and mystery writer and producer. His first known publication was artwork that appeared in the first issue of ''Modern Monsters'' magazine, dated June 1966. Education and early career ...

, whose entire review of an album by the German rock group Can consisted of exactly one word: "Can’t". Despite the era’s printing constraints, the magazine included high-quality color photography. In 1971 Howard Bloom joined ''Circus'' as editor, his tenure lasting until August 1973. In the late 1970s, the magazine started focusing on pop culture as a weekly in the vein of ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''Peopl ...

.'' The magazine gradually shifted to heavy metal acts in the early and mid-1980s, then began focusing coverage on

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal music, heavy metal that features pop music, pop-influenced Hook (music), hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat arena rock, rock anthems, and slow Sentimental ballad#Powe ...

groups like

Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...

and

Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drummer), Rick Allen (drums), Phil Collen (guitar, ...

in the mid-to-late 1980s. As the 1990s progressed, Rothberg changed the longtime design and logo of the magazine, reduced the staff complement, and made use of freelance writers. It was during this period that Rothberg was attacked in the

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985 as a merger of local bands L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band's "classic" line-up consisted of vocalist Axl R ...

song " Get in the Ring". Before the magazine was ceased publication in May 2006, ''Circus'' covered contemporary heavy metal, competing against magazines like ''

Kerrang ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...

''and ''

Hit Parader ''Hit Parader'' was an American music magazine that operated between 1942 and 2008. A monthly publication, it focused on rock and pop music in general until the 1970s, when its focus began turning to hard rock and heavy metal. By the early 198 ...

''.

References

External links

A History of ''Circus'' magazine
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100511070542/http://rockcriticsarchives.com/features/circus/circus-intro.html , date=2010-05-11
Blog on ''Circus'' ending
Monthly magazines published in the United States Music magazines published in the United States Defunct magazines published in the United States Heavy metal publications Magazines established in 1966 Magazines disestablished in 2006 Weekly magazines published in the United States Biweekly magazines published in the United States Magazines published in New York City Popular music magazines