
RELEASED ON 14.2.2025 ON BORN BAD VIA PROPER
CATALOGUE NUMBER BB170LP
As soon as Martin Circus was born in 1969, the band laid foundations for the French
"Pop Musique" genre, deliberately turning its back on both French yeyes and rock'n'roll
to better embrace psychedelia and the French language. In 1971, they were a
pioneering, innovative group moving as fast as a speeding train, building upon
everything they found on the way. However, faced with band members changing often,
management issues and music evolution, Martin Circus ended up trying to ft in every
style: soul, R&B, glam rock, disco, new wave, 80s mainstream music. To follow their
journey is to listen to the world shifting along music charts. This compilation charts
their progression and includes some of their best tracks from albums and singles.
Including "Disco Circus", a track which was to become a real underground gem. It
started off as an epic 14- minute tack in 1979, DJ and remixer Francois Kevorkian
then released it on the American Prelude label in a self-edited version, shortened to 7
minutes, while retaining all the dazzling passages of the original track. It became a hit
in the clubs of New York and Chicago and was sampled on at least 40 tracks over the
following decades and featured in dozens of bootlegs and prestigious compilations -
by Laurent Garnier, Carl Craig, Juan Atkins, Joey Negro, The Beatnuts, The Rapture,
and by Danny Krivit in the DJ culture film Maestro.
Throughout their career full of ups and downs, Martin Circus nonetheless managed to
keep up with one stable element: contrary to what they seemed, the musicians never
took the easy way out. Their playing and arrangements were consistently flawless and
polished, they relentlessly dedicated themselves to playing quality music and this can
only compel admiration. As Coco Chanel once said, "Fashion goes out of fashion,
style never does."
Available on LP with printed inner sleeve, and digipak CD with 12-page booklet, with
liner notes in English (and French).
Tracks:
1. Tout tremblant de fievre (1969)
2. Facon de parler (1971)
3. Annie, Christine ou Patricia (1972)
4. A bas tous les privileges (1973)
5. Les indiens du dernier matin (1974)
6. Mon premier hold-up (1975)
7. Disco Circus (Francois K Edit) (1978)
8. Bains Douches (1980)
9. J't'ai vu dans le canoe? (1983)
10. Pourquoi tu m'la?ches pas? (1985)