 | |
 February 2008 issue ofMojo | |
| Editor | John Mulvey (Nov 2017–present) |
|---|---|
| Categories | Music magazine |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Total circulation (Dec 2022) | 62,733 |
| First issue | November 1993 |
| Company | Bauer Media Group |
| Country | England |
| Based in | London |
| Language | English |
| Website | mojo4music |
| ISSN | 1351-0193 |
Mojo (stylised inall caps) is apopular musicmagazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, initially byEmap, and since January 2008 byBauer.
Following the success of the magazineQ, publishers Emap were looking for a title that would cater for the burgeoning interest inclassic rock music. The magazine was designed to appeal to the 30 to 45-plus age group, or thebaby boomer generation.[1]Mojo was first published on 15 October 1993.[1] In keeping with its classic rock aesthetic, the first issue hadBob Dylan andJohn Lennon as its cover stars. Noted for its in-depth coverage of both popular and cult acts, it acted as the inspiration forBlender andUncut. Many noted music critics have written for the magazine includingCharles Shaar Murray,Greil Marcus,Nick Kent,David Fricke,Jon Savage, andMick Wall. The launch editor ofMojo wasPaul Du Noyer[2][3] and his successors have includedMat Snow,Paul Trynka, Pat Gilbert, and Phil Alexander. The current editor is John Mulvey.
WhileMojo frequently covers classic rock acts such asthe Beatles,David Bowie,the Rolling Stones,the Who, andPaul Weller, it has also featured many newer and "left-field" acts. It was the first mainstream magazine in the UK to focus onthe White Stripes, and it continues to cover emerging acts. Modern cover stars of recent years have includedLana Del Rey andArctic Monkeys. It regularly includes acovermount CD that ties in with a current magazine article or theme. It introduced theMojo Honours List, an awards ceremony that is a mixture of readers' and critics' awards, in 2004.
In early 2010,Mojo was involved in a controversial move by its new parent company, Bauer, to unilaterally impose a new contract on all photographers and writers, taking away their copyright, and offloading liability forlibel orcopyright infringement from the publisher onto the contributor. Two hundred photographers and writers fromMojo and Bauer's other music magazines,Kerrang! andQ, were reported as refusing to work under the new terms.[4]
More recently, the magazine has taken to publishing many "Top 100" lists, including the subjects of drug songs (Mojo #109), rock epics (Mojo #125), protest songs (Mojo #126) and even the most miserable songs of all time (Mojo #127). To celebrate 150 issues, the magazine published a "Top 100 Albums of Mojo's Lifetime" list (essentially 1993 to 2006). The top five for this list were:
In 2007, the magazine set out to determine "The Top 100 Records That Changed the World". The list was compiled and voted on by an eclectic panel of superstars, includingBjörk,Tori Amos,Tom Waits,Brian Wilson,Pete Wentz, andSteve Earle.Little Richard's 1955 hit "Tutti Frutti"[5] took the number-one spot. Richard's record beatthe Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" (second) andElvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" (third). The magazine's editors wrote that "the 100 albums, singles and78s that made up the list make up the most influential and inspirational recordings ever made". Hailing "Tutti Frutti" as the sound of the birth ofrock 'n' roll, the editors went on to state that "one can only imagine how it must have sounded when the song exploded across the airwaves!"[citation needed]
The top ten onMojo's "100 Records That Changed the World" list are:
Other lists include a Top 50 of songs by a particular artist from time to time, usually compiled by a panel of music journalists and musicians. Featured artists have includedDavid Bowie,Pink Floyd,the Beach Boys,the Who,Bruce Springsteen, andNeil Young.[citation needed]
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After the success of an all-Beatles issue published to mark the release ofThe Beatles Anthology in 1995, many stand-alone, special editions ofMojo have been produced, devoting an entire magazine to one artist or genre. Three of the most successful were the series (produced by then special editions editorChris Hunt) telling the story of the Beatles – one thousand days at a time. Featuring contributions from many of the world's leading rock critics and Beatles experts, such asHunter Davies,Mark Lewisohn,Richard Williams,Ian MacDonald,Peter Doggett, andAlan Clayson, the three magazines were published between 2002 and 2003, before being collected together by editor-in-chief Paul Trynka and published as the bookThe Beatles: Ten Years That Shook The World (Dorling Kindersley, 2004).
Other special editions have focused onPink Floyd,psychedelia,punk, and the1960s.Mojo has also published four editions of "The MOJO Collection: The Greatest Albums Of All Time" (Canongate Books), originally edited by the magazine's founding features editor,Jim Irvin, and a series of short, definitive biographies under the imprint Mojo Heroes, starting in 2002 withNeil Young: Reflections In Broken Glass, written bySylvie Simmons, a longtimeMojo contributing editor.
The company behind the magazine, Bauer, also produced a digitalradio station.[6] This station was called Mojo Radio, and was transmitted on thedigital television networks in the UK (Freeview channel 721 andSky Digital channel 0182, though notVirgin Media) and online. The output of the station was based on that of the magazine. It was announced on 5 November 2008 that Mojo Radio would cease broadcasting on 30 November 2008, in order to save Bauer the financial outlay.
The magazine's former editor-in-chief, Phil Alexander, had a regular show on the UK digital radio stationPlanet Rock entitledMojo Rocks, in which he followed aMojo-inspired playlist.
