For all April fools…

Send In The Clowns · Judy Collins · 1975

  Play the song.       Lyrics   (Read the lyrics while you listen to the track.)

Download MP3: Send In The Clowns

Where are the clowns? (aka: Fools)

Judy Collins sang contemporary folk songs in the late sixties and and in the seventies. In 1975, she recorded a song from the 1973 musical A Little Night Music. The song was Send In The Clowns. Actually, the lyrics don’t refer to circus or rodeo clowns, but are a poetic reference to “fools” as the song’s writer, Stephen Sondheim, later clarified: As I think of it now, the song could have been called 'Send in the Fools.' I knew I was writing a song in which Desirée is saying, 'aren't we foolish' or 'aren't we fools'? Well, a synonym for fools is clowns, but 'Send in the Fools' doesn't have the same ring to it.

Judy Collins’ version of Send In The Clowns peaked at position #36 in 1975, and was reissued in 1977. The second time, it topped out at #19 and was on the top 40 of the Hot 100 for a couple of months.

Send In The Clowns   ·   Judy Collins CDs

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Speaking of clowns, Why do fools fall in love? (April 1, 2009)

Listen to: Why Do Fools Fall In Love • Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers • 1956 Poor Little Fool • Ricky Nelson • 1958 Fools Rush In • Rick Nelson • 1963

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It certainly wasn’t the first time a songwriter used the word “clown” to refer to a fool. Brothers Don and Phil Everly wrote and recorded a song about a clown to use as a single for their new label (Warner Brothers.) “Cathy’s Clown” became their biggest U.S. hit ever, topping the Hot 100 for five weeks in May, 1960.

It was the first single in the rock era to simultaneously top the charts in both America and Great Britain. It was also the Everly Brothers’ most successful British single—it was on top the longest (seven weeks).

Listen to Cathy’s Clown versions by the Everly Brothers and Reba McEntire

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The Everly Brothers’ “Cathy’s Clown” is available on the album “The Everly Brothers - All-Time Greatest Hits“. The single peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1960. Reba McEntire’s “Cathy’s Clown” is from her album “Sweet Sixteen“. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country chart in 1989.

Everly Brothers: Cathy’s Clown   ·   Everly Brothers CDs   ·   Reba McEntire: Cathy’s Clown   ·   Reba McEntire CDs

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Different artists present different points of view

The lyrics for the Everly Brothers’ version of “Cathy’s Clown” primarily involve two people: Cathy the boy and the story is told in the first person.

Cathy’s Clown · The Everly Brothers · 1960         Lyrics   (Read the lyrics to both versions while you listen to the track.)

  Play the song.  

Download MP3: Cathy’s Clown (Everly Brothers)

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In July, 1989, Reba McEntire recorded a version of “Cathy’s Clown” for her Sweet Sixteen album that topped the U.S. Country chart.

The lyrics for Reba McEntire’s version of “Cathy’s Clown” involve three people: Cathy the boy a girl and the story is told in the third person.

Cathy’s Clown · Reba McEntire · 1989         Lyrics  (Read the lyrics to both versions while you listen to the track.)

  Play the song.  

Download MP3: Cathy’s Clown (Reba McEntire)

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Cathy’s Clown Lyrics Everly Brothers Don’t want your love any more. Don’t want your kisses. That’s for sure. I die each time I hear this sound. Here he comes. That’s Cathy’s clown. I’ve got to stand tall. You know a man can’t crawl. For when he knows you’re telling lies, and he hears them passing by, he’s not a man at all. Don’t want your love any more. Don’t want your kisses. That’s for sure. I die each time I hear this sound. Here he comes. That’s Cathy’s clown. When you see me shed a tear and you know that it’s sincere, don’t you think it’s kind of sad that you’re treating me so bad? Or don’t you even care? Don’t want your love any more. Don’t want your kisses. That’s for sure. I die each time I hear this sound. Here he comes. That’s Cathy’s clown. That’s Cathy’s clown. That’s Cathy’s clown.

Cathy’s Clown Lyrics Reba McEntire I want your loving more and more. I want your kisses. That’s for sure. I die each time I hear the sound. They’re saying here he comes. He’s Cathy’s clown. You know you’ve got to stand tall. You know a man can’t crawl. And when you let her tell you lies, and you let ‘em pass you by, you’re not a man at all. She don’t want your loving anymore. She don’t want your kisses. That’s for sure. Why do you let them put you down, and let ‘em call you Cathy’s clown? When you see me shed a tear then you know that I’m sincere. I just think it’s kinda sad that she’s treating you so bad. And I’m the one who cares. I want your loving more and more. I want your kisses. That’s for sure. And I die each time I hear the sound. They’re saying here he comes. He’s Cathy’s clown. You’re Cathy’s clown. You’re Cathy’s clown.

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Go back to the story.

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SEND IN THE CLOWNS Lyrics Judy Collins (Listen to “Send In The Clowns” by Judy Collins.)

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Isn’t it rich?
Are we a pair?
Me here at last on the ground,
You in mid-air.
Where are the clowns?

Isn’t it bliss?
Don’t you approve?
One who keeps tearing around,
One who can’t move.
Where are the clowns?
Send in the clowns.

Just when I’d stopped opening doors,
Finally knowing the one that I wanted was yours,
Making my entrance again with my usual flair,
Sure of my lines,
No one is there.

Don’t you love farce?
My fault I fear.
I thought that you’d want what I want.
Sorry, my dear.
But where are the clowns?
Send in the clowns.
Don’t bother, they’re here.

Isn’t it rich?
Isn’t it queer,
Losing my timing this late
In my career?
But where are the clowns?
There ought to be clowns.
Well, maybe next year…

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Go back to the story.