Smokey Robinson and the Miracles – The Tears of a Clown (2:59)
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About This Track
Stevie Wonder and his producer Hank Cosby wrote the music for the song, and Cosby produced the instrumental track recording. Wonder gave Smokey Robinson the instrumental track as a Christmas present at the 1966 Motown Christmas party. Robinson, who remarked that the song’s distinctive calliope motif “sounded like a circus”, provided lyrics that reflected his vision and sang lead vocal. In the song, Robinson’s character, hurt by a lover who left him, compares himself to the characters in the opera Pagliacci, comedians/clowns who hide their hurt and anger behind empty smiles. Robinson had used the Pagliacci comparison before: the line “just like Pagliacci did/I’ll try to keep my sadness hid” also appears in the song “My Smile Is Just A Frown (Turned Upside Down)”, which Robinson wrote in 1964 for Motown artist Carolyn Crawford.
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Albums featuring this track
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The Ultimate Collection
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
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18 Greatest Hits
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
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The Tracks of My Tears
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
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Anthology (disc 2)
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
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