Frank Sinatra - Send In The Clowns
[Spoken intro]
This is a song about a couple of adult people who have spent, oh, quite a long time
together, till one day
one of 'em gets restless and decides to leave. Whether it's the man or woman who left is unimportant.
It's a breakup.
It's a lovely marriage of words and music, written by Stephen Sondheim.
Isn't it rich? Are we a pair?
Me here at last on the ground and you in mid-air
Send in the clowns
Isn't it bliss? Don't you approve?
One who keeps tearing around and one who can't move
But where are the clowns? Send in the clowns
Just when I stopped opening doors
Finally finding the one that I wanted was yours
Making my entrance again with my usual flair
Sure of my lines
Nobody's there
Don't you love a 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? Send in the clowns
Well, maybe next year
Musical: A Little Night Music (1973) - an adaptation of Ingmar Bergman's 1955 film Smiles of a Summer Night.
Songwriter: Stephen Sondheim
Meaning:
"Send in the Clowns" was never meant to be a soaring ballad; it's a song of regret. And it's a song of a lady who is too upset and too angry to speak– meaning to sing for a very long time. She is furious, but she doesn't want to make a scene in front of Fredrik because she recognizes that his obsession with his 18-year-old wife is unbreakable. So she gives up; so it's a song of regret and anger, and therefore fits in with short-breathed phrases.
By Stephen Sondheim (Writer of the song)
