The Clown Prince

Little clown prince, you thief of frowns,
saddest face, most open heart of all the clowns
Your graceful wife, your weightless jest
condems to shadows all the rest
Oh wooden saint, oh wondrous boy, so strange and so sweet,
the marque lights slip beneath your feet
How high and well you waltz and dip!
Nimble step upon the wire, hand on dandy hip

With crimson sash and pride unfuried
You float above this stinking world
You part our seas, you fill our cup
We laugh and cry untill we cry "Enough!"

You feign to fall and women tug their hair
They gasp in fear as you skip across the air
Let them weep, let them burn for you
Where were they when they could have learned from you?

Let them weep, let them burn for you
Where were they?

Little clown prince, you thief of frowns
Same dawn table every night, you knock them down

Friday night spreads out against the sky
Men and women drinking take-home pay
Fluorescent lights, a dab of powder, a splash of grease paint
The trash floats in, the scum floats out
They sweep under the bar what they can't kick out
This land of tears, such a secret place
This land of tears, such a secret place

Only a dollar for the prince of clowns, only a dollar
and he'll steal your frowns, only a dollar for his tinsel crown
Only a dollar for the prince of clowns

"No Llores mi nino
lagrimas, lagrimas en secretos ocultos"