Almanac Music: ‘Carnivalesque’ – Songs Referencing Carnivals, Circuses, Parades and the Like
The circus poster from 1843 that inspired John Lennon to write “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite”. [from Wikipedia.]
Almanac Music: ‘Carnivalesque’ – Songs Referencing Carnivals, Circuses, Parades and the Like
Hi, Almanackers! This piece in my long-running series about key popular song themes concerns what can be termed the ‘carnivalesque’. By this, I mean songs involving content related to carnivals, circuses, parades, pageants and comparable public shows – or, to put it even more simply, songs involving detail characteristic of a carnival. Add a few words of explanation to your chosen song if you feel it’s necessary. (Note: there is a literary term which goes by the name of carnivalesque, but I am focusing upon a more general, less academic meaning of the word with regard to this song theme.)
So, dear readers, please put your relevant ‘carnivalesque’ songs in the ‘Comments’ section. Below, as usual, are some examples from me to show the kind of song choices that are relevant.
‘A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’, written and performed by Bob Dylan (1963)
‘clown who cried in the alley’
‘The Carnival is Over’, written by Tom Springfield, performed by The Seekers (1965)
‘Scarborough Fair / Canticle’, traditional with content by Simon and Garfunkel, performed by Simon and Garfunkel (1966)
‘Being For the Benefit of Mr Kite!’, credited to John Lennon and Paul McCartney (basically written by John), performed by the Beatles (1967)
a song full of circus / fairground content
‘Mr Bojangles’, written by Jerry Jeff Walker, performed by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1970)
‘I knew a man Bojangles and he danced for you in worn out shoes / Silver hair, a ragged shirt and baggy pants, the old soft shoe‘
‘American Pie’, written and performed by Don McLean (1971)
references to a jester, marching band
‘Piano Man’, written and performed by Billy Joel (1973)
‘the microphone sounds like a carnival’
‘Don’t Cry Out Loud’, written by Peter Allen and Carole Bayer Sager, performed by Peter Allen (1977)
‘Baby cried the day the circus came to town…’
‘Cowboys and Clowns’, written by Steve Dorff, Snuff Garrett, Gary Harju and Larry Herbstritt, performed by Ronnie Milsap (1980)
‘The Life Of A Showgirl’, written by Taylor Swift, Max Martin and Shellback, performed by Taylor Swift (ft. Sabrina Carpenter) (2025)
…………………………………………………………………
Now, dear readers / listeners – it’s over to you. Your responses to this topic are warmly welcomed. In the ‘Comments’ section, please add your own choice of a song (or songs) under the carnivalesque umbrella, along with any other relevant material you wish to include.
[Note: as usual, Wikipedia has been a solid general reference for this piece, particularly in terms of checking dates and other details.]
Read more from Kevin Densley HERE
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About
Kevin Densley is a graduate of both Deakin University and The University of Melbourne. He has taught writing and literature in numerous Victorian universities and TAFES. He is a poet and writer-in-general. His fifth book-length poetry collection, Please Feed the Macaws ... I'm Feeling Too Indolent, was published in late 2023 by Ginninderra Press. He is also the co-author of ten play collections for young people, as well as a multi Green Room Award nominated play, Last Chance Gas, published by Currency Press. Other writing includes screenplays for educational films.
I’ll open the batting KD with a couple that come to mind.
‘Life is a Carnival’ – The Band
‘Desolation Row’ Bob Dylan
‘And the Good Samaritan
He’s dressing
He’s getting ready
For the show
He’s going
To the carnival tonight
On Desolation Row.’
‘Mr Bojangles’ is one of the great all time songs, a classic and many fab versions, NGDB version the best.
I saw the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band perform ‘Mr Bojangles’ twice; first at the Ryman in Nashville in 2022; secondly, at JazzFest in New Orleans in 2024. On both occasions the outburst of spontaneous singing along with the song was incredible and unbelievable, very emotional, and certainly brought tears to my face. Amazing!
Thanks for opening the batting in relation to this new theme, Col, with The Band and Dylan songs.
Thank you, also, for your Nitty Gritty Dirt Band material.
Memories of a Free Festival – Bowie
Fiesta – The Pogues
Parade – Magazine
London’s Brilliant Parade – Elvis Costello
Rusholme Ruffians – The Smiths (“This is the last night of the fair”)
Tricky topic KD, have we previously done “clowns”?
Thanks for co-opening the batting here, Swish, with a range of highly fitting songs.
We haven’t done clowns before, as a specific theme, but specific ‘clown songs’ may have been mentioned under the umbrellas of other themes.
Really, in basic terms, this new theme is intended to uncover songs referencing carnivals (and comparable shows) in some way – and, in so doing, bringing to light aspects such as the fun, weirdness, variety, celebration, spectacle, subversion etc involved in such activities. I’m hoping for a highly interesting range of song choices, of course.
Broken arrow: Buffalo Springfield
Mr Tambourine Man: The Byrds (original by Bob Dylan)
Got it made: Crosby Stills Nash and Young
Parade: Roger Daltrey
Every night: Electric Light Orchestra Part II
Mr Crow and Sir Norman: Idle Race
Mood swing: Luscious Jackson
I was only 19: Redgum
We came to dance: Ultravox
A wonderfully witty and comic, right-on-theme song in the present context is ‘Lydia the Tattooed Lady’, first performed by Groucho Marx in the 1939 Marx Brothers film, At the Circus.
Good morning KD
Nice to see a new theme to take us into the festive season.
The first 2 that come to mind are:
Lily, Rosemary & The Jack Of Hearts (1975) – Dylan
‘The festival was over, the boys were all plannin’ for a fall
The cabaret was quiet except for the drillin’ in the wall
The curfew had been lifted and the gamblin’ wheel shut down
Anyone with any sense had already left town
He was standin’ in the doorway lookin’ like the Jack of Hearts’
Carnival (1977) – Eric Clapton ~ off the No Reason to Cry album ~ these are the entire lyrics ~
‘Come with me, come with me
To the carnival, to the carnival
You will see, you will see
You will see, you will see
What you want to see, exactly what you want to be
At the carnival, at the carnival, at the carnival’
The never released track Carnival of Light by The Beatles should get a mention
Good morning, Karl.
Thanks for your Dylan and Clapton pair. I have a feeling the His Bobness will be well and truly ‘up for it’ in terms of this new ‘Carnivalesque’ theme.
Thanks, Swish, for this unreleased avant-garde Beatles piece – purely in theme terms, it’s an excellent pickup.
Wild Billy’s Circus Story, Springsteen
4th of July, Ashbury Park (Sandy), Bruce Springsteen
The Last Carnival, Bruce again
Jersey Girl, Tom Waits, but Springsteen cover is the bomb
Thank you for the Springsteen quartet, Rick. Along with Dylan and the Beatles, and perhaps a few others, he’s certainly among the key artists in our themed popular song series – which really is no surprise, of course.
Your comments came to me out of sequence, Liam, hence I’m responding to them a bit later than you may have expected. Thanks for your selections – :Mr Tambourine Man’ was a strong contender for my initial list, incidentally.
Hi KD
Seems like his Bobness is a bit light on the ‘carnival; theme apart from the obvious (Mr Tambourine Man) and those already mentioned. Perhaps another handful will filter into the comments in the days ahead.
Here’s a few fav’s not are not Bob related:
Stuck In the Middle With You’
‘Clowns to the left of me
Jokers to the right
Here I am, stuck in the middle with you’
Gypsies Tramps & Thieves
‘I was born in the wagon of a travelin’ show
My mama used to dance for the money they’d throw
Papa would do whatever he could
Preach a little gospel, sell a couple bottles of Doctor Good’
Tears Of A Clown
‘Now there’s some sad things known to man
But ain’t too much sadder than
The tears of a clown
When there’s no one around
Mmm-hmm, oh yeah, baby’
Yes KD, Bruce will feature! Oh, meant to add this ‘un, County Fair, which was featured in a key moment in the Springsteen movie, Deliver Me from Nowhere.
Thanks for your latest choices, Karl – ‘Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves’, to select just one, has long been a bit of a personal favourite. I recall ii being on a single in my parents’ record collection when I was a kid.
Re Bob’s further representation in this new themed songlist, I guess we’ll soon find out – all the song has to do is mention words like carnival, vaudeville, fair, clown, sideshow, pageant, parade, jester, juggler…even ‘tightrope’ is a carnivalesque word, to my way of thinking.
Thanks for ‘County Fair’, Rick.
I’m really interested to see Deliver Me from Nowhere – as well as discover what additional Springsteen songs you come up with in terms of this new theme
Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars), REM
When Salome Plays the Drum, Jimmy Buffett
Both Sides Now, Joni
The Comedians, written by Little Elvis but kinds rewritten for and by The Big O, and have a listen, it’s Roy at his best (I can hardly hear the music from the carousel/The wind picks up, the carriage starts to sway/As one by one the lights go out/It’s closing time/I see you take his hand and walk away/Walk away/They say that you will always be the last to know/They say that all that glitters is not gold/It’s not just that you’re never coming back to me/It’s the bitter way that I was told)
Thanks for your latest choices, Rick – great to see an iconic song like ‘Both Sides Now’ get a guernsey, too – with its ‘Ferris Wheels’, I think it’s an excellent pickup.
When I talk about pure lyrics and top shelf songwriting that song and Joni inevitably come up. I believe a movie about Joni is in the works, cowritten by her and Cameron Crowe.
That Joni movie is another I’m very interested to see, Rick.
Incidentally, Joni’s song ‘Carey’ from her album Blue (as you’d know) has been repeatedly going through my head in recent times – I love it and its calypso feel.
Fairground – Simply Red
Carnival – Natalie Merchant
If we were doing band names then Fairground Attraction would be first up.
Robbie Robertson’s first project after the breakup of The Band was acting and writing the soundtrack for a 1980 movie called “Carny”. Never seen or heard it but starred RR with Gary Busey and a very sexualised Jodi Foster reprising her Taxi Driver image.
The song titles are full of sideshow imagery – Carnival Bozo; Freak’s Lament; Garden of Earthly Delights; & Sawdust and G-Strings.
A few parades and a heavy number from the erstwhile pink popsters
Jack of All Parades – Elvis Costello
Clowntime Is Over – Elvis Costello
Macy’s Day Parade – Green Day
Love Parade – Undertones
Robot Parade – They Might Be Giants
The Freak – Zoot
Step inside the tent ladies and gentlemen
To see the freak they call Jacko the dog face man
He walks like a man
He talks like a man
Yet he was born with the face of a dog
An actual freak of nature
Bright Lights
Blind me
And I’m whizzing by the people
Pushing, rushing
To the organ grinder’s music
And my eyes are running
And my legs are aching
And there’s people winning
And the carnival’s spinning
Merry – go round
Go round And they make me dizzy
People – shouting
As they shoot and win an ashtray
And my head is ringing
And my ears are flitting
And my hair is thinning
And the carnival’s spinning
After the people have gone
I walk along down sideshow ally
And from a tent I hear some crying
The sound of someone in pain
And written brightly on the canvas and woodwork
So that everybody would see
Was the question they pose to the public
“When is a man not a man
When he’s a freak in a sideshow”
But we all got to cry
Yes, we all got to cry
And we all got to cry
Bright lights
Blind me
And I’m questioned by the people
Pushing – rushing
To the organ grinder’s music
And my eyes are running
And my legs are achy
And there’s people crying
And the carnival’s dying
One we used to sing along to on long car rides as kids. Written in 1867 about the French circus performer Jules Leotard (the things you learn when you go down internet rabbit holes!)
Used in multiple 1930’S movies and many popular versions by artists like Spike Jones; Burl Ives; Bing Crosby; Les Paul & Mary Ford. You can even find live versions of Bruce Springsteen doing it as part of his Seeger Sessions traditional music revival in 2006.
Hey KD
Bob may have slim ‘carnival-related’ pickings but there are definitely some classics – we’ve had A Hard Rain, Desolation Row and Mr. Tambourine Man so far. Let me add:
Like A Rolling Stone
‘Aw, you never turned around to see the frowns
On the jugglers and the clowns when they all did tricks for you’
Thanks, Peter B, for your choices and comments – the Carny soundtrack by Robbie Robertson sounds particularly interesting, as does the one about Jules Leotard (which I couldn’t immediately download on my mobile).
There’s a particularly interesting, thematically highly apt variety of songs in terms of your latest selections, thanks Swish. Zoot’s ‘The Freak’ is so spot-on lyrically, for example – I’ll give it a listen to see if it’s the same song that’s vaguely in my head.
You’re certainly on the money when you note Bob’s ‘carnival classics’, Karl. Thanks for the addition of ‘Like A Rolling Stone’ in that context. Hopefully, we can come up with a few more ‘carnivalesque’ Bob numbers.
Just discovered another Dylan classic (written with Jacques Levy) that can be placed under the carnivalesque umbrella:’Hurricane’.
‘All of Rubin’s cards were marked in advance / The trial was a pig-circus, he never had a chance…’
1000pts for Hurricane KD!
I’d like to add to Rick’s fine collection of Springsteen songs.
Mary Queen Of Arkansas
‘The big top is for dreamers, we can take the circus all the way to the border’
Thanks, Karl, re your comment about ‘Hurricane’.
Thank you, also, for the early Springsteen song, ‘Mary Queen Of Arkansas’.
Hi Kevin,
If ‘tightrope’ and ‘pageant’ come into it, two personal favourites instantly come to mind:
Tightrope: Electric Light Orchestra
I got you: Split Enz
Tightrope and pageant certainly come under the carnivalesque umbrella, Liam. Thanks for the ELO and Split Enz songs.
Good morning KD
Looks like a pleasant day of TV cricket beckons.
Here’s another from the Dylan canon ~ taking a broader view of the theme:
Ballad Of A Thin Man
‘Well, the sword swallower, he comes up to you and then he kneels
He crosses himself and then he clicks his high heels
And without further notice, he asks you how it feels
And he says, “Here is your throat back, thanks for the loan”‘
Good morning, Karl
Yep, some cricket watching later today, for sure.
Thanks for ‘Ballad Of A Thin Man’ – the sword swallower content places it securely under the carnivalesque umbrella.
Souvenirs John Prine (Memories, they can’t be boughten/They can’t be won at carnivals for free/Well, it took me years to get those souvenirs/And I don’t know how they slipped away from me)
Pocket of a Clown, Dwight Yoakam (Inside the pocket of a clown/Is a sad place to hang around/Just watching smiles turn into frowns/Inside the pocket of a clown)
One Minute You’re Here, Bruce (Autumn carnival on the edge of town/We walk down the midway arm-in-arm/One minute you’re here/Next minute you’re gone)
Pageant Material, Kacey Musgraves (I ain’t pageant material/I’m always higher than my hair/And it ain’t that I don’t care about world peace/But I don’t see how I can fix it in a swimsuit on a stage/I ain’t exactly Miss Congenial/Sometimes I talk before I think, I try to fake it but I can’t/I’d rather lose for what I am than win for what I ain’t)
Thanks for these most recent songs, Rick – all by fine artists. I welcome Priney onto this new carnivalesque songlist. He, along with The Beatles, Dylan and Bruce ( and a couple of others), is certainly in the pantheon of musicians when it comes to Almanac Music themed songlists.
Bruce again!
Tunnel of Love (Fat man sitting on a little stool/Takes the money from my hand while his eyes take a walk all over you/Hands me two tickets, smiles and whispers good luck/Well, cuddle up, angel, cuddle up, my little dove/And we’ll ride down, baby, into this tunnel of love)
And this one from Randy Newman, highlighting the not so decent side(show) of carnivals: Davy the Fat Boy, Randy Newman (Davy the fat boy/Davy the fat boy/Isn’t he round?/Isn’t he round?/What do he weigh, folks?/Can you guess what he weigh?/You know it’s only a quarter/Win a teddy bear for the girlfriend or something for the wife/You’ve got to let this fat boy in your life/I think we can persuade him to do/The famous fat boy dance for you/Give me half a chance/I just know you’ll like my fat boy’s dance)
And this one by The Drive-By Truckers, based on a true circus family and staying true to your purpose/promise despite everything. The Flying Wallendas (They could dance on the wire through the fire and the storm/John Ringling had seen Karl in Cuba perform/He raised up his kids for performance and stardom/They performed center ring at Madison Square Garden/With a seven man pyramid folks lined up just to see ’em/Till they fell from the sky at Detroit’s State Fair Coliseum/And they fell to the ground with the greatest of ease/Three didn’t get up from the blood in the breeze/But Karl wouldn’t be stopped from his home in the skies/Till he fell from the wire in San Juan and he died)
Downtown Train, by Tom Waits but I’ll go with the version by Rod Stewart (I know your window and I know it’s late/I know your stairs and your doorway/I walk down your street and past your gate/I stand by the light at the four-way/You watch ’em as they fall/Oh baby, they all have heart attacks/They stay at the carnival/But they’ll never win you back)
A while back I did an article on Herbie Flowers – who (among many credits) was a member of Blue Mink ~ who, in 1971, had a #4 hit in Australia with Banner Man:
‘So we waved our hands as we marched along
And the people smiled as we sang our song
And the world was saved as they listened to the band
And the Banner-Man held the banner high
He was ten feet tall and he touched the sky
And I wish that I could be a Banner-Man’
Another fine, thematically spot-on group of songs from you – thanks, Rick. Just to pick out one of the artists concerned – Randy Newman is such a witty, wonderful craftsperson when it comes to writing a song, isn’t he? He’s another one of those people I need to go back to and renew my acquaintance with, in terms of his body of work.
Thanks, Karl, for ‘Banner Man’ – I remember the song well, and like it a great deal. Importantly, in the present context, it’s also spot-on thematically.
And I do recall your article on Herbie Flowers, too – as a bass guitarist, I read it with considerable interest.
The Pykey Boys – Ralph McTell
“Easter time is a-coming, move to Mitcham right away
And I get a job on the Easter fair
Where you get paid by the day
I’ve got a good juk he cost me thirty og
From a mush that I ken for a while
I will make my way to Mitcham, boys
I will live the showman style
I will live the showman style
Now the old boys say it ain’t the same
As it was in their young day
But they can still spot a soft touch
From a hundred yards away
And I’ll get a job on the cars all right
It’s a job I done before
And maybe pull a gadgo gal or two
It’s a cushty place to score
It’s a cushty place to score
Setting up is easy
Striking it’s harder, though
The rest of the time you’re getting paid
For the job you want to do
The juk minds the van
And I mind me own
It’s the only way I’ve found
Oh, Easter time is coming
I will follow the fairground round
I will follow the fairground round
Oh, the life of a Pykey boy
It’s the one that gets you by
And the rake and the shack and the other times
And there’s Parni in the sky
Oh, I’m totting in the wintertime
With the wheels and the juk makes three
Oh, the Easter fair brings the summertime
And the summer belongs to me
Oh, the summer belongs to me”
The Girl from the Hiring Fair – Ralph McTell
“I went down to the hiring fair for to sell my labour
And I noticed a maid in the very next row and I hoped she’d be my neighbour
Imagine then my delight when the farmer picked us both
I spoke not a word in the cart to the farm, but my heart beat in my throat”
Cinqo de Mayo in Memphis – Jimmy Buffett (May 5th is a public holiday in Mexico)
“Meanwhile down on Beale Street
Drinkin’ in a Beale Street bar
There’s a fog rolling off the Mississippi
Has anybody seen Arkansas?
[Verse 2]
The deckhands from the towboats
Come ashore wearin’ Mexican shoes
They headed straight for Graceland
It was the first thing they wanted to do
[Chorus 1]
Cinco de Mayo in Memphis
Mariachis singing the blues
Soul sisters huggin’ señoritas
All sportin’ blue suede shoes
[Verse 3]
Pork pie hats and sombreros
Hangin’ on a downtown street
Swingin’ pool cues at piñatas
Don’t that river smell sweet?
[Verse 4]
And they all come to get ’em some Memphis
Little somethin’ for their soul
Low riders lined up with limousines
Hey, they all came to rock and roll”
Don’t Stop the Carnival – Harry Belafonte
“Have to talk to the Governor today
Concerning the Carnival parade
Have to talk to the Governor today
Concerning the carnival parade
In Trinidad people running wild
Governor say no Carnival
A big a riot police and thing
A picket sign and the people start to sing
Lord don’t stop the Carnival
Carnival is a Creole bacchanal
I would make no fuzz if you cut up the Christmas
Have no fear if you cut up the New Year”
“
What an interesting trio of song choices! Thanks, Dave. These choices add another dimension to the carnivalesque songlist we’re in the process of compiling.
Hi KD
Before we settle back, relaxed, smug, knowing the Ashes are ours for at least another 18 months, here is an undeniable, spot on on-theme song, I discovered yesterday~~~
Miranda Lambeth’s ‘Four The Record’ album:
All Kinds Of Kinds
Elsa was an acrobat
Who went and fell in love with that
Horatio, the human cannonball
A wedding beneath the big top tent
With barkers, clowns, and elephants
Sideshow and the oddities and all
The dogface boy
Howled out with joy
As the tattooed lady was cryin’
Ever since the beginning
To keep the world spinning
It takes all kinds of kinds
Yes, Karl, the cricket result looks in the bag for the Aussies.
Thanks for the Miranda Lambeth song – highly apt theme-wise. Vocally, Lambeth reminds me of Kasey Chambers.
“Tunnel of Love” – Dire Straits
(‘I’m searching through these carousels and carnival arcades…”
“He moved through the fair” – Sinead O’Connor (my favourite version)
“Penny Arcade” – Roy Orbison
“Life is a rollercoaster” – Ronan Keating
“Helter Skelter” – The Beatles
“Been to long at the fair” Bonnie Raitt
Small correction, it’s Miranda Lambert. One of country music’s best artists of the last 25 years. Big fan. Great call Karl, it’s a terrific song from a ripper of an album. Cheers
Some fine, highly apt choices, thanks Smokie. ‘He /She Moved Through the Fair’, to pick just one, is a wonderful traditional number, with so many good versions recorded.
Correction noted, thanks Rick. Where is autocorrect when one needs it? I liked ‘All Kinds of Kinds’, too, but maybe not as much as you, though I think the corny video clip accompanying the song put me off a bit.
!941 – Harry Nilsson
“Well in 1941 a happy father had a son
And by 1944 the father walked right out the door
And in ’45 the mom and son were still alive
But who could tell in ’46 if the two were to survive?
Well the years were passing quickly
But not fast enough for him
So he closed his eyes ’til ’55
And he opened them up again
When he looked around he saw a clown
And the clown seemed very gay
And he set that night
To join that circus clown and run away
Well he followed every railroad track
And every highway sign
And he had a girl in each new town
And the towns he left behind
And the open road
Was the only road he knew
But the color of his dreams
Slowly turning into blue
The he met a girl, the kind of girl
He wanted all his life
She was soft and kind and good to him
So he took her for a wife
And they got a house not far from town
And in a little while
The girl had seen the doctor
And she came home with a smile
Now in 1961 a happy father had a son
And by 1964 the father walked right out the door
And in ’65 the mom and son were still around
But what will happen to the boy
When the circus comes to town?”
You and Me Against the World – Helen Reddy (written by Paul H Williams and Kenneth Lee Ascher)
“You and me against the world
Sometimes it feels like you and me against the world
When all the others turn their backs and walk away
You can count on me to stay
Remember when the circus came to town
And you were frightened by the clown?
Wasn’t it nice to be around someone that you knew?
Someone who was big and strong and looking out for you?
Send in the Clowns – Judy Collins (written by Stephen Sondheim)
I won’t let the Show Go On – Leo Sayer
“… Baby, although I chose this lonely life
It seems it’s strangling me now
All the wild men, big cigars, gigantic cars
They’re all laughing at me now
… Oh, I’ve been used, ooh-woo
I’ve been taken for a fool, oh, what a fool
I broke all the rules, ooh, yeah
But I won’t let the show go on
… Baby, there’s an enormous crowd of people
And they’re all after my blood
I wish maybe they’d tear down the walls of this theater
And let me out, let me out
… Oh, I’ve been so blind, yeah
I’ve wasted time, wasted, wasted oh, so much time
Walking on the wire, high wire, yeah
But I won’t let the show go on
… I’ve been so blind, oh, yes, I’ve been so blind
Wasted my time, wasted so much time
Walking on the wire, high wire, yeah
But I won’t let the show go on
… Baby, I wish you’d help me escape
And help me get away
Leave me outside my address
Far away from this masquerade
… I’ve been so used, I’ve been so abused
I’ve been a fool, I broke all the rules
I’ve been so used, oh, and abused
But I won’t let the show go
… But I won’t let the show
(Oh) won’t let the show go on”
You’ve just put forward excellent songs fitting securely under the carnivalesque umbrella – thanks, Dave. I thought ‘Send in the Clowns’ was a particularly good pickup.
Some parade songs with a twist of carnival!
I Want to See the Parade, Tom T Hall, I left out the start and end of this little poemsong to make it worth your while listening to, maybe, as it is a bit cloying but core message and a couple of tangential observations are worth the listen, not too many songwriters ruminate the way Tom does (A little girl and her mother/Were standing up next to the curb/The little girl said “Mommy, I can’t see the parade”/And it happened that I heard/The woman who was with the little girl was small/And when she turned and smiled/I thought I’d do them a favor/So I offered to hold the child/When I held the little girl in my arms/I was glad of the offer I’d made/She said, “Thank you, mister/For holding me up; I wanted to see the parade.”)
Christopher Tracey Parade, Prince, from his ’86 album, incidentally called Parade, which has the song Kiss on it and remember how everyone (white) went spare for Tom Jones’ version, a good version for sure, but doesn’t hold a candle to Prince (Everyone come behold Christopher Tracy’s Parade/The show will proceed unless it should rain strawberry lemonade/Hopefully, that will not occur, the man above has been paid/Give what you can, all you can stand, and all of your life will be made)
The Street Parade, The Clash, from Sandinista, and as Robert Christgau notes in his review at the time, ” if this is their worst album — which it is, I think — they must be, er, the world’s greatest rock and roll band.” (When I was waiting for your phone call/The one that never came/Like a man about to burst/I was dying of thirst/Though I will never fade/Or get lost in this daze/Though I will disappear/Into the street parade)
Let’s Go Crazy, The Clash, anotheree from Sandinista (“I’m entertain’ the people and I’m also assert callins is calling for peace in the carnival and love/And also, all the youth, the young generation of today, I am begging them, and I’m preaching to them and I’m selling my record, I am selling clothes, I’m selling cloth to help the young generation of England today/Black, white, pink, blue, you name it/And all you millions out there, come down at the night time, the carnival time/Stop freezing, everybody, ’cause we are having a great time here”)
Tom T Hall, Prince and The Clash are certainly an interesting bunch to put in the same comments box, Rick – thanks for more well-chosen, highly fitting work for this theme.
On the ‘parade’ sub-theme, I’ll chuck in:
Lou Reed
Halloween Parade (1989 – New York album)
‘There’s the Born Again Losers and the Lavender Bruisers
And some crack team from Washington Heights
The boys from Avenue B, the girls from Avenue D
A Tinkerbell in tights
This celebration somehow gets me down
Especially when I see you’re not around
The Halloween Parade (Halloween Parade)
At the Halloween parade (Halloween Parade)’
Robbie Robertson
Night Parade (1991 – Storyville album)
‘(We’ll be marching in the night parade)
We goin’ Mardi Gras, come on in the night parade’
Both the Reed and Robertson songs are directly under the broad carnivalesque umbrella – thanks, Karl!
‘Don’t Rain On My Parade’ – Barbra Streisand.
A Couple of Phil Ochs songs about Parades
One More Parade
“Hup, two, three, four, marching down the street
Rolling of the drums and the tramping of the feet
General salutes and the mothers wave and weep
Here comes the big parade
Don’t be afraid, price is paid
One more parade
So young, so strong, so ready for the war
So willing to go and die upon a foreign shore
All march together, everybody looks the same
So there is no one you can blame
Don’t be ashamed, light the flame
One more parade
Listen for the sound and listen for the noise
Listen for the thunder of the marching boys
Few years ago their guns were only toys
Here comes the big parade
Don’t be afraid, price is paid
One more parade
So young, so strong, so ready for the war
So willing to go and die upon a foreign shore
All march together, everybody looks the same
So there is no one you can blame
Don’t be ashamed, light the flame
One more parade
Medals on their coats and guns in their hands
Trained to kill as they’re trained to stand
Ten thousand ears need only one command
Here comes the big parade
Don’t be afraid, price is paid
One more parade
So young, so strong, so ready for the war
So willing to go and die upon a foreign shore
All march together, everybody looks the same
So there is no one you can blame
Don’t be ashamed, light the flame
One more parade
Cold hard stares on faces so proud
Kisses from the girls and cheers from the crowd
And the widows from the last war cry into their shrouds
Here comes the big parade
Don’t be afraid, price is paid
Don’t be ashamed, war’s a game, world in flames
So start the parade”
Is There Anybody Here
“Is there anybody here proud of the parade
Who’d like to give a cheer and show they’re not afraid?
I’d like like to ask him what he’s trying to defend
I’d like to ask him what he thinks he’s gonna win
[Verse 4]
Is there anybody here
Who thinks that following the orders takes away the blame?
Is there anybody here
Who wouldn’t mind a murder by another name?
Is there anybody here whose pride is on the line
With the honor of the brave and the courage of the blind?
[Chorus]
I wanna see him
I wanna wish him luck
I wanna shake his hand
Gonna call his name
Put a medal on the man
Put a medal on the man”
Thanks, Dave, for these Phil Ochs songs – what fine lyrics!
Richard & Linda Thompson
The Great Valerio(1974
‘High up above the crowd
The great Valerio is walking
The rope seems hung from cloud to cloud
And time stands still while he is walking
His eye is steady on the target
His foot is sure upon the rope
Alone and peaceful as a mountain
And certain as the mountain slope
How we wonder, how we wonder
Watching far below
We would all be that great hero
The great Valerio’
Thanks for the Thomsons’ song, Karl. It couldn’t be more thematically apt!
When The Boys Are On Parade – Andy Irvine, Written by Marcus Turner
(Same theme as the two Phil Ochs songs although written decades later)
“Here they come marching past the houses, shiny boots and khaki blouses,
Stiff as the creases in their trousers, standing tall and straight and strong,
And they all keep in step together, glint of steel, flash of leather,
Braving every kind of weather as they boldly march along.
You may dismiss it as a ploy for the enlistment of the boys
Who’ll be impressed to see the toys and play the games that can be played,
CHORUS:
And you may well prefer abstention, but I feel compelled to mention
You’d do well to pay attention when the boys are on parade.
Look at your sons. Before they’re older, they’ll be stronger, they’ll be bolder —
Just the things to make a soldier, and we’ll turn them into men,
And they’ll be taught to follow orders, keep the peace and guard the borders,
To protect us from marauders and defend us to the end.
But the position they’ll be filling is to be able and be willing
To be killed or do the killing when there’s a price that must be paid,
In the pursuit of a community of decency and unity
And equal opportunity, we stand prepared to fight,
And if there’s a threat to our position from aggressive opposition
Then, with guns and ammunition, we’ll repel with all our might.
We’ll dehumanize and hate them, send in the troops to decimate them,
As in the name of the nation all it stands for is betrayed,
Merely the whim or intuition of an elected politician
Makes a mêlée without condition as the monster leaves its cage.
It’s a machine that knows no quarter, dealing death and sowing slaughter,
Raping mothers, wives and daughters in an all-consuming rage.
We may well believe we need it, and we’ll pay to arm and feed it,
But can you tell me who will lead it when the decisions must be made?
Some will wonder what’s to fear, and say there is no danger here,
But there’s never been a year when soldiers haven’t been at war;
And the eternal executions and the bloody revolutions
And the ultimate solutions, too, have all been seen before.
And there’s always someone scheming, and some nights when I am dreaming,
In the distance I hear screaming, in my heart I feel afraid,
Here they come marching past the houses, shiny boots and khaki blouses,
Stiff as the creases in their trousers, standing tall and straight and strong,
And is it any cause for pride that now the women march beside them?
Will they have wiser gods to guide them in discerning right from wrong?
Cause every step is a reminder of the threat that lies behind
If we forget the ties that bind us when the decisive game is played,
And as the procession passes by, consider the sight before your eyes,
’Cause it’ll be you they’ll kill and die for when they are called to the crusade,
And you may love them and adore them, you may hate them and abhor them,
But for God’s sake don’t ignore them when the boys are on parade.”
“An acrobat is in full flight
The people gasp with great delight
I’m falling from my big trapeze
I’ve only left myself to please
Obsession can take many forms
But I wish I’d picked the other door
Obsession can take many forms
But I wish I’d picked the other door”
“Big Trapeze” by the Tiger & Me, a very underrated 2010’s Melbourne band.
Thank you for ‘When The Boys Are On Parade’, Dave – powerful lyrics married to a typical, almost ironically jaunty, folk-sounding melody.
Thanks for The Tiger and Me’s highly fitting (theme-wise) ‘Big Trapeze’, Luke – I like what I’ve heard of this band.
Season’s greetings KD
When a 20 year old Dylan arrived in New York in January 1961, he created several myths to differentiate himself from the other folkie wannabe’s in Greenwich Village. One myth was that he was orphaned when he was young and he rambled around with carnival troupes. He wrote a couple of songs that fed into the myth ~
Long Time Gone (demo written 1963 ~ eventually released in 2010)
‘I remember when I was ramblin’, around with the carnival trains
Different towns, different people, somehow they’re all the same
I remember children’s faces best, I remember travelin’ on
I’m a long time a-comin’, I’ll be a long time gone’
Dusty Old Fairgrounds (recorded live at April 1963 concert)
‘Oh, it’s pound down the rails and it’s tie down the tents
Get that canvas flag a-flying
Well, let the caterpillars spin, let the Ferris wheel wind
Following them fairgrounds a-calling’
Season’s greetings to you, too, Karl.
Thanks for these wonderfully (thematically) apt early Dylan songs – excellent ones to add to this songlist.
When posting Phil Ochs’ “parade” songs I had forgotten the title (and content) of Harry Chapin’s tribute song written after Phil’s suicide in 1976.
The Parade’s Still Passing By – Harry Chapin
“I got the news today
That you refused to play
Cause you never made number one
But it’s not just the words
It’s the deeds that are heard
When all is said and done
Kings take their crowns
They melt them all down
Trying to get the gold out
You went to hell and
Even when you weren’t selling
You never ever sold out.
You weren’t no leader
You were more like a bleeder
Who was trying to cry for us all
You weren’t no sage
But your sense of outrage
Sounded like a trumpet call
Fifteen years ago
In the old folky show
You were just one voice in the crowd
But now with so few singing
Your voice would have been ringing
Out ’bout twice as loud.
There but for fortune
Say a small circle of friends
Some may see the changes
So few see the ends
The pleasures of the harbor
Have come to you at last
You may not be marching anymore
But the parade’s still going past
I’m not taking the blame
That we killed you
You know you did that to yourself
But it was kind of a shame
That you played that game
Cause you were better than anyone else
One shot of your bottle
Got you full throttle
It was the friend that was always there
But your greatest gift
And the curse you lived with
Was that you could always care.”
Thanks for Harry Chapin’s ‘The Parade’s Still Passing By’, Dave – its connection to Phil Ochs is certainly a highly interesting one.
Have I stayed too long at the Fair – Barbra Streisand (written by Bill Barnes)
“I wanted the music to play on forever
Have I stayed too long at the fair?
I wanted the clown to be constantly clever
Have I stayed too long at the fair?
I bought me blue ribbons to tie up my hair
But I couldn’t find anybody to care
The merry-go-round is beginning to slow now
Have I stayed too long at the fair?
The music has stopped and the children must go now
Have I stayed too long at the fair?
Oh, mother dear, I know you’re very proud
Your little girl in gingham is so far above the crowd
No, daddy dear, you never could have known
That I would be successful yet so very much alone
I wanted to live in a carnival city
With laughter and love everywhere
I wanted my friends to be thrilling and witty
I wanted somebody to care
I found my blue ribbons all shiny and new
But now I discover them no longer blue
The merry-go-round is beginning to taunt me
Have I stayed too long at the fair?
There is nothing to win
And there’s no one to want me
Have I stayed too long at the fair?”
Cathy’s Clown – The Everly Brothers
Ha! Ha! Said the Clown – Manfred Mann
“Ha! Ha! said the clown, has the king lost his crown,
is the night being tight on romance.
Ha! Ha! said the clown, is it bringing you down
that you’ve lost your chance.”
Death of a Clown – The Kinks
“My makeup is dry and it cracks round my chin
I’m drowning my sorrows in whiskey and gin
The lion-tamer’s whip doesn’t crack anymore
The lions they won’t fight and the tigers won’t roar
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
So let’s all drink to the death of a clown
Won’t someone help me to break up this crown?
Let’s all drink to the death of a clown
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
Let’s all drink to the death of a clown”
Great selections, thanks Dave. I thought ‘Cathy’s Clown’ was a particularly fine pickup – in retrospect, one would think that this would’ve just about been first picked.
And with this offering, my Dylan cupboard is bare:
Queen Jane Approximately (1965 ~ Highway 61 Revisited album)
‘Now, when all the clowns that you have commissioned
Have died in battle or in vain
And you’re sick of all this repetition
Won’t you come see me, Queen Jane’
Happy Boxing Day, KD ~ ”tis a good day to bob & weave.
Thanks for ‘Queen Jane Approximately’, Karl – and happy Boxing Day to you, also.
way way way back in 1991, I wrote a song ~ it remains a home tape demo ~ but it fits this theme perfectly:
When The Circus Came To Town
‘When the circus came to town
Seemed like the whole world stopped
A boy of nine looked on
Dreaming of life under the big top/dreaming of life…..’
When they raised up the tent
It’s like it touches the sky
A boy of nine looked on
Wishing that he could fly/wishing that he could…..
When they took to the trapeze
And tumbled through the air
A boy of none looked on
Wondering if he would ever dare/wondering if he would……
When the ringmaster snapped the whip
It sent a shivering chill
Through a boy of none who looked on
Wondering when his dreams would be fulfilled/wondering when his dreams…..
Now as I look around the nineties
At the boys of nine
Electronic hands, video games
Never knowing the smile of the clown
Never knowing the frown of the clown
Like when the circus came to town’
Thanks for the self-penned ‘When The Circus Came To Town’, Karl – I like it!
There’s been a song that I knew was ‘on theme’ but it eluded me for the past week ~ perhaps it was teasing me/ just out of reach. Well, it revealed itself to me overnight ~ and I think it is a strange but dark beauty.
Fifi The Flea ~ by The Kinks ~ from their 1966 ‘Would You Believe’ album
‘Fifi the flea fell in love with a clown from a flea circus fair
She gave him her heart but he still couldn’t see
That for such a long time she had cared
He put himself ’round all the other girl fleas
Unaware that he hurt her so badly
She cried in the arms of his manager friend
And declared that she loved the clown madly’
‘One day Fifi went and this drove the clown wild’
………..
‘The day Fifi died the little clown vowed
He’d tend her grave every hour
He broke down and cried when he saw her grave
And on it he placed a small flower
Poor little flea he wasted away
He’d lost his Fifi forever
So they opened her grave, put him inside
Now at last they are together’
Thanks for ‘Fifi the Flea’, Karl – great pickup theme-wise (interesting little song, too), but The Hollies are the band, not The Kinks.
Thanks for the correction on Fifi The Flea. I was looking at Graham Nash’s name as vocalist and The Hollies as the band (obviously) ~ so where The Kinks came from?? I have no idea.
On that note, thanks for all the great music theme posts you have curated over the year. My favourite concerned ‘laughter’ but my all time favourite remains ‘cowbells’.
All the best for 2026 KD ~ may the music theme posts keep on rockin’ on.
Thank you for your kind words, Karl. In return, I have to say that your responses in terms of my themed Almanac music pieces have been consistently outstanding.
All the best for 2026 to you, also. In relation to my Almanac themed stuff, I certainly plan, to quote from that fine Michelle Shocked song, ‘Anchorage’, to ‘keep on rockin”.
Widdecombe Fair – English Folk Song (from Devon)
“Tom Pearce, Tom Pearce, lend me your grey mare.
All along, down along, out along lea.
For I want for to go to Widecombe Fair,
With Bill Brewer, Jan Stewer, Peter Gurney,
Peter Davy, Dan’l Whiddon, Harry Hawke,
Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all,
Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all.”
(This is the first verse, subsequent verses describe the sad fate of the horse. I first heard this song as a small boy in the 1950s on the ABC (radio) Children’s Hour)
Thanks for ‘Widdecombe Fair’, Dave, and thank you in general for your splendid contributions, often of a folk variety, to the themed Almanac songlists in 2025. I look forward to similarly fine contributions in the coming year. Cheers!
Little Wing, The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Well, she’s walkin’ through the clouds/With a circus mind that’s running ’round/Butterflies and zebras and moonbeams/And her fairy tales/That’s all she ever thinks about/Ridin’ with the wind)
Blinded By the Light, Bruce (Madman drummers, bummers and Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat/In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat/With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin’ kinda older, I tripped the merry-go-round/With this very unpleasing sneezing and wheezing, the calliope crashed to the ground)
The Unforgettable Fire, U2 (Carnival, the wheels fly and the colours spin through alcohol/Red wine that punctures the skin/Face to face in a dry and waterless place)
Bluegrass Festival in the Sky, Tom T Hall (In the sweet by and by at that Bluegrass Festival in the sky/There’ll be Monroe Flatt Scruggs and the Stanleys/The Lonesome Pine Fiddlers and the whole McGranner’s Family/Molly and the Stonemans and Martin and Crow/Dillard and Thompson and Smiley and Reno)
The Windmills of Your Mind, Noel Harrison (Round like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel/Never ending or beginning on an ever-spinning reel/Like a snowball down a mountain or a carnival balloon/Like a carousel that’s turning, running rings around the moon)
Thanks, Rick, for these most welcome, interesting and highly fitting additions to the carnivalesque theme. To single out just one, ‘The Windmills of Your Mind’ – now there’s a song that been in my consciousness since childhood, even if it’s just lingered in a beguiling, haunting way somewhere in the background.
NOTE: I plan to launch a new song theme in our long-running series on Friday 16 January.
Hey KD
Another songwriter has passed this past week ~ Tucker Zimmerrman (age 84). He was an interesting character and an equally interesting songwriter.
One of his earliest works is a song called: Upsidedown Circus World (from his debut 1969 ‘Ten Songs’ album)
“Step right up,” the circus man shouts
Shoving a program into your mouth
“Last chance to see what few have witnessed before”
Freaks to keep the children frightened
People in back rows always fightin’
Perpetual war in an upsidedown circus world
Thanks for this Zimmerrmann (different spelling to our friend Bob) song, Karl – it does appear to be an interesting one.
My recent entry on ‘instruments; from Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’. also lends itself to this theme with these wonderfully crafted lyrics:
:’There is a girl in New York City who calls herself the human trampoline
And sometimes when I’m falling, flying or tumbling in turmoil I say
“Whoa, so this is what she means”‘
Really top-notch pickup, Karl. Thanks for this.