A KOOL Day for Music

Song that started out as an instrumental that was used as background music for an office Christmas party.

Smokey Robinson & The Miracles

Tears of a Clown

Song that came from a collaboration with Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder and Henry Cosby, a songwriter, musician, arranger and producer for Stevie Wonder.

It was Wonder who wrote the music and brought the instrumental track to the 1966 Motown Christmas party because he couldn’t come up with a lyric to fit the tune. As you can imagine when you bring an unfinished song to a party filled with creative and talented musicians, the song will be finished by the end of the night.

It was Smokey Robinson who compared it to an Italian opera and wrote the lyrics. In an interview, Robinson said that it sounded to him like something you might hear at a circus.

The song was first used for the 1967 album ‘Make It Happen’ but was not released as a single.

It was released when Robinson announced that he was leaving The Miracles to focus on his family and as vice-president of Motown Records. The lable wanting to capitlaize on the group’s earlier work, released ‘Tears of a Clown.’

The song quickly shot up to number one on the American Pop and R&B charts and an international million-seller.