The circus caught on fire and all the children cried
the smokey veils like fairy tales that every parent and their
parent lie to kids about but as the flames licked the sky
and hometown died a little more

“let’s roast some weenies” Jumpy said, but he was just crackin’ wise
I smelled the smoke and I smelled the dead and I watched the dragonflies
dive at the tigershed – they circled us like scavengers overhead
what will the juggler do the night is so lonely
she never learned to read or write in school
charred costumes in runes on the ground, music man’s head hangin’ down
the fire consumes his piano like a hungry jewel
thalidomide boys not weeping, the bearded lady sheds her skin
they bite the hand that feeds them – we might be laughing
but they’re smackin’ the clowns

the circus caught on fire the canvas cavin’ in
the big top like an elephant whose bones could not support the skin
and the faceless mass, the working class broke down and cried a little more
well me and Jumpy were kids – we’d never learn
no money no tickets, so whenever their backs were turned we’d dive down
dive belly down cut and cross, safe on that sawdust floor
disasters unflattering light stark faces starless sight
the beauty of the night has disappeared
winkled with mileage racked with the sores
no time for the make-up man the famished fire roars
the line between illusion now scarred and smeared
sideshow pinhead blows his whistle
the two-headed dog breaks down the bars
they attack the puppetmaster, we might be laughing
but they’re smackin’ the clowns
in all the confusion I felt selfish and bitter we all have to grow up
but why here, why now these fearless performers-
now just pitiful people afraid and ashamed and all asking “how?”
but maybe the old cliché isn’t far from true, maybe there’s
a silver lining, the circus lives on inside us

the circus caught on fire the animals raising hell
scratching and clawing their way to freedom- a matter of kill or be killed
and the rest of the world was standin’ still but starting to slide a little more
I went to clown college and Jumpy went to Nam
he wrote me a letter before he got wasted- he caught that napalm bomb
now I put on my white face and I sing my silly song
but the good times have come
and gone sometimes I remember that town I still see it burning
before they built this booze bottle parking lot
whatever happened to that traveling show it
look something out of me nobody knows
and left me with my memories- that’s all I got