The Tears of a Clown

"The Tears of a Clown"
Single by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
from the album Make It Happen (aka The Tears of a Clown)
B-side	"Promise Me"
Released	July 1970 (UK) September 24, 1970 (US)
Recorded	1967[1]
Studio	Hitsville U.S.A. (Studio A), Detroit
Genre	Soul pop[2]
Length	3:02
Label	Tamla T 54199
Songwriter(s)	Hank Cosby Smokey Robinson Stevie Wonder
Producer(s)	Hank Cosby and Smokey Robinson
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles singles chronology
"Who's Gonna Take the Blame" (1970) "The Tears of a Clown" (1970) "I Don't Blame You at All" (1971)
Music video
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - "The Tears Of A Clown" on YouTube

"The Tears of a Clown" is a song written by Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder and originally recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles for the Tamla Records label subsidiary of Motown, first appearing on the 1967 album Make It Happen. The track was re-released in the United Kingdom as a single in July 1970, and it became a number-one hit on the UK Singles Chart for the week ending September 12, 1970. Subsequently, Motown released a partially re-recorded and completely remixed version as a single in the United States as well, where it quickly became a number-one hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B Singles charts.^[3]

This song is an international multi-million seller and a 2002 Grammy Hall of Fame inductee. Its success led Miracles lead singer, songwriter, and producer Smokey Robinson, who had announced plans to leave the act, to stay until 1972. In 2021, it was listed at No. 313 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".^[4]