The Clown

The Clown is an album by Charles Mingus, released in September 1957 on Atlantic Records as SD-1260. It is the follow-up to 1956's Pithecanthropus Erectus and features the improvised narration of Jean Shepherd. A deluxe edition of The Clown was issued in 2000 on Rhino featuring two bonus tracks. All the tracks were recorded on March 12, 1957, except for "The Clown", recorded on February 13 of the same year. According to Nat Hentoff's liner notes, Mingus explained why he chose those four tracks for the album: "I selected these four over two others that were more intricate because some of those guys had been saying that I didn't swing. So I made some that did. This album also has the first blues I've made on record." Notes about the tracks The following excerpts come from the original liner notes and are statements made by Mingus himself. On "Haitian Fight Song", Mingus said "I'd say this song has a contemporary folk feeling. My solo in it is a deeply concentrated one. I can't play it right unless I'm thinking about prejudice and hate and persecution, and how unfair it is. There's sadness and cries in it, but also determination. And it usually ends with my feeling: 'I told them! I hope somebody heard me.’ ".