This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
They have killed the great sun jester
Who danced between the stars
They have striped him of his manhood
Signs of Venus and of Mars
The cynics left him weapin'
And the jackals left him torn
And the jester reaches out blight
As he can touch the stars no more
And he took the stars in his hand
And as he scattered then he shout
I'm the joker of the universe
I'm what it's all about
And he's got it in his dream
And the hard man drag it out
The have killed the wild eyed jester
They have killed the fire clown
Now is blind I seek the star light
And his fingers seek controls
To take him into space again
Where he was both young and old
The dancers stiffed with pain
And they made him neal to long
And the madness the have driven out
They have left him cold
And singed
And he took the stars in his hand
And as he scattered then he shout
I'm the joker of the universe
I'm what it's all about
And he's got it in his dream
And the hard man drag it out
The have killed the wild eyed jester
They have killed the fire clown
He'll never sing his songs again
He'll never dance between the stars again
He'll never laugh again
No he'll never ever laugh again
Oh, no
He'll never again
He'll never again
He'll never again
Who danced between the stars
They have striped him of his manhood
Signs of Venus and of Mars
The cynics left him weapin'
And the jackals left him torn
And the jester reaches out blight
As he can touch the stars no more
And he took the stars in his hand
And as he scattered then he shout
I'm the joker of the universe
I'm what it's all about
And he's got it in his dream
And the hard man drag it out
The have killed the wild eyed jester
They have killed the fire clown
Now is blind I seek the star light
And his fingers seek controls
To take him into space again
Where he was both young and old
The dancers stiffed with pain
And they made him neal to long
And the madness the have driven out
They have left him cold
And singed
And he took the stars in his hand
And as he scattered then he shout
I'm the joker of the universe
I'm what it's all about
And he's got it in his dream
And the hard man drag it out
The have killed the wild eyed jester
They have killed the fire clown
He'll never sing his songs again
He'll never dance between the stars again
He'll never laugh again
No he'll never ever laugh again
Oh, no
He'll never again
He'll never again
He'll never again
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“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
According to a book about BOC that I read a year or two ago, this is a novel related song. The Great Sun Jester and the Fireclown feature in Michael Moorcocks stories "The Fireclown" and "The Transformation of Mavis Ming."
m.m. also wrote lyrics for "veteran of the psychic wars".<br /> eric bloom once wrote m.m. a fan letter, suggesting he write some lyrics for b.o.c.