The Ballad of Grimaldi Lyrics

Lyric discussion by RottenLuckWillie 

Cover art for The Ballad of Grimaldi lyrics by Peter Doherty

Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837) was the world's first 'white-face' clown. He took the character of 'Clown' from a style of play called a Harlequinade, originally a country bumpkin fool character Grimaldi gave him the painted face and brightly coloured colthes we know as clowns today. Grimaldi was, quite simply, a comedy genius.

Joseph's father, Jo Grimaldi, was a strict teacher who used to savagely beat Joseph as a child when he made mistakes in the routines. As a result Joseph grew up a manic depressive, giving rise to the legend of the brilliant entertainer who was a depressive in his private life. A pattern that has repeated itself over the centuries. The love of Grimaldi's life died giving birth. He never recovered from this.

St Jude is the patron saint of hopeless cases.

The song is a lament, a hopeless case of being in love with someone you can never have and hiding your sadness behind a wall of laughter. Clever and very effective.