Sideshow (song)

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Composed By Vinnie Barrett/Bobby Eli.

MFSB guitarist Bobby Eli was writing songs with Gwen Woolfolk, who used the pen name Vinnie Barrett, when she suggested that they take a break to clear their heads. They went to an antique museum and were captivated by the vintage circus toys. The experience sparked a song idea for a circus/romance metaphor. The tender, melancholy ballad "Sideshow" took about four months to finish. One night around midnight, Eli and Woolfolk were watching TV in Eli's apartment when producer/guitarist Norman Harris came by. The two let Harris hear "Sideshow" and Harris said that he'd like to record the song with the group Blue Magic. Beginning with a circus barker's invitation, the airy slow jam is one of pop music's most affecting ballads. From the Blue Magic LP, "Sideshow" sold over a million copies, going to number one R&B and number eight pop in the summer of 1974. The follow-up was the similarly themed "Three Ring Circus." Eli and Woolfolk also collaborated on another million-selling Philly soul ballad "Love Won't Let Me Wait" by former Delfonics member Major Harris.