The Greatest Show On Earth were originally formed in 1968 by guitarist Gart… Read Full Bio ↴The Greatest Show On Earth were originally formed in 1968 by guitarist Garth-Roy and his bass-playing brother Norman. The original line-up included organist Mick Deacon, drummer Ron Prudence and three horns players, Dick Hanson, Tex Phillpotts and Ian Aitcheson. The band's first vocalist was black American Ozzie Lane but he returned to his native New Orleans a year later and was replaced by Colin Horton-Jennings, not only a strong gravel-voiced singer but also quite adept on the guitar, bongos and flute. The group's mixture of R&B soul, jazz and prog rock brought them to the attention of EMI's progressive label Harvest Records, who signed the band and issued, in february 1970, the single, "Real Cool World"/"Again And Again" which, though not a hit in the UK, gave the band a medium-sized hit across Europe where they were also an in-demand live attraction. Both tracks featured on their March 1970 debut LP, "Horizons" which was housed in a distinctive sleeve designed by Hipgnosis and coincided with a Radio One session for Mike Harding on which they played three new songs: "Borderline", "Mountain Song" and "Time". A second session for Harding, in November 1970, featured "The Leader" and "Check Me Into Your Life", the latter of which has never officially been released. "Tell The Story"/"The Mountain Song" had failed to chart when released in September 1970, and the same fate awaited the band's second album "The Going's Easy" though one track from the LP, "Magic Woman Touch" was later released by The Hollies.

The lack of chart success contributed to the band splitting in mid-1971. Ron Prudence, Ian Aitcheson and Tex Phillpotts quit music altogether, whilst Horton-Jennings joined Chaser and later turned up in Tagget releasing one self-titled album for EMI in 1974. Dick Hanson turned to session work and recorded with the likes of The Blues Band, Graham Parker, Dave Edmunds, Kirsty McColl and Shakin' Stevens. Mike Deacon joined Vinegar Joe and then became a member of both the Suzi Quatro Band and Darts. Norman Watt-Roy formed Glencoe releasing two albums for Epic, "Glencoe" and "The Spirit Of Glencoe". He then formed Loving Awareness, releasing one self-titled LP in 1976 for More Love Records, before the band eventually evolved into The Blockheads, the backing band for Ian Dury. Today he is a member of the Wilko Johnson Band. Garth Watt-Roy joined Fuzzy Duck before undertaking session work for the likes of East of Eden, Limey and Bonnie Tyler as well as being a member of Marmelade, The Q-Tips and The Barron Knights.

I Fought for Love
The Greatest Show on Earth Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me
I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me

The judge me on my back town past
You treat me like I'm second last
See the tables turning now

And I don't need you anyhow

Follow my philosophies
I'm just a man, I want to be free
My future sell me copies of my past
I've got to make every second last

I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me
I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me

You say you changed your point of view
Take a chance our luck will see it through
Confusion leaves you running blind
You're out of date and left behind

I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me
I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me

I fought for love
Fought for you fought for me

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to "I Fought for Love" by The Greatest Show on Earth express the theme of fighting for love and personal freedom. The song seems to be addressing a specific person who judges the singer based on their past, and treats them poorly. The singer is tired of this treatment and realizes that they don't need this person in their life. They express their desire for personal freedom and the ability to create their own future without being weighed down by their past.

The line "follow my philosophies, I'm just a man, I want to be free" suggests that the singer has their own ideas and beliefs that they want to live by. They don't want to be constrained by anyone or anything, and they want to live their life on their own terms. The final verse suggests that the person being addressed in the song is trying to come back into the singer's life after realizing they made a mistake. However, the singer is not interested in giving them another chance since they have moved on and grown from the experience.

Overall, "I Fought for Love" is a song about resilience, independence, and the ability to fight for what you believe in. The song encourages listeners to stand up for themselves and not let others hold them back from pursuing their dreams.

Line by Line Meaning

I fought for love
I put effort into my romantic relationship

Fought for you fought for me
We both struggled to keep our love alive

The judge me on my back town past
People judge me based on my past mistakes

You treat me like I'm second last
You don't value me as much as you should

See the tables turning now
The situation has changed in my favor

And I don't need you anyhow
I can make it on my own without you

Follow my philosophies
Live by my beliefs and principles

I'm just a man, I want to be free
I am just a human and I desire freedom

My future sell me copies of my past
My past continues to impact my present and future

I've got to make every second last
I need to cherish every moment

You say you changed your point of view
You claim to have a new perspective on things