Little Lies

"Little Lies"
Single by Fleetwood Mac
from the album Tango in the Night
B-side"Ricky"
ReleasedAugust 1987
Genre
Length3:39
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Fleetwood Mac singles chronology
"Seven Wonders"
(1987) 		"Little Lies"
(1987) 		"Everywhere"
(1987)
Music video
"Little Lies" on YouTube

"Little Lies" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac from their 14th studio album, Tango in the Night (1987). It was written by band member Christine McVie and her then-husband, Eddy Quintela, with lead vocals performed primarily by McVie; the chorus features backing vocals by Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. The song was released in August 1987 by Warner Bros. Records, as the third single from Tango in the Night. McVie recalled that she wrote the song at her pool with a pad and paper; while Quintela was listed as one of the songwriters, McVie stated in an interview with MOJO that his role in the creation of "Little Lies" was minimal.[1]

On its release, the single stayed at number one for four weeks on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and number four on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1987. It was the third of four US Top 20 hits (and highest charting) from Tango in the Night. It was the band's last top-ten hit in the US. The single also reached number five on the UK Singles Chart, where it has since achieved 2× Platinum status. "Little Lies" continues to be played on radio stations as a classic hit of the late 1980s, along with "Everywhere" and "Seven Wonders", both of which are from Tango in the Night. "Little Lies" was also accompanied by a music video, filmed on a farm, in and around its rustic buildings and fields.

The single was also available on the 12" single format, featuring an extended dance version, a dub version and its B-side, "Ricky", a non-album track penned by McVie and Buckingham. A limited 12" picture disc was also released in the United Kingdom, and it was the first Fleetwood Mac single to be issued on the cassette single format.

Critical reception

Cash Box said that "McVie's songwriting ability combined with Lindsey Buckingham's production assistance provide a extremely likeable hit-to-be."[2] The Guardian and Paste ranked the song number 21 and number 29 respectively on their lists of the 30 greatest Fleetwood Mac songs.[3][4]

Track listing and formats

  • US 12" vinyl single (Warner Bros. Records 0-20761)
  1. "Little Lies" (Extended version) – 6:07
  2. "Little Lies" (Dub version) – 4:04
  3. "Ricky" – 4:21
  • UK 7" vinyl single (Warner Bros. Records W 8291)
  1. "Little Lies" – 3:38
  2. "Ricky" – 4:21

Personnel

Charts

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for "Little Lies"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[31] Gold 45,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] 2× Platinum 1,200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Hilary Duff version

"Little Lies"
Promotional single by Hilary Duff
ReleasedJanuary 13, 2016 (2016-01-13)
Recorded2015
Genre
Length3:23
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Music video
"Little Lies" (Younger Promo) on YouTube

Hilary Duff recorded a cover of the song, produced by Peer Åström and Adam Anders, in promotion of the second season of her TV Land comedy series, Younger.[33] It was released January 13, 2016 through RCA Records and Sony Music Entertainment.[34]

Background and recording

"TV Land called me," Duff told People, "They were like, 'We want you to cover a song for the promos for the second season.' And I’m like, 'Oh my God. Yes, of course, I would love to.'"[35] A preview of her rendition of the song was made available through the magazine in December 2015. The recording was produced by Peer Åström and Adam Anders, with vocal engineering and production from Alex Anders, the same team responsible for the music behind the popular Fox musical comedy-drama, Glee.[35]

Duff's recording has been described as synthpop,[33][36] with additional influences of dance genres,[35] especially dubstep.[37][38]

Critical reception

Duff's genre-altering recording of "Little Lies" has received mixed reviews from critics. "This cover doesn’t work for me," writes Mike Wass of Idolator, "The plodding electronic production ... completely overwhelms Fleetwood Mac’s delicate Tango In The Night smash and makes the "Sparks" diva sound like Siri's older sister."[39] However, Lucas Villa of AXS TV was more complimentary, writing that Duff "rises above the synths to emerge as the dance floor queen she's been since the release of her 2007 album, Dignity."[38]

Release history

Country Date Format Label
Worldwide January 13, 2016 Digital download
Russia[40] February 19, 2016 Sony

References

  1. ^ Male, Andrew (7 December 2023). "Christine McVie Remembered: "I'm good at pathos. I write about romantic despair a lot"". MOJO. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  2. ^ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. August 29, 1987. p. 8. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
  3. ^ Petridis, Alexis (19 May 2022). "Fleetwood Mac's 30 greatest songs – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  4. ^ Mitchell, Matt (7 August 2023). "The 30 Greatest Fleetwood Mac Songs". Paste. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  5. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 113. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid-1983 and 12 June 1988.
  6. ^ "austriancharts.at Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies"" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  7. ^ "ultratop.be Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies"" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  8. ^ "Top Singles – Volume 47, No. 7". RPM. 21 November 1987. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  9. ^ "Adult Contemporary – Volume 47, No. 7". RPM. 21 November 1987. Archived from the original on 14 March 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  10. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Fleetwood Mac". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 81. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  11. ^ "Search the Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original (enter "Fleetwood Mac" into the "Search by Artist" box, then select "Search") on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  12. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Fleetwood Mac" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  13. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies"" (ASP). Hung Medien. MegaCharts. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  14. ^ "charts.nz Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies"" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  15. ^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  16. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies" – hitparade.ch" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  17. ^ "Fleetwood Mac > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  18. ^ "Fleetwood Mac Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  19. ^ "Fleetwood Mac Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  20. ^ "Fleetwood Mac Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  21. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending October 24, 1987". Cash Box magazine. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  22. ^ "Single Search: Fleetwood Mac – "Little Lies"" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 20 February 2013.[dead link‍]
  23. ^ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  24. ^ "Australian Music Report No 701 – 28 December 1987 > National Top 100 Singles for 1987". Kent Music Report, via Imgur.com. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  25. ^ "Top Singles – Volume 47, No. 12; Top 100 Single of 1987". RPM. 26 December 1987. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  26. ^ "European Charts of the Year 1987: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 26 December 1987. p. 34. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  27. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1987" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  28. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1987" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  29. ^ "Gallup Year End Charts 1987: Singles". Record Mirror. 23 January 1988. p. 36.
  30. ^ a b Nielsen Business Media, Inc (26 December 1987). Billboard Magazine – Year End Charts – Year-end Charts of 1987. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  31. ^ "Danish single certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Little Lies". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved October 3, 2024.
  32. ^ "British single certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Little Lies". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  33. ^ a b Strecker, Erin (December 16, 2015). "Hilary Duff Brings Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies' to the Dance Floor: Listen". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  34. ^ "Little Lies – Single by Hilary Duff". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. 13 January 2016. Archived from the original on May 2, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  35. ^ a b c Maslow, Nick (December 16, 2015). "Surprise – Hilary Duff Debuts Crazy-Catchy Cover of Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies' for Younger". People. Time Inc. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  36. ^ Grebey, James (December 16, 2015). "Hmmmm… Hilary Duff Recorded a Synth-Pop Cover of Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies'". Spin. SpinMedia. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  37. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (December 16, 2015). "Hilary Duff's Dubstep Cover of Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies': Listen". Fuse. Fuse Networks, LLC. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  38. ^ a b Villa, Lucas (December 16, 2015). "Listen: Hilary Duff takes Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies' to the club". AXS TV. 2929 Entertainment. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  39. ^ Wass, Mike (December 16, 2015). "Hilary Duff Delivers An Electro-Pop Cover Of Fleetwood Mac's "Little Lies"". Idolator. Hive Media. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  40. ^ "Hilary Duff — Little Lies". Tophit.
  • The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition, 1996