"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. Eddy Quintela, who at the time was married to McVie, was listed as one of the songwriters on "Little Lies". McVie stated in an interview with MOJO that his role in the creation of "Little Lies" was minimal and that the lyrical content did not relate to him. She wrote some of the counter-vocals over an existing Buckingham composition. She discussed the meaning of the lyrics in an interview with Timothy White.
The idea of the lyric is: If I had the chance, I'd do it differently next time. But since I can't, just carry on lying to me and I'll believe, even though I know you're lying.
Similar to the rest of the songs on Tango in the Night, "Little Lies" was recorded on a Sony two-track digital machine for the purpose of preserving the sound of the original tracks. During the mastering process, some glitches in the audio arose from some of the manual tape splices that had been conducted to piece different sections together. Greg Droman, who served as an audio engineer for the Tango in the Night sessions, believed that some glitches on "Little Lies" were left unresolved on the released version. "There's something on one song — I think it's 'Little Lies'. You could easily say 'Oh that's a hi-hat.' But it's not. I know it's not."
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 created by John Benitez, also known as Jellybean. The other B-sides included a dub version of "Little Lies" and the song "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.
Cash Box said that "McVie's songwriting ability combined with Lindsey Buckingham's production assistance provide a extremely likeable hit-to-be." Andrew Male of MOJO identified "Little Lies" as one of the two biggest highlights on Tango in the Night along with "Everywhere". The Guardian and Paste ranked the song number 21 and number 29 respectively on their lists of the 30 greatest Fleetwood Mac songs.
Fleetwood Mac - Little Lies (Official Music Video) [HD]
