FAWM: "Little Lies"

Little Lies

1 week ago by @edwinb

Little Lies

edwinb

00:00

Liner Notes

No, not the Fleetwood Mac song, but a #pratchett reference, based on an interaction between Susan and Death at the end of Hogfather. I borrowed (okay, stole) a little bit of Pratchett's writing for the bridge. I hope he wouldn't have minded that sort of thing. I had a bit of a lyric writing binge at the weekend so I'm glad to get them all recorded now!

It's mostly a #ukulele or two, and it was going to have more synths, for no real reason, but it wasn't really working so I went back to the old devil's bagpipes for the solo. Definitely calling this #filk.

Lyrics

A tooth under the pillow will earn a little treat The fairy will retrieve it while you're fast asleep Don't ask why she needs it that's not for us to know A greater power's working and you have to let it go

We tell the kids these little lies So the big ones come as less of a surprise

Like Justice and Mercy, Duty and Trust We still believe in them because we know we must We believe in doing things that can't be done We believe so that one day they'll become

Do you hear the sleigh bells as they're passing overhead Father Christmas only comes for those who go to bed Do the dishes, do the dusting, got to mop the kitchen floor Work hard and be obedient and you'll get your reward

We tell the kids these little lies So the big ones come as less of a surprise

Like Justice and Mercy, Duty and Trust We still believe in them because we know we must We believe in doing things that can't be done We believe so that one day they'll become

Fantasy and freedom, a moment to escape Where the falling angel meets the rising ape

We tell the kids these little lies So the big ones come as less of a surprise

Like Justice and Mercy, Duty and Trust We still believe in them because we know we must We believe in doing things that can't be done We believe so that one day they'll become

Justice and Mercy, Duty and Trust We still believe in them because we know we must We believe in doing things that can't be done We believe so that one day they'll become

Comments

@philkmills 2d

I do like playing with the idea of things manifesting when enough people believe (also with the personification of ideals).

The tempo and energy here made this a lot more positive than I expected given the title and the "We tell the kids these little lies So the big ones come as less of a surprise" section.

@gindark 3d

Ahh! This would meet with his approval if he heard it at a convention, I'm sure. I'm feeling a little misty eyed but I'm the sort who has bought the Shepherd's Crown but still hasn't quite managed to bring themseves read it. 🥲 You've managed to capture some of his best qualities in here. I could see this being played at Discworld, the Musical etc.

@jess 5d

Ah it was already great and then the harmonica came in !! Thank you! really enjoyed this :-)

@eringoblog 1w

Love the lyric and the jaunty tune! I'm another one that needs to get around to Discworld. (I'm sure I'll love it...it's just kind of intimidating. lol.)

@davidtaro 1w

You had me at Pratchett… that falling angel/rising ape line is a prime example of the man’s utter genius. Your lines are awesome too - they really chimed because my kids are on the downslope of believing some of these things (i.e. they don’t really believe, but they pretend to because they like the perks). You’ve nailed that sense that we have these traditions basically to incentivise socially acceptable behaviours. That’s pretty classy and complicated stuff to be putting in a three and a half minute uke singalong, so hats very much off to you sir.

@daveescoffery 1w

Great lyrics. I haven't read any Pratchett beyond Good Omens, but I'll get around to Discworld at some point. You get a lot of sound out of those ukuleles, and your melody flows so nicely.