Little White Lies is a popular jazz standard written by Walter Donaldson and published in 1930. The original recording was by Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians on the Victor label, with Clare Hanlon and The Waring Girls, recorded July 25, 1930. The tune quickly became a standard and was covered by many artists in 1930 including Ted Wallace, Earl Burtnett, Johnny Marvin, Marion Harris, Lee Morse, Jesse Crawford, Vincent Lopez, Harry Reser, and Annette Hanshaw, with Bob and Alf Pearson in Britain. A major hit version came in 1947 by Dick Haymes on Decca, which reached #3 on the Billboard chart and sold over a million copies; later notable recordings include Dinah Shore in 1948. The song has also been performed by Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb (1939), Moon Mullican with Cliff Bruner (1939), Betty Johnson (1957), Ruby Murray (1957), and Eartha Kitt (1963). Paul McCartney has cited it as a favorite of his and John Lennon’s from their Liverpool days. The tune remains a jazz and pop standard and has appeared on many albums and compilations rather than a single original album.
