"Beautiful Lies" is a song written by

Jack Rhodes Andrew Jackson "Jack" Rhodes (January 12, 1907 – October 9, 1968) was an American country music producer and songwriter, with songwriting credits on over 625 released songs. Several of his songs became hit records, including " A Satisfied Mi ...

and recorded by American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

singer

Jean Shepard Ollie Imogene "Jean" Shepard (November 21, 1933 – September 25, 2016), was an American country singer who was considered one of the genre's first significant female artists. Her commercial success ran from the 1950s to the 1970s while also be ...

. It was released in September 1955 by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

. It became Shepard's fifth top ten single on the US country chart in her career and was given positive reception by critics.

Background, recording and content

Jean Shepard recorded a pair of duets with

Ferlin Husky Ferlin Eugene Husky (December 3, 1925 – March 17, 2011) was an American country music singer who was equally adept at honky-tonk, ballads, spoken recitations, rockabilly and pop tunes. From 1948 to 1953, he recorded under the stage name Terry ...

in 1953 ("

A Dear John Letter "A Dear John Letter", or "Dear John" is a popular country music song written by Billy Barton, Fuzzy Owen and Lewis Talley. It was popularized by Ferlin Husky and Jean Shepard, and was a crossover country-pop hit in 1953. The song played on the c ...

" and " Forgive Me, John") that both became commercial successes. As a solo artist, she had her first commercial success with 1955's "

A Satisfied Mind "A Satisfied Mind" is a country music song written by Joe "Red" Hayes and Jack Rhodes. Hayes explained the origin of the song in an interview: "The song came from my mother. Everything in the song are things I heard her say over the years. I put ...

". This would be followed the same year by "Beautiful Lies". The song was composed by

. The song's main character insists he tells her words she wants to hear even if he does not believe them himself. Shepard recorded the track at

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

Capitol Studios Capitol Studios is a recording studio located at the landmark Capitol Records Building in Hollywood, California, United States. The studios, which opened in 1956, were initially the primary recording studios for the American record label Capi ...

in April 1955. The session was produced by Ken Nelson.

Release, critical reception and chart performance

"Beautiful Lies" was released by Capitol Records as a seven-inch vinyl record single in September 1955. On the A side was the track " I Thought of You". The song received a positive reception following its release. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' magazine described the track as "feelingful". When reviewing Shepard's box set ''The Melody Ranch Girl'' (which featured "Beautiful Lies"),

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's Thom Owens wrote that Shepard's performance on the track was full of "fiery, passionate honky tonk". Shepard herself said of the track, "I like the song but I had a lot that I liked better." "Beautiful Lies" made a higher position on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' country chart than its A-side "I Thought of You". Entering the chart in October 1955, "Beautiful Lies" reached the number four position later that year. It became her fifth top ten ''Billboard'' country single and third as a solo artist.

Track listing

7" vinyl single * " I Thought of You" – 2:35 * "Beautiful Lies" – 2:46

Charts

References

{{authority control 1955 songs 1955 singles Capitol Records singles Jean Shepard songs Songs written by Jack Rhodes Song recordings produced by Ken Nelson (American record producer)