Liar, Liar

Another look back the Mid-America music scene. One Twin-Cities based group that had a Top-40 hit in the mid-sixties was The Castaways. Liar, Liar was on the soundtrack of the 1987 film Good Morning Vietnam and was later covered by Debby Harry in bizarre 80s-pop. Her version also had some success on the charts. The band I'm in (who will be playing at our 50th high school reunion) will be including it in our local music set, so we had to learn it. The lyrics aren’t exactly “deep”:

Liar, liar, pants on fire
Your nose is longer than a telephone wire

Ask me, baby, why I'm sad
You've been out all night, know you've been bad
Don't tell me different, know it's a lie
Come to me me, honey, see how I cry

Why must you hurt me, do what you do
Listen here, girl, can't you see I love you
Make a little effort, try to be true
I'll be happy, not so blue

Liar, liar, pants on fire
Your nose is longer than a telephone wire

If you keep on tellin' me those lies
Still goin' out with other guys
There'll come a day when I'll be gone
Take my advice, it won't be long

When that day comes, won't be mad
Be free of you, but I'll still be sad
In spite of your cheatin', still love you so
I'll be unhappy I let you go

Liar, liar, pants on fire
Your nose is longer than a telephone wire…

It’s easy to see why the girl in the song would be tempted to cheat on such a immature, self-centered whiner!

The tune, however, was unique and one of the better pop songs of that era: with a chorus that everybody knew from childhood, a catchy guitar riff, and an ominous organ bridge after each verse. After it hit, The Castaways went out to California and appeared on several television teen-music shows and even had a cameo in the legendary film It’s a Bikini World.

Here's an awkward video from 1965 featuring the Castaways on the short-lived teen-age soap opera Never Too Young featuring Tony Dow (Wally from Leave it to Beaver):



UPDATE: As of 2024, they are still playing: