"Littlest Things" | ||||
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Single by Lily Allen | ||||
from the album Alright, Still | ||||
B-side | "U Killed It" "Everybody's Changing" |
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Released | 11 December 2006 | |||
Format | CD single, digital download, 7" | |||
Genre | R&B | |||
Length | 3:02 | |||
Label | Regal | |||
Writer(s) | Lily Allen, Mark Ronson, Pierre Bachelet, Santi White, Herve Roy | |||
Producer(s) | Mark Ronson | |||
Lily Allen singles chronology | ||||
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"Littlest Things" is a song by British recording artist Lily Allen from her debut studio album, Alright, Still. Written by Allen, Mark Ronson and Santi White, the song was released as the third single of the album on 11 December 2006 by Regal Recordings. It incorporates a piano sample from Pierre Bachelet and Herve Roy's music from Emmanuelle, for which they were credited as co-writers, as the lyrics tackle the singer dealing with the departure of her boyfriend, while reminiscing about their time together. The song was created in a New York studio, after Allen had met Ronson, who was impressed by her previous work and offered her different samples.
Contemporary critics gave the song mixed reviews, some claiming it to be Allen's sweetest lyrical moments, while others accuse it of being a fraud. The single peaked at number twenty-one on the UK Singles Chart, being her first single not to reach the top twenty in the United Kingdom. The accompanying music video portrayed a view over the mundane moments of a dying relationship, with Allen watching herself and her ex-boyfriend together. It was directed by Nima Nourizadeh and was mainly shot in black and white. The song was performed live during her 2007 concert tour and also during her 2009 concert tour.
After obtaining commercial success with first two singles, "Smile" and "LDN", Allen decided to promote the album by releasing "Littlest Things". The song was composed in New York, where Allen travelled after she had met producer Mark Ronson when at lunch with her then boyfriend, Seb. There, she told him she was a singer and gave him a copy of her demo CD. He was impressed by her song "Smile" and asked her to work together. Regarding the process of composing the song, Ronson stated:
We spent a day together and worked on a couple of things, and went to record shops where I played samples to her. Then I wrote the piano and guitar bit to "Littlest Things", and she sat down and scribbled for about an hour and finished the lyrics. We went into the booth to record the song. She originally wanted to do a Mike Skinner thing, rapping the verse and singing the chorus. But I asked her to sing it all, and she just made up the whole melody on the spot, and sang this amazing solo. At that moment I realised that this girl has a really special gift.