I beg your pardon, hello darlin'
This is me you're talkin' to
Sit down and tell me about it
And you don't have to shout it at me
Tell me what you really want to do
Don't give me no alibis
No untrue stories you're tryin' ta justify
Don't want no alibis
Just another reason for another lie
Mountain gets steeper, the hole you dig gets deeper
You better stop, climb out (yeah)
Tryin' to give it all to you (all to you, but baby)
Baby, I can see right through you
Sometimes you lose what it's all about
Don't give me no alibis
Can't go through life (through life) tryin' ta justify (justify)
Don't want no alibis
Just another reason for another lie
Don't give me no alibis
No untrue stories you're tryin' ta justify
Don't want no alibis
Just another reason for another lie (lie)
The mountain gets steeper, the hole you dig is gettin' deeper
You better reach and pull yourself out
No one's ever gonna love you the way that I love you
I never want to see you doin' without
Don't give me no alibis
No untrue stories you're tryin' ta justify
Don't want no alibis
Just another reason for another lie (alibis)
No untrue stories you're tryin' ta justify
Don't want no alibis
Just another reason (reason) for another lie
"No Alibis" is a track from Eric Clapton's 1989 album Journeyman. It was released as a single in a shortened version, with "Running on Faith" (also on the Journeyman album) as the B-side. The 12" single and CD maxi-singles, both released the following year, included the longer album version and also added live versions of "Behind the Mask" and "Cocaine", respectively. The live versions were recorded at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England in July 1986.
"No Alibis" is one of the more commercial rock songs from that record. Author Marc Roberty describes it as "a strong, anthem-like song." The song, written by longtime collaborator Jerry Lynn Williams, combines Clapton's rough, seasoned vocals with guest vocalist Daryl Hall's light vocals. The lyrics are about a man asking his girlfriend or wife not to lie to him further, suggesting that all the lies she tells make the situation worse. During the Journeyman World Tour, performances of this song were particularly energetic. It became a live favorite.
In Clapton's autobiography, he describes that he wrote the songs with Williams, who was credited exclusively, but that Clapton was betrayed by his former partner Lory Del Santo.
The single release of the song reached number 53 on the British charts and stayed there for three weeks. On the US charts, the single reached number 4 on the mainstream rock charts, though it did not enter the Hot 100.