Deprecated: mysql_connect(): The mysql extension is deprecated and will be removed in the future: use mysqli or PDO instead in /home/penguin/mysql_connect.php on line 14
The Penguin Discography: Believe Me




  - Advanced Search

    Song Title »
Believe Me
    Authors »
Christine McVie

    Year Written »
1973

    This Performance »
Date Performance 1974-00-00
Performers Mick Fleetwood (Drums), John McVie (Bass), Christine McVie (Keyboards), Bob Welch (Guitar), Robert (Bobby) Hunt (Keyboards)
Appears On
Please, Stand Up? (0000)
Fleetwood Mac
Will The Real Fleetwood Mac Please Stand Up? (0000)
Fleetwood Mac

    Lyrics »

You got to believe
I'm gonna be with you baby
In everything you've done
Even though you've stopped the sun from shining
Well I've tried my best, but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough, that I can't tell you
What can you say to accuse me
When you know I'm not to blame
You know you're gonna use me
I guess I'll always feel the same
Oh, when will we be together
In this crazy world we're in
Is it really such a sin to love you
Well I've tried my best, but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough that I can't tell you

    Fan Interpretation »

"Believe Me" was featured on Fleetwood Mac's second release of 1973, Mystery To Me, considered by many to be their finest album of their early 70's lineups. Of Christine McVie's 4 songs on the album, this song and "Why" speak rather matter-of-factly as to the condition of Christine's relationship with husband John, which was already rocky.

At the time of this album, Christine had a "barely concealed" affair (according to The Penguin's bio of Christine and Bob Brunning's The First 30 Years), with Fleetwood Mac's producer Martin Birch. John's drinking may have caused his reaction to the affair to be quite brash and this song is really Christine's counter reaction.

"You gotta believe...
I'm gonna be with you baby
In everything you've done
Even though you've stopped the sun from shining"
Christine herself has said that in the past, John used to test her love for him by doing some of the things he did. It was as if he knew she would love him no matter what, not mattering what he did to her. In that respect, it's kind of like he took advantage of her love and she's finally had enough. But she's going to stick with him even though he has made life at times miserable for her...so bad that the sun ceases to shine.

This is really similar to a child who's mother or father is an alcoholic. The parent knows they can go out and get drunk and wreak havoc and make messes and then they can have their child take care of it. These children hating being in their situation yet they love their parent too much to not take care of their mess time and time again. It's just like this for Christine. She loved John more than anything but John came to be accustomed to the fact that she'd always be around him to love him and clean up his mess. She hates her situation but she loves and cares too much for him to leave.

"Well I've tried my best but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough that I can't tell you
What can you say to accuse me?
When you know I'm not to blame"
Christine has tried everything to make this marriage work but it isn't enough. John has helped to make it hell for her especially with all the accusations. The "accuse me" part of these lines probably refers to Christine's whole affair with Martin Birch. John may be accusing Christine of several things with this.

Christine put their marriage on ice because she had an affair, but it isn't entirely her fault. People usually have affairs because they're tempted by someone else who's offering them something that the other person (spouse, boyfriend, etc.) is not offering them (it could be sexual, emotional or something else). This could lay the blame on John because he didn't give or isn't giving Chris the one thing she's always wanted, to be loved. It's always been a problem for her until recently, when she finally found someone who loved her the way she wanted to be. As much as she loved John, he wasn't loving her back. If he was, he certainly wasn't showing it to her. This void tempted her to go to Martin because he had something John didn't, love for Chris.

Possibly, John accused Christine of being the reason he drank so much. He very well could have accused her of something along these lines, but only they'll know. They both knew that she wasn't responsible for his drinking problem. She just got the blame because people are always looking for a way out when they're in trouble. Constantly, people seem to need false justification for their problems, regardless of the fact that they know that they themselves are the reason why they have problems in life.

"You know you're gonna use me.
I guess I'll always feel the same."
There's a line in "Say You Love Me" that is reminiscent to this. When she says, "When the loving starts and the lights go down and there's not another living soul around, you woo me until the sun comes up and you say that you love me." These 2 lines seem quite similar. She's basically saying "Hey, you can use me for sex or whatever to make you happy, but all I want to hear is you say that you love me. That's it." She feels used because John's using her to satisfy him, yet all she ever really wants is her husband to say he loves her, to make her happy. He doesn't, and she's upset by it. She'll always feel the same...used...and her life will always be like this unless she leaves him and moves on.

"Oh when will be together
In this crazy world we're in
Is it really such a sin to love you?
Well I've tried my best, but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough that I can't tell you."
Christine could be saying she wishes that someday, things would be like they were in the beginning, when they met. Now everything is too crazy and different. Through all this, Christine finds herself still loving John even when things get really bad. It may be hard at times for her to convince herself AND John that she still really does love him and will stand by him through it all. And also to convince herself AND him why she's *still* with him after he's treated her so bad. Times have been so tough that she can't muster up the courage to really tell anyone. She assures herself once again though, that she's done all she can to make things work and now it's up to John.

In a Daily News interview with Christine from 1978, she had this to say about John -- "John is a completely different story. I love John more than anyone knows. I hope he doesn't read this...anyway, as I was saying, I still love him."

When the interviewer asked her why she was divorcing him, she said -- "Too many fights, too much alcohol, too much loving, who knows? We just fell apart. We haven't been getting along too well these past couple of weeks, but we will survive. We always do."

And she is right. Look at Chris and John now. It's quite interesting to see them now standing together and to think "Goodness, they used to be married?!?". They seem to be a lot like a brother and sister now and she even says in the "Making of Rumours" video, "Time has a habit of healing. I guess that's a cliche. But that's why it's a cliche, because it's true. Over the years, John and I have been forced into working with each other. And now, I can honestly say that he's more like a brother to me, a good brother."

Time heals all wounds and agony only makes you stronger. This is *truly* the case with Christine and John. Even though their problems eventually split them up, they now seem to be closer than ever. Brother John and sister Chris -- what a pair."Believe Me" was featured on Fleetwood Mac's second release of 1973, Mystery To Me, considered by many to be their finest album of their early 70's lineups. Of Christine McVie's 4 songs on the album, this song and "Why" speak rather matter-of-factly as to the condition of Christine's relationship with husband John, which was already rocky.

At the time of this album, Christine had a "barely concealed" affair (according to The Penguin's bio of Christine and Bob Brunning's The First 30 Years), with Fleetwood Mac's producer Martin Birch. John's drinking may have caused his reaction to the affair to be quite brash and this song is really Christine's counter reaction.

"You gotta believe...
I'm gonna be with you baby
In everything you've done
Even though you've stopped the sun from shining"
Christine herself has said that in the past, John used to test her love for him by doing some of the things he did. It was as if he knew she would love him no matter what, not mattering what he did to her. In that respect, it's kind of like he took advantage of her love and she's finally had enough. But she's going to stick with him even though he has made life at times miserable for her...so bad that the sun ceases to shine.

This is really similar to a child who's mother or father is an alcoholic. The parent knows they can go out and get drunk and wreak havoc and make messes and then they can have their child take care of it. These children hating being in their situation yet they love their parent too much to not take care of their mess time and time again. It's just like this for Christine. She loved John more than anything but John came to be accustomed to the fact that she'd always be around him to love him and clean up his mess. She hates her situation but she loves and cares too much for him to leave.

"Well I've tried my best but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough that I can't tell you
What can you say to accuse me?
When you know I'm not to blame"
Christine has tried everything to make this marriage work but it isn't enough. John has helped to make it hell for her especially with all the accusations. The "accuse me" part of these lines probably refers to Christine's whole affair with Martin Birch. John may be accusing Christine of several things with this.

Christine put their marriage on ice because she had an affair, but it isn't entirely her fault. People usually have affairs because they're tempted by someone else who's offering them something that the other person (spouse, boyfriend, etc.) is not offering them (it could be sexual, emotional or something else). This could lay the blame on John because he didn't give or isn't giving Chris the one thing she's always wanted, to be loved. It's always been a problem for her until recently, when she finally found someone who loved her the way she wanted to be. As much as she loved John, he wasn't loving her back. If he was, he certainly wasn't showing it to her. This void tempted her to go to Martin because he had something John didn't, love for Chris.

Possibly, John accused Christine of being the reason he drank so much. He very well could have accused her of something along these lines, but only they'll know. They both knew that she wasn't responsible for his drinking problem. She just got the blame because people are always looking for a way out when they're in trouble. Constantly, people seem to need false justification for their problems, regardless of the fact that they know that they themselves are the reason why they have problems in life.

"You know you're gonna use me.
I guess I'll always feel the same."
There's a line in "Say You Love Me" that is reminiscent to this. When she says, "When the loving starts and the lights go down and there's not another living soul around, you woo me until the sun comes up and you say that you love me." These 2 lines seem quite similar. She's basically saying "Hey, you can use me for sex or whatever to make you happy, but all I want to hear is you say that you love me. That's it." She feels used because John's using her to satisfy him, yet all she ever really wants is her husband to say he loves her, to make her happy. He doesn't, and she's upset by it. She'll always feel the same...used...and her life will always be like this unless she leaves him and moves on.

"Oh when will be together
In this crazy world we're in
Is it really such a sin to love you?
Well I've tried my best, but it may not be enough
And times have been so tough that I can't tell you."
Christine could be saying she wishes that someday, things would be like they were in the beginning, when they met. Now everything is too crazy and different. Through all this, Christine finds herself still loving John even when things get really bad. It may be hard at times for her to convince herself AND John that she still really does love him and will stand by him through it all. And also to convince herself AND him why she's *still* with him after he's treated her so bad. Times have been so tough that she can't muster up the courage to really tell anyone. She assures herself once again though, that she's done all she can to make things work and now it's up to John.

In a Daily News interview with Christine from 1978, she had this to say about John -- "John is a completely different story. I love John more than anyone knows. I hope he doesn't read this...anyway, as I was saying, I still love him."

When the interviewer asked her why she was divorcing him, she said -- "Too many fights, too much alcohol, too much loving, who knows? We just fell apart. We haven't been getting along too well these past couple of weeks, but we will survive. We always do."

And she is right. Look at Chris and John now. It's quite interesting to see them now standing together and to think "Goodness, they used to be married?!?". They seem to be a lot like a brother and sister now and she even says in the "Making of Rumours" video, "Time has a habit of healing. I guess that's a cliche. But that's why it's a cliche, because it's true. Over the years, John and I have been forced into working with each other. And now, I can honestly say that he's more like a brother to me, a good brother."

Time heals all wounds and agony only makes you stronger. This is *truly* the case with Christine and John. Even though their problems eventually split them up, they now seem to be closer than ever. Brother John and sister Chris -- what a pair.

(The interpretations to these lyrics were compiled through discussions on the message boards of the Penguin, The Ledge. It is entirely possible that the artists had something completely different in mind.)

    Tabs »
If you would like to submit tabs for this song, click here.

    Other Performances »
Performance #1:
Running Time 4:06
Sound Clip Listen.
Performers Mick Fleetwood (Percussion), John McVie (Bass), Bob Welch (Guitars), Bob Welch (Vocals), Bob Weston (Lead Guitar), Bob Weston (Slide), Christine McVie (Keyboards), Christine McVie (Vocals), Martin Birch (Produced By), Fleetwood Mac (Produced By), Mick Fleetwood (Produced By), John McVie (Produced By), Christine McVie (Produced By), Bob Welch (Produced By), Bob Weston (Produced By)
Appears On
Mystery To Me (1973)
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac: Mystery To Me (0000)
Fleetwood Music Limited

    Comments »

(C) 1973 WB Music Corp. ASCAP Lyrics reprinted by permission.

    Reviews »
Add your review of Believe Me here.

    Last Modified »
2011-01-21

    Discography Credits »
Lyrics contributed by Jeff Kenney and Marty Adelson. Interpretation prepared by Ali Filipowicz, Sarita, and Alexa.