Shawn Mullins – Lullaby

From the album Soul’s Core the song reached number seven on Billboards Hot 100 chart and reached number one on Billboards Adult Top 40 in 1998. The song is part talking and part singing with a very catchy chorus.

From Songfacts.

This is an ironic yet touching song about the glamorous but empty, phony life in Los Angeles (particularly Hollywood). The heroine is a wealthy, unfulfilled girl caught up in a life she alternately enjoys and hates, but never really understands. >>
This song was inspired by a woman who approached Mullins in 1997 after his gig at the Los Angeles restaurant Genghis Cohen. They had a few drinks, and she proceeded to tell him her life story, which he used as the basis for the lyric. “She kind of blew my mind with her crazy childhood and teenage years,” he told Songfacts. “It was really cool.”

He added: “There were certain details, like Sonny & Cher and Bob Seger, things in it that were real. But there’s also certain things about her character in the song that aren’t really like her. The person in the song took a sadder turn. The actual girl really had her act together and she was very smiley. Her smile was incredible.”

Lullaby

She grew up with
The children of the stars
In the Hollywood hills and the boulevard
Her parents threw big parties
Everyone was there
They hung out with folks like
Dennis hopper, Bob Seeger, sonny and Cher
Now, she feels safe
In this bar on Fairfax
And from the stage I can tell that
She can’t let go and she can’t relax
And just before
She hangs her head to cry
I sing to her a lullaby, I sing
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Rockabye
She still lives with her mom
Outside the city
Down that street about a half a mile
And all her friends tell her
She’s so pretty
But she’d be a whole lot prettier
If she smiled once in a while
`cause even her smile
Looks like a frown
She’s seen her share of devils
In this angel town
But, everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Rockabye
I told her I ain’t so sure
About this place
It’s hard to play a gig in this town
And keep a straight face
Seems like everyone here’s got a plan
It’s kind of like Nashville with a tan, but,
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rockabye, rockabye, rockabye, bye, bye
Bye, bye
Songwriters: Shawn Mullins