I was trying to think of the name of this song and described what I could…and my friend Dave gave me the answer from my few clues. In 1998 I heard this song constantly and always liked it.
The lyric that made me like the song was They hung out with folks like Dennis Hopper and Bob Seger and Sonny and Cher. I’m a sucker for pop culture references… like that should surprise anyone. Shawn Mullins wrote the song after a woman in Los Angeles talked to him about her childhood and teenage years. Mullins said “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.”
Shawn was based in Atlanta and pressed copies of the single that was released independently. Good fortune hit when an Atlanta radio station slipped the song into the rotation. Lullaby gained traction and Columbia won a bidding war and he signed with them. He started to open up for big names but never hit the Hot 100 again. Mullins’ first album, he said he wanted to do something different and it flopped… as well as his second album. He now records independently.
He has probably made a decent living off of this song because it’s been used in movies and TV shows…I remember hearing it on The Office. The song peaked at #7 on the Billboard 100, #2 in Canada, and #9 in the UK in 1998-99.
Shawn Mullins: “The whole album was written from journal entries that I would do on the road, so, after that night the lyric was pretty much done. I never edited back then at all.”
Lullaby
She grew up with the children of the stars
In the Hollywood hills and the boulevards
Her parents threw big parties
Everyone was there
They hung out with folks like Dennis Hopper and Bob Seger and
Sonny and Cher
She feels safe now 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
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
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
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
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 everybody’s got a plan
It’s kind of like Nashville with a tan
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
Everything’s gonna be all right
Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye
…
PowerPop... An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture 
This song quickly grew on me, after not thinking much of it at first. But as you said, it got played a lot for awhile.I ended up buying the CD, which I think was just 2 or 3 songs, and I played this one song quite a bit. I never knew anything about the artist or the background of the song.
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It stuck with me through the years. I remembered the lyrics Bob Seger and Hollywood…well…try searching for that…you will get Bob Seger’s Hollywood Nights…it was a relief when Dave told me.
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I could have told you this one too. It was really memorable.
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I don’t know why I had such a hard time with it.
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I was pretty sure that I never heard this before till the chorus brought it back into my memory.
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I’m glad it came back to me with the help of Dave
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Not a bad song that, like you, I hadn’t thought of for quite some time. I knew nothing of his background or the song’s so thanks for filling us in! As you say, he probably can live reasonably comfortably now off that one hit.
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Yes he can…he shouldnt have tried any thing radically new with his first album after the hit…do that when you build a name for yourself…
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This was a new one on me Max – and I like it. I like songs that tell stories!
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Yea I like this one also. I like the pop culture references but I do like story songs.
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Didn’t recognize it until the chorus. “she’d look a lot prettier if she smiled once in awhile.” That’s a big trigger phrase for women.
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I never thought of that…but yea I guess that is true. I like the Seger, Hopper, and Sonny and Cher lyrics…that made me pay attention.
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Always liked this one, there feels like a lot of restrained anger in the chorus. Great story telling lyrics. It’s no surprise to me he covered Kris’s ‘Sunday Morning Coming Down’ on his CD.
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The way he halfway talked to sing the chorus set the dynamics up really good on this one also. Yep tha song fits him well.
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Can’t say I remember the song. I saw that exchange with you and Dave , you guys never cease to amaze with your knowledge. Glad to by part of this extended family of music gurus.
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Well I’m late as usual… Randy…you have taught us so much it’s crazy. I stopped doing the Tuesday thing because I couldn’t find anymore interesting ones…you find them everywhere!
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Thanks Max, you are great at following up! It’s good to change gears anyway , keeps people on their toes!
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I don’t recall the song. Based on the chorus, I feel I would remember if I had heard it before. During the spoken passages, Mullins reminds me a tiny bit of Lou Reed, while I pick a Bono vibe in the chorus. Pretty good tune!
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Yes he does…I hear the Bono…I like the lyrics. If you can mention Sonny and Cher, Dennis Hopper, and Seger…you have my vote.
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It’s as good a piece of Urban Americana – if that’s a genre-as anything I’ve heard.
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I remember this song fondly, as it got a lot of airplay in St. Louis where I lived then. Like Bruce, I also like songs that tell stories.
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Glad you know it Jeff…not many people did.
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This one was hard to escape for a while. It captures that 1970s mellow LA vibe.
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Something about it I liked..not being biased…but “Nashville with a tan” is a pretty good lyric.
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Aww This song takes me back…
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Thanks for stoping by.
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