Rock and Roll Lullaby (song)
"Rock and Roll Lullaby" is a song written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil that was a 1972 hit single performed by B. J. Thomas. Content. The song is sung in a first-person narrative of an adolescent or adult raised by a single teenage mother during the early years of rock-and-roll. Despite the bleakness of their situation, whenever the child cries, the mother sings him to sleep with a 'sha-na-na-na-na-na-na, it'll be all right...sha-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na, just hold  on tight'. In the second verse, the narrator notes that despite hardships, they'd 'dream of better mornings when Mama sang her song', and that while it didn't make sense to try to recall the words, the loving meaning beneath them was all that mattered. Production. The song was produced by Steve Tyrell. After the recording of a basic rhythm track, Steve Tyrell and B.J. Thomas had the inspiration of blending several unique and recognizable signature sounds associated with early American rock recordings. The single's backup vocals are first performed by The Blossoms. Duane Eddy plays the lead  guitar in his "twangy" signature style with Al Gorgoni electric guitar distorted and clean. At around three minutes, Thomas sings his final vocals and this is where a Beach Boys sound, provided by Dave Somerville and three members of the Ron Hicklin Singers (Tom Bahler, Gene Morford, and Hicklin himself), begins and carries the track to over 4 minutes. Chart performance. "Rock and Roll Lullaby" reached number 15 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 and was Thomas's third number one on the Easy Listening chart, where it spent one week in March 1972.