Lullaby

Album: Disintegration (1989)
Charted: 5 74
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Lullaby" is based on a recurring nightmare Robert Smith had as a child where he was eaten by a giant spider; Smith says the song is about the fear of sleep.
  • Lullabies are meant to soothe children to sleep, but some of them have surprisingly catastrophic endings. The most famous lullaby, "Rockabye Baby," ends:

    When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall
    And down will come baby, cradle and all


    According to Robert Smith, the lullabies his father sang to him had similarly tragic endings. "There would be something like 'Sleep now, pretty baby,' and then there'd be an 'Or you won't wake up at all' coda to the song," he said.
  • The 1990 Brit award winning music video was inspired by David Lynch's 1977 debut horror movie Eraserhead.
  • This song had the Cure's best chart placing in the UK.
  • Robert Smith sings in the outro:

    And I feel like I'm being eaten
    By a thousand million shivering furry holes
    And I know that in the morning
    I will wake up in the shivering cold
    And the Spiderman is always hungry


    According to the video's director, Tim Pope, these lines were a reference to The Cure frontman's drug-fueled past. He explained in the NME: "On one level, there is this stupidity and humor, but beneath that there are all Smiffy's psychological obsessions and claustrophobia."
  • Tying in with the song's lyrics, the music video opens with Smith lying in bed and watching the seconds tick by on a giant clock as he tries to fall asleep - until a giant spider creeps in and makes a meal out of him. "I refused to have the real spider on me," Smith told Select Magazine in 1991. "They had a bloke there with an antidote and I tried but I couldn't."

Comments: 26

  • Truefact from SomewhereRobert Smith himself talked about how he got the idea for this song: "When I was really young I had a very strange uncle (also called Robert!) who delighted in finding as many ways to scare me witless as he could. One of his favorites was to whisper grim bedside stories into my ear, stories that often related the twisted deeds of a horrible boy-eating creature called simply ‘the spiderman’. One night he actually went so far as to climb in through my bedroom window after the lights had been put out… I screamed for what seemed like days. The ‘spiderman’ stories ended that night, but my fear of the dark and spiders persisted for quite some time."
  • Twistedraven from Tucson, AzWhat if the song portrayed how he felt about women throwing themselves at him as a rock star... feeling like he has to let them, but feeling dirty about each encounter Because they didn't care about him, they only enjoyed the idea of sleeping with the Robert Smith
  • Stacy Stark from Lander WyomingLove the cure. Love this. His dad told him a story to make him sleep and this from that.
  • Olivia Chase from UtahAnd also it says "struggle like that and I'll only love you more" and how Spier Man's tongue was in his face... Sounds like child molestation to me.
  • Olivia Chase from UtahI think it's about child molestation because it says "Spider man is always hungry" like he does it a lot. And how it talks about the spider luring the fly into its web. Like an adult persuading a child to come to him so he can molest them. I don't know, that was just what I got from the song.
  • Cristina from Santiago, ChileThe title itself suggests it.
  • Cristina from Santiago, ChileI agree the song seems to be about child abuse. Seems fairly clear from the lyrics. Brilliant song btw.
  • Peedj from Barrie, OnThe story I got (from my parents who are die hard cure fans) is its about a dude who used to molest children. He crawled in to through windows at night and the media dubbed him "Spiderman."
  • David from Tucson, AzI really believe this song is about child molestation
    sad, but true
    "I feel like I'm being eaten by a thousand,million shivering furry holes" that line suggests being kissed all over by a bearded man
    "come into my parlour, said the spider to the fly, I have something....."
    that line is the way an adult would lure a child somewhere with the promise of something like a toy or candy
  • Austin from Smallsville,new England, --I rember seeing this on mtv around 2007. The creepy vibe of the song was made even wierder by that video.
  • Tim from Linkoping, SwedenI agree, it certainly seems to be about child abuse. Didn't know Plant was a Cure-fan. Cool.
  • Ben from Gosford, AustraliaI like this song, it's very odd-sounding. I'm surprised it charted as well as it did. First time I heard this song was in 1990, it was on 'What a Year' playing in the background of the footage of THAT student standing in front of the tanks in Tianammen Square, and it was in an episode of 'Cold Case' that was set in 1990, but after all these years I only today found out it was a Cure song!
  • Chuck from Nanaimo, Bcits about being addicted to drugs its cool hows its writtin spider and the fly style
  • Hannah from Hampshire, EnglandI think this song is about child abuse as well. Some one is creeping into your room like a nightmare except it's real
  • Emma from San Deigo, Cai love this song and the cure!
    so yeah now it makes sense why is says "spiderman is having you for dinner tonight"
  • Paul Marlo from Perth, Australiaa masterpiece!
  • Shane from Perth, Wayerr page's guitar skills in this song are amazing
    and plants incredable vocal skills melt into this song perfectly
  • Jim from Dayton, OhJimmy Page and Robert Plant played this often during their mid-90's tours. Plant referred to The Cure as "one of the most underrated rock bands to come out of England,".

    Incidentally, the Page/Plant touring band included ex-Cure guitarist Porl Thompson who played the familiar opening notes to this song.
  • K from Victorville, CaThis song was based on the poem "The Spider And The Fly" by Mary Howitt. It seems Robert Smith is often inspired by literature.
  • Bridgett from Fort Worth, TxThis is a great song. I love the use of the more classic instruments in this song.
  • Maxime from Wetteren, BelgiumI'm also thinking its about child abuse....
    Its about a person, wich he is afraid of, creeping to his bed, and touching him in ways he doesnt like, nightmares.
    The line "dont strugle like that or I will only love you more", made me even more think that ...
    For me, its totally about a dark person creeping into your bedroom at night, as your a kid, and who touches you, creeps, hurts, a true nightmare...
  • Rachel from London, EnglandFor me, it represents a deeper fear or pain, which never seems to go away. "the spiderman is always hungry".
  • Peter from Fort Worth, Txthis video has robert smith looking almost dead and really creepy...
  • Jebus from London, EnglandI always thought this song was about child abuse. i mean the line "dont strugle like that i will only love you more", the whole song seems to be about it. well thats how i persived it.
  • Charlotte Smith from El Paso, Txsomeone gave robert a shock when he was young, and scared him about his 'nightmares.'











  • Ak from Reston, Valol this song is kinda creepy. but its still fun
see more comments

Editor's Picks

U2

U2Fact or Fiction

How did The Edge get his name? Did they name a song after a Tolkien book? And who is "Angel of Harlem" about?

Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty

Rob Thomas of Matchbox TwentySongwriter Interviews

Rob Thomas on his Social Distance Sessions, co-starring with a camel, and his friendship with Carlos Santana.

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Boy Bands

Boy BandsFact or Fiction

From NKOTB to 1D, how well do you know your boy bands?

Sam Hollander

Sam HollanderSongwriter Interviews

The hitmaking songwriter/producer Sam Hollander with stories about songs for Weezer, Panic! At The Disco, Train, Pentatonix, and Fitz And The Tantrums.

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."