Richard O'Brien (born Richard Timothy Smith on March 25, 1942 in Cheltenham… Read Full Bio ↴Richard O'Brien (born Richard Timothy Smith on March 25, 1942 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK) is a writer and performer. He is best known for writing the musical The Rocky Horror Show and its 1975 film adaptation The Rocky Horror Picture Show, in which he played the character of Riff-Raff. The stage show has been in almost continuous production since, and the cinematic version is one of the best known and most ardently followed cult films of all time.

He is also responsible for the little-known sequel, Shock Treatment.

Lullaby
Richard O'Brien Lyrics

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I feel the heat from your skin
And the stubble on your chin
You're no good
You're no good

You've got dirt on your hands
And everybody understands
You're no good

Mmmm...you're no good

Oh, what a joke
(What a joke)
You feel like choking

You play for broke
(You play for broke)
He'll leave you smoking

Oh, romance is not a children's game
But you keep going back
It's driving you insane

Drift into the Treacle deep
Slip into its silent depths
(go to sleep)

With your everything akimbo
Float into the sandman's limbo

Night night
(Night night )
It's time for bye-byes
It's been a great day, thanks a heap
Now it's time for everyone to go to sleep

Night night
It's time for bye-byes

It's been a great day, thanks a heap
Now it's time for everyone to go to sleep

Overall Meaning

Richard O'Brien's song Lullaby has been widely interpreted to be a dark, twisted lullaby. The lyrics start by talking about the heat from someone's skin and the stubble on their chin. However, the tone quickly shifts to a sense of danger and warning as the repetition of "you're no good" creates a sense of foreboding. The dirt on someone's hands is symbolic of wrongdoing and the fact that "everybody understands" suggests a community of people who have been affected by this person's actions.

The next verse talks about how the person is playing for broke and how they will leave someone "smoking". This implies that they are reckless and dangerous, perhaps even addicted to the thrill of taking risks. The lyric "romance is not a children's game" suggests that this person is playing with people's emotions and relationships, toying with them in a way that is childish and irresponsible. Despite all of this, the persona in the song keeps going back to this person, even though it is "driving them insane".

The final verse is the most overtly lullaby-like, with the instructions to "drift into the Treacle deep" and "slip into its silent depths". This creates a dreamlike, hypnotic effect, which is enhanced by the repeated lyric "night night". However, even here there is a sense of danger as the lyrics talk about floating into the "sandman's limbo". The final stanza is a more traditional lullaby, with the repeated refrain of "night night / it's time for bye-byes / it's been a great day, thanks a heap / now it's time for everyone to go to sleep".

Line by Line Meaning

I feel the heat from your skin
I can feel the warmth radiating off your body

And the stubble on your chin
I can feel the roughness of your facial hair

You're no good
You're a bad person

You've got dirt on your hands
You have done something dishonest or immoral

And everybody understands
Everyone knows about your bad deeds

Oh, what a joke
This situation is laughable

You feel like choking
This situation makes you feel suffocated or under pressure

You play for broke
You take big risks with the hope of achieving a big reward

He'll leave you smoking
Your actions will lead to your own destruction

Oh, romance is not a children's game
Love and relationships require maturity and responsibility

But you keep going back
You are addicted to the thrill of romance