Colvin's formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age of 10. Her first public concert was at age 15 at the University of Illinois campus. Colvin cites Joni Mitchell as a primary influence on her music, and her initial performances closely mirrored Mitchell's inflections and guitar tunings.
Colvin began working in the music scene in earnest in the late 1970s, first in Austin, Texas and then nationally. She met music partner John Leventhal during this time; Leventhal would go on to be Colvin's producer on several albums. Colvin often lends her talent to contemporaries in the music business - she can be heard singing the backing vocals on the Suzanne Vega hit, "Luka" from 1987. Vega returned the favor, singing backup on Colvin's, "Diamond In The Rough", from her debut album, "Steady On". Colvin, again can be heard singing backing vocals on Mary Chapin Carpenter's, "The Hard Way" and "Come On Come On" and Mary Chapin returns the favor on Colvin's, "Climb On (A Back That's Strong)", from Colvin's "Fat City" album.
Colvin's first several albums were met with critical acclaim, but did not sell in substantial numbers. After several albums of original work, Colvin released "Cover Girl", a collection of cover songs, but the work was a departure for her and was not well received.
Colvin experienced breakthrough success with "A Few Small Repairs" in October of 1996. The single "Sunny Came Home" reached the US Top Ten, and won Grammy Awards for Song and Record of the Year. She has released several subsequent albums that were nominated for Grammys, and has also released a greatest-hits album and a collection of Christmas music.
A new album from Colvin, entitled "These Four Walls", was released on September 12, 2006.
She was the guest vocal artist on the Lisa Loeb single "Falling in Love" as well as appearing at various Lilith Fair music festivals. She also has been featured on the popular live music show Austin City Limits and played at the 2003 Austin City Limits Music Festival. She also appeared in a tribute to her idol Joni Mitchell in 2001 that was broadcast on the cable network TNT.
She has made two guest appearances on The Simpsons as Rachel Jordan, lead singer for a Christian rock band. She first appears in "Alone Again, Natura-diddly," where Rachel wins Ned Flanders' heart after the untimely death of his wife, Maude. Later, in the episode "I'm Going to Praiseland," Ned dates Rachel, only to scare her off when he tries to turn her into a version of Maude.
Colvin lives with her daughter, Caledonia, and husband, Mario Erwin in Austin, Texas, and still participates in the Austin music scene.
Rocking
Shawn Colvin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We will lend a coat of fur
We will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will rock you, rock you now
See the fur to keep you warm
Snuggle 'round your tiny form
Mary's little baby sleep sweetly sleep
And we will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will rock you, rock you now
We will serve you all we can
Darling, dancing little man
Yeah, we will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will rock you, rock you now
We will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will rock you, rock you now
The lyrics of Shawn Colvin's song Rocking in 2-3 seem to be a lullaby. The song begins by addressing Little Jesus, and the line "sweetly sleep do not stir" suggests that the baby is already asleep or is being soothed to sleep. The next line, "we will lend a coat of fur" reveals that the baby is in a manger or a stable and needs protection from the cold. The chorus, "we will rock you, rock you, rock you," is repeated several times and is a way to comfort the baby and help it to fall asleep. The line "see the fur to keep you warm, snuggle 'round your tiny form" suggests that the baby is wrapped in a coat of fur to keep it warm.
The second verse, addressed to Mary's little baby, reinforces that the song is likely about the birth of Jesus Christ. The repetition of "sleep sweetly sleep, sleep in comfort slumber deep" reinforces the idea that the baby needs to sleep and must be protected from the cold. The last line of the song, "Darling, dancing little man" is interesting because it suggests that the baby is already being imagined as an adult – perhaps a reference to the future Christ.
Line by Line Meaning
Little Jesus sweetly sleep do not stir
We want the baby Jesus to have a peaceful rest and not be woken up.
We will lend a coat of fur
We are offering a symbolic coat of fur to keep Jesus warm and comfortable.
We will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will gently sway Jesus back and forth to soothe and calm him.
We will rock you, rock you now
We will start rocking Jesus immediately to help him fall asleep.
See the fur to keep you warm
The coat of fur we are offering will help Jesus stay cozy and snug while he sleeps.
Snuggle 'round your tiny form
We will wrap Jesus up tightly in the fur coat so he feels safe and secure.
Mary's little baby sleep sweetly sleep
We are addressing Jesus as Mary's baby and wishing him a peaceful slumber.
Sleep in comfort slumber deep
We hope Jesus will sleep soundly and restfully with our help.
And we will rock you, rock you, rock you
We will continue to sway Jesus back and forth to keep him calm and peaceful.
We will rock you, rock you now
We are reiterating our immediate intent to start rocking Jesus gently.
We will serve you all we can
We are expressing our willingness to do everything we can to make Jesus comfortable and happy.
Darling, dancing little man
We are affectionately addressing Jesus as a playful and lovable little boy.
Yeah, we will rock you, rock you, rock you
We are emphasizing our commitment to continue soothing Jesus with our rocking motion.
We will rock you, rock you now
We are repeating our intention to start rocking Jesus right away.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: N TRADITIONAL, JEREMY FREDERICK LANNING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Game Forest
This song transports me to to the manger and puts me into the Christmas spirit. It is absolutely THE best version of this traditional carol and I love it so much. So so so beautiful.
Mercedes Mullins
I found this album at goodwill when my son was 3 months old two years ago it's still in my car CD player and now he and his sister listen to it nightly to go to sleep.
Me N
so so sweet praise God
Yi Fang Shen
thanks for uploading!