Highway Hymn with a Heartbeat: “Lullaby of 55”

If you’ve ever wished a single song could pack a road trip, a bedtime story, and a secret Idaho sunrise into three tender minutes—Erin Hall just handed you the keys. “Lullaby of 55” ferries us from Boise’s city lights up Highway 55 to Jug Mountain Ranch, pedal-steel sighs floating over the asphalt like alpine mist. But this isn’t just scenic folk-pop; it’s a whispered love letter to Hall’s late dad, Richard, wrapped in cello swells and sibling harmonies that feel as warm as dashboard sunlight.

Hall’s signature cello—equal parts honey and heartbreak—trades verses with Gabe Shuford’s dusky guitar while Dave Manion’s pedal steel paints the sky rose-gold. Producer Steve Fulton keeps the mix intimate, as if we’re all crammed into the family Subaru, thermos coffee in hand, counting pine trees. When Erin sings, “Rest easy, old traveler,” you can practically smell the campfire smoke curling above Lake Payette.

And let’s talk timing: with Father’s Day peeking around the bend, “Lullaby of 55” lands like a perfectly timed rest-stop—fuel for anyone steering through grief’s hairpin turns. Hall originally wrote it as a gentle nightcap for her dad during his final days, but the lullaby’s hush is universal. One listen and you’ll want to ring your own pops, or at least dig out that box of Polaroids you swore you’d scrapbook.

Richard Hall’s philanthropic spirit looms large in the song’s quiet glow—this is the man who helped raise $40K for St. Luke’s Oncology and rallied first responders with pandemic-era benefit concerts. Fitting, then, that Boise’s Audiolab recording has already scored screen time on Idaho Public Television’s Idaho in Song. Call it cosmic symmetry: a hometown hero honored by a hometown soundtrack.

At once elegy and road-movie theme, “Lullaby of 55” proves Erin Hall can thread personal folklore into pop poetry with a wink and a tear. Queue it up for your next long drive—or your next long cry—and let the cello guide you home.

Listen to “Lullaby of 55” on Spotify here.

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