[Intro - Spoken, fond] You always looked so serious in your pictures. It made me laugh. You had to know you to know how long that would last. [Verse 1 - Warm, intimate] You'd take three steps along the hallway In Mom's old boots, two sizes big I'd miss the keys from laughing so hard You'd come complain about my gig You'd grab a spoon to make your speeches And thank the crowd that wasn't there Then bow until you lost your balance On the laundry basket by the stairs [Pre-Chorus - Tender, building] We never had the same ambitions But we always made each other room You'd sit for hours while I played I'd spend the afternoon taking pictures of you [Chorus - Open, heartfelt] Before they knew your name I knew your laughter through the walls Your frozen feet beneath my covers When we'd stay up and talk till dawn Before they knew your name You filled every corner of that house You dreamed of somewhere far away But you'd always come back to my room To tell me all about it Before you drifted off [Verse 2 - Bright, nostalgic] I drove you to your first audition You checked the address at every light I said, “Relax, we'll get there early” You said, “Okay, but does my hair look right?” You came back out too stunned to tell me Then screamed before you buckled in We called Mom three times till she answered And ate our victory fries with stupid grins [Pre-Chorus - Proud, bittersweet] I kept the first ad you appeared in Though you were standing way behind the rest You said, “You can barely even see me” I showed it off to everyone I met [Chorus - Open, heartfelt] Before they knew your name I knew your laughter through the walls Your frozen feet beneath my covers When we'd stay up and talk till dawn Before they knew your name You filled every corner of that house You dreamed of somewhere far away But you'd always come back to my room To tell me all about it Before you drifted off [Bridge - Bare, vulnerable] Some stories only worked with you there To interrupt me halfway through “That's not how it happened” Then you'd laugh and tell it how you knew Now no one stops to correct me When I get the place or year confused It's such a little kind of silence But I don't know what to do with it [Build - Tender, resolute] So I still tell them all your worst jokes And how you never gave my sweater back I still catch myself laughing about you Sometimes I never see it coming [Final Chorus - Full, aching] Before they knew your name I knew your laughter through the walls Your frozen feet beneath my covers Your big ideas to get us out of town I wish they could have known you like that A little too loud right next to me Crying halfway through a movie Then blaming your red eyes on the screen Before they knew your name I had all those years with you And when I talk about my sister You're still standing in that hallway Asking me to start again Because you missed your cue [Outro - Spoken, affectionate] I still have your boots. Yeah, I know. They were Mom's.
