I wrote this song in Cairns, Far-North Queensland while I was on tour with the band, Doctor Stovepipe, in 2021.
I was missing my family who were suffering through another cold, wet, Canberra winter. I really wanted to share the warm weather and sunshine of Far-North tropical Queensland with them.
I decided to channel the strong feelings of loneliness into a song.
I had heard some lyrics on a Country Music Radio station a year before that mentioned pencil lines on a wall and I thought that I could use that idea in a new way.
Some families draw lines on a wall or a door frame showing the heights of children, friends, family pets or sometimes even toys. We have one in our home, and it even shows the height of a toy snake!
Sometimes, these pencil lines can show the height of a family member or friend who has left home or passed away. Then, the wall becomes more than a measurement of height and age, it becomes a place to remember people who are no longer around.
Credits
Written by Lucky Jim. Arranged by Lucky Jim and His Imaginary Friends
Lucky Jim – Acoustic guitar, lead vocals
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Imaginary Friends
Dan Kempers – Drums
Simon Milman – Electric Bass
Matthew Lustri – Electric guitar
Ben Foster – Keys
Special guest
Matthew Nightingale – Backing vocals
PENCIL LINES
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In the Kitchen by the door
Pencil lines, up on the wall
A date, a height, an age, a name,
Up and down the old wood frame
There’s an uncle – old and tall
A crayon mark when you were small
There’s a sister, there’s a son
Coloured lines they’ve all become
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CHORUS
Take your shoes off, stand up tall
Keep your heels flat on the floor
We’ll put your name up on the wall
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I walk by this wall of lines
I don’t stop – don’t have the time
But on the days when I’m feeling blue
I’ll think about a line or two
In your room, in a drawer
I find a pencil to mark the wall
I guess the height that you would be
I make a line so I can see
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CHORUS
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CHORUS
