Let me say from the get-go: Lindsay Boyd was one of the nicest, sweetest and most genuine human beings I have ever met.
He had one of those hard-living, gravelly singing voices that could make Tom Waits sound like Pavarotti, but the voice didn’t match the man himself. I used to call him “the best dressed man in the room” for his habit of rocking up to Open Mic wearing a tie.
Lindsay walked into my life at the third Open Mic @ The Dan, on the 22nd of November 2006 (I still have the running sheet from that night), and he quickly became one of our most loved regulars.
His effect on the Open Mic community was instant. To some he was a father figure, to others he was that crazy but very cool uncle who could play the guitar at parties, but to everyone he was everything a music community should be, rolled into one special person.
I’d go so far as saying Lindsay was one of the main reasons Open Mic @ The Dan became such a tight-knit community. He embodied what it was all about, and we all loved him for it.
His weapon of choice was an acoustic guitar and his music the Blues, especially the deep southern, down-on-the-bayou kind. His love for that music was matched only by his love for the people who listened to it, and when Lindsay played, you were definitely hearing someone fully committed to showing what the Blues could be.
What I really remember Lindsay most though is his calm demeanour, his relaxed way of doing things, his sense of fairness, his humility, and his knack for always finding something positive or encouraging to say, something that could turn your whole day around.
It goes without saying that the Open Mic @ The Dan was a better event and a better community with Lindsay in it. And if I can genuinely carry inside of me even the smallest piece of what he showed us all, I’ll be a better person for having known him.
His passing has really, really hit me hard. A huge part of the history and legacy of the Open Mic @ The Dan has gone with him, but we will always remember how he shaped every one of us for the better.
Like I said at the start: Lindsay Boyd was one of the nicest, sweetest and most genuine human beings I have ever met.
And I miss him already.
Peace,
Corey 🙁
