First one record deal from Imago/RCA was offered, signed, then ended when the company lost it’s funding and folded, then another from the mighty A&M Records, who flew all their senior executives to Louisville and signed him on the spot. An amazing album was made, an eighteen month promotional tour undertaken, radio, press, festivals and the offer of The Late Show, when sadly and rather crushingly a Canadian whiskey company bought Polygram and folded A&M into it, and so for the second time and through no fault of his own, he had no way to release his music. Still playing songs from St. Louis to Huntington, from Chicago to Memphis, T.D. Lind was living out the best bits of Kerouac, exploring the promises of Eddie Cochran’s America, performing in front of thousands, driving a ’56 Buick Special, playing a 6120 Gretsch guitar, not escaping the dream.
After such extraordinary experiences – while there were of course knock-backs, there were also some moments of great personal triumph – as a musician in his own right, as a collaborator with other artists, and occasional film composer, he was one day back in a room in Louisville, Kentucky when he pulled out a 4-track Tascam cassette recorder and decided to record in song his adventures. These songs were unlike anything he had previously written or sung. And having put those songs down T.D. Lind came home to England.
A copy of that cassette fell into the hands of the highly unique record producer Rupert Hine. A year later, Lind and Hine had made some remarkable recordings. Added to those were some of the songs he’d worked on during his time in Los Angeles, Nashville and London to fully complete the story. Lind now had a collection of private romantic ballads, mid-western rock, wonderful sophisticated pop and spine-tingling gypsy waltzes. You need to have lived a life to have written these songs, and from the small clubs of Europe to the lost towns of the Mid-West of America, T.D. Lind has lived that life. These are the songs that lay bare the experiences of a great storyteller and musician.
BOY
TD Lind Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't turn around boy.
You ain't from here, shit shame on you,
You're a long way from home, boy.
Chorus
Don't you move an eyebrow,
There's no need to hesitate now,
Unless of course, your minds fried on blow?
Better not be '45'n me now
Let me tell you son,
You're a long way from home.
You're a strange one, queer clothes you wear,
You just don't blend in, boy.
Seen you walking, slow shifty steps,
Give me your wrists boy.
Chorus (repeat)
Bet you didn't know
I know everyone in this neighbourhood except you.
You've been drinking, out until late
And I am the law, boy.
Take a deep breath, blow into this
One, two, three, four.
Chorus (repeat)
If you're lucky, I'll let you go.
The lyrics of TD Lind's song Boy paint the picture of a confrontation between a resident and a stranger in a quiet, small town. The resident approaches the boy and demands that he lay his hands down on his hood without turning around. From the interaction, it becomes clear that the boy is not from around there, and the resident is suspicious, claiming that he should be ashamed of himself for being so far from his real home. The chorus kicks in, and the resident demands that the boy doesn't move or show any signs of hesitation. The resident then questions whether the boy has any weapons, specifically a .45, and warns him not to mess with him.
In the second verse, the resident accuses the boy of being strange because of his clothes, as he doesn't blend in with the rest of the people in the neighborhood. He had been watching him walking with shifty steps. The chorus repeats, and again, the resident tells the boy not to move, and that he is in a lot of trouble. The third verse reveals that the boy has been drinking, and the resident pulls out a breathalyzer to test him for alcohol. The chorus repeats once more, and at the end of the song, the last line suggests the boy's luck may or may not be in his favor.
The lyrics of this song are very suggestive, leaving room for interpretation that the interaction between the resident and boy might be a racial one. The demand for the boy to lay his hands down and not turn around is often used by law enforcement officers who suspect someone is carrying a weapon. The mention of a .45 could also imply that the confrontation is a matter of race. TD Lind is known to write songs that tackle social issues, and the lyrics of Boy could be his way of commenting on racial profiling challenging the problematic issues of police brutality and the treatment of the Black community.
Line by Line Meaning
Lay your hands down, flat on my hood,
I command you to put your hands on my car without moving.
Don't turn around boy.
I don't want you to move or face me.
You ain't from here, shit shame on you,
You're not a local and I'm judging you for it.
You're a long way from home, boy.
You're far away from where you belong.
Chorus
I demand that you comply with my requests or face the consequences, and I have reason to suspect you're hiding something.
Don't you move an eyebrow,
I don't want any other parts of your body to move.
There's no need to hesitate now,
I want you to act quickly without hesitation.
Unless of course, your minds fried on blow?
Are you under the influence of drugs that might affect your behavior?
Let's see what you're hiding,
I believe that you're concealing something from me and I want to find out what it is.
Better not be '45'n me now
I hope that you are not carrying a firearm to use against me.
Let me tell you son,
I'm going to give you a warning.
You're a long way from home.
You're far away from where you belong.
You're a strange one, queer clothes you wear,
I perceive you as different from what I'm used to seeing.
You just don't blend in, boy.
You don't fit in with the rest of us.
Seen you walking, slow shifty steps,
I've been watching your movements and don't trust them.
Give me your wrists boy.
I want to put handcuffs on you.
Chorus (repeat)
I'm repeating my demands and warnings.
Bet you didn't know
I'm implying that you should have known better than to be here as someone who doesn't belong.
I know everyone in this neighbourhood except you.
I'm asserting my authority in the area and that you're an outsider.
You've been drinking, out until late
I suspect that you've been consuming alcohol and it's late at night.
And I am the law, boy.
I am in a position of authority over you and able to enforce the law.
Take a deep breath, blow into this
I'm requesting you to perform a breathalyzer test.
One, two, three, four.
I'm counting to ensure that you perform the breathalyzer test completely.
Chorus (repeat)
I'm reminding you of my demands and warnings, and the consequences if you don't comply.
If you're lucky, I'll let you go.
I'm threatening that you will be detained unless you meet my demands or if I change my mind.
Contributed by Elijah P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.