Biography

Alasdair Boyd was born at 58 An Clachan Mòr in Iochdar, South Uist on 20 October 1889. His father was Ewen Dhòmhnaill Nìll from Barra, and his mother was Kirsty MacDonald (nighean Raghnaill Alasdair). The family lived on her father's land. From childhood, Alasdair was surrounded by music, and it was clear from an early age that he would become an exceptional piper. His mother was a fine singer, especially known for her lullabies, and he absorbed music from many of the people around him as he grew up.

Mary MacLellan, who lived next door, had a great gift for mouth‑music, and he learned pibroch‑related songs from his aunt, Anna MacDonald, Anna a' Phìobaire, who sang constantly as she knitted and sewed. Alasdair was popular at every community event he attended. At waulkings, he was always there to play the pipes for the dance that followed the work. The girls refused to waulk the cloth unless there was a dance afterwards, so there was always demand for Alasdair and his pipes. He loved hearing Mary MacInnes and Effie MacLellan sing, and often said they were the finest singers he ever heard at the waulkings.

During the First World War, Alasdair served with the Cameron Highlanders, the regiment that fought at Loos, where British forces suffered heavy losses. He received the 1914 Star — commonly known as the Mons Star — awarded to soldiers who served in the earliest months of the war. It was said that only two pipers from Uist survived from the Cameron Highlanders: Alasdair, and the poet Donald MacIntyre (Dòmhnall Ruadh Phàislig) [310]. When we consider the legacy both men left behind, we gain some sense of what was lost in the devastation of the two world wars.

Around 1920, Alasdair left Uist and moved to Oban. He first worked for a farmer, Campbell Barron, and later spent many years working for the Town Council, mainly in gardening. After settling in Oban, Alasdair married Mary Currie, daughter of Donald Ian MacDonald of 468 South Lochboisdale. They had three children: Donald, Neil, and Kate. His son Donald recalled that when he visited home, his father would return from work and, barely two minutes after sitting down, would begin singing. The longer the song, the more Alasdair enjoyed it. His wife, Mary, would sometimes threaten not to accompany him to ceilidhs if he planned to sing anything with twelve verses or more.

Alasdair became well known as a musician in Oban. He served as pipe major of the town band and founded a piping group for local young people. The family lived first at 17 Aird Crescent and later at 21 Combie Street. Between 1953 and 1970, more than seventy of his songs were recorded by the School of Scottish Studies, and the BBC also recorded material from him.

Alasdair passed away in Dalintart Hospital, Oban, on 12 November 1970, at the age of 81.