Reginald John Lindsay OAM (7 July 1929 – 5 August 2008) was an Australian country music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and radio and television personality. He won three Golden Guitar Awards and wrote more than 500 songs in his 50-year music career. Lindsay recorded over 65 albums and 250 singles. Reg made his first trip to Nashville in June 1968 and recorded his first Nashville EP on this historic trip. Lindsay's most popular cross-over hit was a cover version, "Armstrong" (March 1971), which reached No. 6 on the ''Go-Set'' National Top 60. It was written and originally performed by the American folk musician John Stewart as a tribute to

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...

's lunar landing in 1969.

Early years

Lindsay was born in

Waverley, New South Wales Waverley is a suburb in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Waverley is located 7 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council. Waverley Counci ...

in 1929, his parents were Jim and Ellen Lindsay. He was two years of age when his father gave him a

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

which he quickly mastered. His father taught him to play, "The Wheel on the Wagon Is Broke", on harmonica by the age of four. He subsequently learned the

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

and

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

. After Sydney he grew up in

Parkes Parkes may refer to: * Sir Henry Parkes (1815–1896), Australian politician, one of the earliest and most prominent advocates for Australian federation Named for Henry Parkes * Parkes, New South Wales, a regional town * Parkes Observatory, a radi ...

and then Adelaide. His aunt Anne gave him a guitar when he was 15. After leaving school (Adelaide, South Australia) he initially worked for the Department of Agriculture and studied

wool classing Wool classing is the production of uniform, predictable, low-risk lines of wool, carried out by examining the characteristics of the wool in its raw state and classing (grading) it accordingly. Wool classing is done by a wool classer. Basis for ...

. As a teenager his career ambition was to become a stockman and learned how to shear sheep. Later he reflected, "The outback has always been romantic to me. People of that ilk have always been romantic. We have the longest cattle drives in the world, you know. I was scheduled to go into a reservation in the north-west of South Australia, but I ended up as a jackeroo in Broken Hill instead." Around 1946 Reg started singing around the Adelaide area with a mate Dave Burchell. As a 'Hillbilly' duo, they entertained over radio, swimming carnivals, and other events in the area. In 1948 Reg and Dave auditioned for Dick Fairs Amateur Hour. They had also recorded a couple songs which were never released. After he twisted his leg in a rodeo accident, he recuperated at his parents' home in Adelaide for several weeks in 1950. He was listening to country music on

2SM 2SM is an Australian radio station, licensed to and serving Sydney, broadcasting on 1269 kilohertz on the AM band. It is owned and operated by Broadcast Operations Group. The SM call sign is taken from the initials of Saint Mary's. 2SM's progra ...

with Tim McNamara promoting a radio talent quest. In November 1950 Lindsay travelled to Sydney via a motorcycle to compete, in the following year, which launched his career as a singer-songwriter.

Radio shows and recording

Reg Lindsay was a performer in the 2KY radio show, ''On the Melody Trail'', from September 1951, alongside, "

Joy McKean Joy McKean , (born 14 January 1930), is an Australian country music singer-songwriter and wife and manager of the late Slim Dusty. Known as the "grand lady" of Australian country music, McKean is recognised as one of Australia's leading songwrite ...

and Heather McKean, Australia's Melody Cowgirls,

Slim Dusty Slim Dusty, AO MBE (born David Gordon Kirkpatrick; 13 June 1927 – 19 September 2003) was an Australian country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He was an Australian cultural icon and one of the country's most awarded stars, ...

, Gordon Parsons and other hillbilly artists." The McKean Sisters were a country music duo of

and her younger sister Heather, who had presented the show since 1949. Heather married Reg Lindsay in February 1954, while Joy had married Slim Dusty in 1951. Lindsay was signed to Rodeo Records in 1951, which issued his early material. His singles with that label include, "Blue Velvet Band", "My Home Way Out Back" (written by Lindsay), Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' or 'Performer:' "Sundowner Yodel", "If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time", "By the Old Slip Rail", "Sweeter than Flowers", "Shackles and Chains", "My Blue-Eyed Jane" (all before 1955), "I Love You a Thousand Ways", "Country Mile", "I'll Never Live It Down", Got Those Itchy Feet", "In the Luggage Van Ahead" (all five in 1954). Radio station 2CH had him present, ''The Reg Lindsay Show'', in 1951 to showcase his own country music. Late in that year he and his show moved over to rival station, 2SM, where it continued for 12 years. His singles from the late 1950s on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

include, "Tom Dooley", "The Walkabout Rock and Roll" (both 1958), "The Ghost of Tom Dooley", "Don't Steal Daddy's Medal", "The Wog", "Where No One Stands Alone" (both 1959), "The Caribbean" and "The House Down Willow Lane".

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

's Jason Ankeny observed, "despite his public recognition and relentless touring schedule, success as a performer continued to elude him."

Radio, touring and television

Reg Lindsay's first tour came about in January 1955 when he was chosen as the headliner for the Wilf Carter tour. About two weeks in the tour Wilf Carter fell ill and had to return to the US, and Reg continued the tour as 'The Reg Lindsay Show'. Reg Lindsay continued issuing singles and presenting a radio show into the early 1960s. He also headed a touring line-up for ''The Reg Lindsay Show'', which in February 1960 included Heather, "Kevin King, Jacqueline Hall, Nev Nicholls, Hayseeds, Fred Maugher and comedian George Nichols." In 1964 he returned to Adelaide where he hosted a local TV show, '' The Country and Western Hour'', which ran for seven-and-a-half years, until 1972. It won two state-based

Logie Award The Logie Awards (officially the TV Week Logie Awards; colloquially known as The Logies) is an annual gathering to celebrate Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The first ceremony was held in 1959 as the ...

s for South Australia's Most Popular show in

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

and

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

. By 1966 the show was broadcast throughout Australia with Lindsay, as host, flying in from Sydney to Adelaide each week. In that year he issued a single, "They Gotta Quit Kickin' My Dog Around". He travelled to the United States in 1968, to record material for his TV show, while there he was asked to appear on the ''

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

'' in Nashville. He was so successful in this debut he was invited back for the ultimate encore, the Saturday night show. Reg was the first Australian ever to do so and was the first of many Grand Ole Opry appearances.< Upon return to Sydney in 1968, with his wife Heather, he established a business, Reg Lindsay's Country Store, to sell "records, clothing and musical instruments." Heather described, "It's surprising how many of the young people like to wear this gear-particularly the hand-carved leatherwork. The young surfies like the fringed jackets-they're fantastic sellers-and the girls go for the cotton jackets to wear over bathers to the beach." A second store soon followed, both were sold off ten years later.

Later career

Reg Lindsay was best known for his single, "Armstrong" (March 1971), a tribute to the historic 1969

moon landing A Moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2, on 13 September 1959. The United St ...

by American

astronauts An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

, particularly

. It peaked at No. 6 on the ''Go-Set'' National Top 60 and remained in the charts for 16 weeks. It is included in a

time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ba ...

at the

Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in honor of the late U ...

in Houston, Texas. The song is written and was recorded by John Stewart, an ex-member of

the Kingston Trio The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...

. Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' or 'Performer:' It is Lindsay's first major hit, reaching No. 8 on the

Australian Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

(ARIA) created their own

charts A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabul ...

in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974. His other popular singles from the 1970s are "July You're a Woman" (1973), "Silence on the Line" (1977) and "Empty Arms Hotel" 1979). In January 1974 he won a Golden Guitar trophy at the

Country Music Awards of Australia The Country Music Awards of Australia also known as the Golden Guitar Awards (originally named Australasian Country Music Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, in Tamworth, New South Wales ...

for Best Male Vocal with "July You're a Woman". He won the same category in 1978 for "Silence on the Line". A third trophy for "Empty Arms Hotel" was awarded in that category in 1980. ''The Country and Western Hour'' had finished in 1972 and was followed in late 1977 by his own TV program, ''Reg Lindsay's Country Homestead'', on Brisbane's channel 9, which ran for four years until 1982. ''Reg Lindsay's Country Homestead'' also won two state-based Logie Awards for Queensland's Most Popular Show in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

and

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

. Lindsay supported charities and appeared on TV telethons to raise money for various community organizations. Some of his performances were issued on a DVD video album, ''Reg Lindsay : live across Australia 1979-1994'', in 2015 via Umbrella Entertainment. In a music career of over 50 years he wrote more than 500 songs and hosted various TV shows. He recorded over 65 albums and 250 singles.

Personal life

Lindsay was married twice. His first marriage was to Heather McKean (born 1932) on 13 February 1954 in Granville. McKean's older sister

had married fellow country musician,

in 1951; that couple are the parents of another country musician,

Anne Kirkpatrick Anne Kirkpatrick (born 4 July 1952) is an Australian country music singer. She is the daughter of country singers Slim Dusty and Joy McKean. Biography She also has a brother, David Kirkpatrick, who is an accomplished singer-songwriter. The ...

. The McKean Sisters were a country music duo from 1948. Heather continued performing under her maiden name during their marriage. In May 1969 Lindsay and Heather opened Reg Lindsay's Country Store and Trading Post to sell Western gear. They separated in 1982 and Heather resumed her solo career as well as working with Joy as the McKean Sisters. Reg married his second wife, Roslyn née Winfield (born 1959), a rodeo champion, on October 12, 1988 at

Brampton Island Brampton Island is an island in the Cumberland Group, off shore from Mackay in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia. The island lies within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, and the majority of the island forms the Brampton Island ...

– they first met in 1984 at the Warwick Rodeo, Queensland where the 24 year old was competing in the National Finals. Dave Dawson described Roslyn, "glamorous former barrel racer, steer roper and country chanteuse." His son-in-law, Ross Smith, was one of six victims of Malcolm Baker, a

spree killer A spree killer is someone who commits a criminal act that involves two or more murders or homicides in a short time, in multiple locations. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics defines a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations ...

, in October 1992, the murders are referred to as the

Central Coast massacre The Central Coast massacre was a shooting spree killing that occurred on the evening of 27 October 1992 on the Central Coast, New South Wales, Australia.Reuter. Man charged over killing six. '' New Straits Times'': 29 October 1992, p.22. 45-y ...

. In January 1995 he had a

brain hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

and in the following month he underwent surgery to remove the related

brain aneurysm An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a brain aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral artery or vein causes a localized dilation or ballooning of the blood vessel. Aneurysms in the posterior circul ...

. He had a heart attack in January 1996 and had triple bypass surgery. A series of strokes followed, Roslyn observed, "He had lots of seizures, and it was very, very tough for him for many years, trying to get those seizures under control." From 2003 he was under 24-hour care at

John Hunter Hospital The John Hunter Hospital and John Hunter Children's Hospital (sometimes known as the JHH and JHCH respectively, or more colloquially The John Hunter) is the principal referral centre and a tertiary hospital for Newcastle, and northern New South ...

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...

. Reg Lindsay died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

on 5 August 2008 in Newcastle, aged 79. Note: source incorrectly gives birth date as 5 August. Coincidentally, this date is the birthday of Neil Armstrong. Lindsay is survived by his wife Roslyn; his three daughters from his first marriage, Dianne, Sandra and Joanne; and his grandchildren. His daughter, Dianne Lindsay is also a country music singer-songwriter – she won Best Female Vocal at the Australian Country Music People's Choice Awards in Tamworth in January 2017. March 2015, the Reg Lindsay statue was unveiled at East Cessnock Bowling Club. In 2019 the first Reg Lindsay DVD was released titled 'Country All The Way' and in January 2021, Roslyn Lindsay released the first ever Reg Lindsay pictorial book 'Setting The Pace' a collection of photos throughout his career with rare photos including McKean Sisters,

, Kenny Sole, Judy Stone, Chad Morgan, Buddy Williams, Lily Connors and many others. The DVD, CDs and Book are available at the Reg Lindsay official websit

On 21 January 2021 Roslyn with the Federal Member for New England

Barnaby Joyce Barnaby Thomas Gerard Joyce (born 17 April 1967) is an Australian politician who served as the 17th deputy prime minister of Australia under Malcolm Turnbull from 2016 to 2018 and under Scott Morrison from 2021 to 2022. He was the leader of the ...

and selected guests officially opened The Reg Lindsay Memory Barn at Spring Ridge, south of Tamworth, in honor of her late husband. The Reg Lindsay Memory Barn, which is full of Reg's personal and career's memorabilia spanning 60 years, was expected to be officially opened in 2020 but was delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

DVDs and Books

* DVD - 'Country All The Way' (2019) * Pictorial Book - 'Setting The Pace' (2021)

Discography

* ''Secrets of Life'' * ''20 Golden Country Greats'' * ''Ten Ten Two and a Quarter'' * ''No Slowin' Down'' * ''40th Anniversary Album'' * ''The Roundup - 50th Anniversary Collection'' * ''The Rodeo Years'' *The Best of Reg Lindsay *If You Could See Me Now * ''Down by the Old Slip-Rail'' * ''Reasons To Rise'' *No Stone Unturned *Armstrong (Digitally Remastered)

Charting singles

Awards and honours

Reg Lindsay became the first Australian to appear at Nashville's ''

'' in June 1968; he is officially recognized with a plaque on Nashville's Walkway of Stars. * 1968 - Was made an Honorary Citizen of Tennessee by Governor

Buford Ellington Earl Buford Ellington (June 27, 1907 – April 3, 1972) was an American politician who served as the 42nd governor of Tennessee from 1959 to 1963, and again from 1967 to 1971. Along with his political ally, Frank G. Clement, he helped lead a ...

* 1968 - Honored by CMA for his contribution to Country Music worldwide (Nashville) * 1973 (Oct) CMA citation for his contribution to Country Music (Nashville) * 1978 (June) National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Nashville - for Services Rendered * 1981 - Named "Australian Pro-Rodeo's Favorite and made an honorary member of the Rodeo Association * 1982 - Queensland Country Music Awards * 1986 - Was made an Honorary Citizen of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

* 1988 - Inducted into the

Barmera Barmera is a town in the Riverland region of South Australia. It is on the Sturt Highway A20, 220 kilometres north-east of Adelaide, the capital of the state of South Australia. It is primarily an agricultural and viticultural town and is l ...

Country Music Hall of Fame * 1989 - OAM for his Services to Country Music * 2006 - Living Legends Award (Kempsey, NSW)

Country Music Awards (CMAA)

Reg Lindsay has won three

Golden guitar The Big Golden Guitar is one of the many "big" attractions that can be found around Australia. Located in Tamworth, New South Wales, the monument is one of the best-known points of interest in New England. It is also a major attraction duri ...

awards and was inducted into the Roll of Renown at the Tamworth

, - , 1974 , , Reg Lindsay ''July You're a Woman'', , Male Vocalist of the Year , , , - , 1978 , , Reg Lindsay ''Silence on the Line'', , Male Vocalist of the Year , , , - , 1980 , , Reg Lindsay ''The Empty Arms Hotel'' , , Male Vocalist of the Year , , , - , 1984 , , Reg Lindsay , , Roll of Renown , , , -

Mo Awards

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, that where established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were l ...

), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Lindsay won two awards in that time. (wins only) , - , 2001 , Reg Lindsay , John Campbell Fellowship Award , , - , 2014 , Reg Lindsay , Hall of Fame , , -

Order of Australia

, - , 1989 ,

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

(Australia) ,

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM) "for service to country music" , , -

References

External links

*
"Reg Lindsay Photo"
by John Elliott at National Portrait Gallery
"Reg Lindsay and Roslyn Lindsay interviewed by Rob Willis"
Recorded on 9 July 1999, held at National Library of Australia

photo of Reg Lindsay at Honeysuckle / Tidbinbilla for the 20th anniversary of Apollo 11 in Canberra in 1989. He performed "A Man Named Armstrong". * * "Memories and Dreams" by Dianne Lindsay
part 1part 2part 3
archived from the originals in November–December 2008 at he
official website
Accessed on 2 January 2018. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindsay, Reg 1929 births 2008 deaths 20th-century guitarists Australian country guitarists Australian country singers Deaths from pneumonia in New South Wales Australian male guitarists People from New South Wales Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian male singers