1994 Robbie Laws and the Urban All-Stars won Best New Act
1995 Robbie Laws and the Urban All-Stars won Best Contemporary Blues Act
1995 Robbie Laws' CD "Midnight Rain" won Best Northwest Recording
1997 The Robbie Laws Band won Best Contemporary Blues Act
Boyd has played music professionally since he was 11 years old in the Midwest, studying jazz at a young age and becoming proficient on drums, string bass and bass guitar. Boyd spent 10 years in Los Angeles as a band member and studio musician. He performed with the Mike Garson Band (virtuoso pianist with David Bowie), Stu Carroll & Vulcan (former Uriah Heep singer), and the Micky McMeel Band (former Three Dog Night member). A considerable songwriting talent, Boyd co-wrote and played several songs for LA artists Jimmie Spheeris, T'Shura, Rockin' Horse and the Bobby California Show. From 1976-1978, Boyd's eight-piece originals band, The Right Item, spun off major studio talent in the form of Pat McBride (sax for Al Stewart), Tito Figueroa (trumpet for Ray Burretto), Michael Sneed songwriter/sax player for Jimmie Spheeris), and Jon Webb (harmonica virtuoso for Billy Joel and numerous notable blues bands).
Since coming to Portland in 1984 to escape the "L.A. insanity," Boyd has proven himself locally as a versatile drummer and singer, having provided his solid beat and considerable finesse for the popular country-rock band, Longrider; 50s/60s band, The Shadows; Cascade Blues Association's Muddy Award nominee blues power trio, The Mighty Sparrows; Top 40 variety band, City Lights; Portland Music Association Crystal Award Winning R&B band, Paulette 'N' Power; and performed for Robbie Laws and the Urban All Stars. While with Laws, the band won the Cascade Blues Association's Muddy Award for "Best New Act" in 1994, and "Best Contemporary Blues Band" in 1995. Boyd is featured on the Laws' recording, "Midnight Rain," which also won "Best Northwest Recording."
Boyd is in demand as an alternate player, and has performed with such bands as the Curtis Salgado Band, Paul deLay Band, the Terry Robb Band, Lucky Dawgs, Steamy Windows, Chris Miller Band, Dale Van Wormer Band, The Vibrasonics, Ellen Whyte, Mel Solomon Band, Norman Sylvester Band, Lee Blake Band, Jesse Samsel Band, Megan James Band, Keely Bradshaw Band, Andy Stokes Band, Chuck Adkins & Easy Money, Jeannie Langston Band, Odyssey (a Moody Blues cover band), The Imposters, and the Paul Whistler Band.
Other noteworthy projects include touring with the Joanna Connor Band (Blind Pig Records). Boyd returned in May, 1998, from a year-long tour with the band across the U.S. and Europe and can be heard on the Blind Pig Records release, "Slidetime".
After returning to Portland, Boyd was immediately recruited into Shade, an R&B/blues outfit led by soul singer/keyboard player, Charlie Grant. The band recorded "City Lights" in June of '99, which received considerable airplay on KINK-FM and KMHD-FM, but the untimely demise of Charlie at his day job ended the band.
Currently (2/2000), Boyd is putting together a new band with Shade guitarist Jimmy Devore, called Preparation Funk, and in the meantime freelancing with three other bands as a sub.
Boyd was founder, publisher, and editor of the popular publication, The Portland Live Music Guide, and has written for Seattle New Age mag, Common Ground, and FTN MediaWorks' One Stop Music Review, and was the music editor for Our Town Magazine, a Portland downtown weekly. He lives in Portland with his spiritual partner, Dede Farrell in the Lloyd Center/Irvington District. He is an active internet content provider with CyberReach, and maintains several vast databases for Northwest U.S. music at Indie Avenue.