It only took one song for Scott Windsor to launch his well-defined, highly-lauded career in music. And all it took to create it was some inspiration from a few close friends.
"I'd written one song and I signed the contract," the 21-year-old Windsor recalls of his debut into the music scene with a song penned about his best friend, who had been paralyzed in an auto accident.
The song Windsor is referring to is "Whispers Of A Long Goodnight." A Belmont University roommate of Windsor's wanted to test some recording equipment and Windsor had volunteered to be the subject of the experiment. Next thing he knew, the dorm room recording of his precise acoustic guitar strums and breathy, vibrato-laced vocals had been distributed amongst friends, who had in turn made copies for their friends. Before not too long, word (and music) had spread to the heads of The Militia Group in California and the St. Louis-based Windsor, now under the guise of THE LYNDSAY DIARIES, was handed a contract, ready to be inked.
With the fresh record deal in hand, Windsor went immediately to work during his Christmas vacation from school. The ten songs Windsor penned over this short timeframe ultimately comprised his debut album, Remember The Memories, which was released on The Militia Group in the summer of 2001.
Two years into school, Windsor quit on the decision to make his musical career a full-time obligation. It was with this new direction that Windsor started to get serious about touring and writing new material. By May 2002, Windsor was a solo act on the road for months at a time, with just enough downtime in between to head out to California ("I'm a huge fan," Windsor confesses. "I love California, I'll move out there soon.") and track his sophomore effort for The Militia Group, titled The Tops Of Trees Are On Fire.
With Trees (co-produced by DOGWOOD's Sean O'Donnell), THE LYNDSAY DIARIES' sound progresses ?including both acoustic and programmed drums (Windsor was actually a double-bass drummer in a metal band before creating THE LYNDSAY DIARIES) ?plus the implementation of new instrumentation such as a cello, upright bass and harmonica. Furthermore, Windsor says Trees simply "feels better to me, songwriting-wise."
Trees also showcases the variety of material Windsor is able to produce ?including a catchy, poppy sing-along track called "Mixtapes and Memories" and a country-tinged number ("Cowboy") that's about leaving Nashville for California's ocean. "I've been listening to a lot of Johnny Cash lately, and that might've influenced me," Windsor asserts, with a sly laugh. Most of the tracks on Trees are largely based on Windsor's personal feelings and relationships with friends.
It was in fact another close friend of Windsor's who lent the idea of the moniker he settled to use as his project's name ?the reason of which had been a rather guarded secret ... until now.
"I had a close friend named Lyndsay and we never dated (though most people think she's an ex-girlfriend)," he recalls. "We'd talk late at night and she was one of those really pretty girls in school. All the guys liked her and she just wanted someone to love her. And it was like, if you read a girl like that, read her diary, you could see that maybe they're not as happy as everyone thinks they are."
