[2] The first folk group Reid was in was The Taysiders in the 1970s, but he became better known as the driving force behind The Foundry Bar Band from Arbroath recording three albums with them in the 1980s.
Reid's solo work has included his debut in 1984 I Saw The Wild Geese Flee, followed by The Better o a Sang in 1996, Emfae Dundee in 2001 and Yont the Tay in 2005.
[4] He appeared on other works such as the Hamish Henderson tribute album, A The Bairns O Adam and Life in the Kingdom which was with the children of Fife primary schools.
In 2005 he won the "Scots Singer of the Year" award,[5] and Reid regularly played at festivals until he was diagnosed with dementia.
[7][8] Reid's song "The Wild Geese" (also known as "Norland Wind") from his debut album, in which he put music to Violet Jacob's 1915 poem, has been performed and recorded by many other artists, including Battlefield Band, Malinky, Frightened Rabbit with Lau and Jim Malcolm.