If things continue, as they are one day soon she could well be the pride of New York, a tree from which many seeds have grown. Yet not too many sound as good as Nell Bryden.

One of the things that struck me when I first heard you was what a wonderful stylist and immediately thought, now there is someone I would like to talk to.

“Oh, it is great for you to say that. It is unusual when people seek you out. It tends to always happen the other way and is nice and refreshing.”

I understand before you became a performer you spent some time hiking around Australia?

“Yes, I did. It was there that I figured out that I wanted to write my own songs. That is why Australia is dear to my heart. I was right at that age where you know you are going to do something with your life, but there are too many people who know you. Like when you are in school the kids think they know who you are, but can be completely wrong. I wanted to go as far as I could from high school and that was Australia. I was by myself and did not have any itinery or anything, and started writing these little a cappella lyrically snippets. Singing them for people, and people were so encouraging that I bought myself a guitar as I figured out what I was going to do. I was always into music, I played cello for a long time when I was a kid, and my mom was singer. I knew I going to be music related but it was different to be a singer-songwriter.”

Who and what kind of music did you listen to while you were growing up?

“Classical music, obviously, because my mom (Jane Bryden) was a classical singer. The stuff that really did it for me, and got me going were Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Bob Marley. I really loved their music and was into an age where there were a lot of strong music personalities. Likewise, I was into jazz singers, Billie Holiday and Sarah Vaughan and blues music. People like Bessie Smith. People who had a strong sense who they were, that meant a lot to me.”

Stylists, who like you, shape the song to suit their own vocal style.

“That is a great compliment, but it was not always that way. It took a long time to relax into the music I am best suited to do. I am not sure I have entirely figured it out but I am no longer concerned about making something that is mainstream or top forty ówith a smoothed out quality to it. I am more concerned about the song, the quality of it and production. I’ve just worked with a producer I really, really liked, and worked with a couple of others too. In the early stages there were instances I went far astray from what I was trying to do. I think that is what I mean when I say people’s personalities come across, and like you say the stylist is a different thing. Everything is more intentional óit is a person’s expression.”

Has some of your greatest satisfaction in music been when challenging yourself to make a song your own, and on to do so is greater than any monetary reward?

“I think you are right, don’t get me wrong money ain’t all bad. You need it from time to time and it certainly helps if you want to continue making music. I get huge satisfaction in creating something that is honest, especially in today’s era where you can create something in pro-tools.”

Who has been the greatest influence and support to you in music?

“My mother, she gave me voice lessons from a very young age.† Apart from her passing on her voice I also leant the discipline of practice. I played cello for a long time but did not really stick at it and should have been better. My dad (Lewis Bryden),” she adds. “He is a painter, and is presently doing landscapes of New England, Alaska and the Rockies, and portraits. So he has more of a composition mindset opposed to my mom. She is a performer, while he has this incredible value of self-discipline and of perseverance. He paints every single day, and it is like it would kill him if he didn’t. No one is knocking on his door, saying, ‘have you finished yet? He is such an inspiration, and you need that kind of dedication if you are going to make it as a music artist.”

How was it playing in Ireland and the UK earlier this year compared to the States?

“Frankly, much better, really, the audiences have been great. Like in Ireland, there is such an open circuit towards music, and as soon as I got off the plane at Dublin airport it was like I was second family. Going to a place far away from home tends to see a greater appreciation from people.”

What are your immediate plans?

“We go over to Ireland for a weeks tour of radio stations, then I am back home rehearsing with band to go to Kuwait and Iraq for a tour of the American bases. Then over to England in November for a couple of showcases in London and then a full tour.”

nellbryden.com