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Nancy Bryan


Country of origin:

U.S.

Type of music generally:

A kind of alternative pop/folk and folk/rock

Status:

Moost recent release, Memories (2011)

See also:

All Music's entry for Nancy Bryan

Comparisons:

A slightly more mainstream version of The McGarrigles perhaps. (Neile)

Covers/own material:

Own

General comments:

Nancy Bryan seems to be most strongly a songwriter, having done work on several pop and Disney albums. She has only released one of her own albums, Lay Me Down, where her songwriting talents are clear. While this isn't the kind of music I usually like, her songwriting in the traditional pop/folk vein is strong. She has a sort-of violin-like voice: thinnish, expressive, with a little tremelo in it, which reminds me of The McGarrigles. I would say her songwriting compares with theirs as well, but she's more earnest and doesn't have their quirky wit—instead she has a way of writing clean tunes and lyrics that are so well-constructed you know them on first listen—not that they bore you with familiarity but that they have a sense of clear, conscious, careful construction. (Neile)

Recommended first album:

Lay Me Down

Recordings:

  • Lay Me Down (1995)
  • Neon Angel (2001)
  • The Pilgrim (2009)
  • Memories (2011)

Lay Me Down

Release info:

1995—Analogue Productions—APO 2002

Availability:

Wide

Ecto priority:

Recommended for those intrigued by the description

Group members:

Nancy Bryan—vocals, keyboard, acoustic guitar, rhythm

Guest artists:

John Koenig—electric guitars, acoustic guitars, Hammond B-3 organ, basses, tambourine, shaker, percussion, electronic drum, cello
John Bryan—acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Dan Schwartz—bass, Moog synthesizer, Hastrom 8-string bass
Burleigh Drummond—drums, backing vocals, percussion, marimba, concert bass drum, tambourine
Peter Erskine—drums
Jerry Scheff—string bass
Jimmy Johnson—bass

Produced by:

John Koenig

Comments:

I bought this without ever hearing of her before because it was so inexpensive it was worth picking up sound unheard. Listening to it I'm not knocked out, but there's enough in here, especially songwriting skill, to keep me wanting to hear it again. A couple of songs are a little mainstream folky-sounding for me, like "come back to me", but to counteract that there's the delightfully trippy "i'll be waiting" and the quietly insistent "Sweet Havana". A charming range within the folk/pop world. (Neile)

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DISCLAIMER: Comments and reviews in the Ectophiles' Guide are excerpted from the ecto mailing list or volunteered by members of the list. They are the opinions of music enthusiasts, not professional music critics.

Entry last updated 2016-05-21 15:41:21.
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