New Album

The story of Nell’s upcoming album, “Shake the Tree,” began at Metrophonic Studios just outside London in summer 2010. It was there that she met Patrick Mascall, a British guitarist and songwriter with more knowledge of American culture than most Americans. The pair immediately hit it off after discovering a mutual admiration for the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson and Emmylou Harris, and quickly began writing a flood of songs that would later form the backbone of the album.

On a car ride home from the studio one evening, Patrick played Grammy-winning producer Mark Taylor some of their work and plans for cutting an album immediately ensued. In early 2011 a band of carefully selected musicians went into West London’s State of the Ark studio. Owned by legendary songwriter Terry Britten and renowned for its large collection of vintage gear, including an old EMI console complete with “Mick and Keith” scratched into it courtesy of some former users, the studio provided the perfect environment to bring the album to life.

“Shake the Tree” is a metaphor for the way Nell has approached her career in the music industry.  Never one to wait for others to come to her, she’s applied her New Yorker can-do attitude to everything from touring to releasing records.  When she started touring Europe, rather than courting uninterested booking agents, she set up 250 shows a year herself, staying on the road for four years.  She has been self-releasing her own EPs and albums for the last ten years, doing licensing deals with record labels in various territories.  Realizing  that the days of being “discovered” by a record label are over, witnessing the seismic shifts throughout the music business, Nell has stayed true to her music and her vision, always finding a way to connect with her fans and continually “Shake the Tree.”

“Shake the Tree” is expected to be released in June 2012.