Gail Russell

I was born Lesley Gail Russell ,27th August 1949, New Plymouth , New Zealand and I was raised

on a small sheep and dairy farm  25 miles North Of New Plymouth at a small Place called Waitoitoi.

My Mother was the Superintendent of the local Sunday School and along with other children from the

Farming Commnuity she taught us traditional songs like"Tell me the Old Old story and Shall we gather at the river"

I also have fond memories of my Father playing his Piano Accordion on the front porch of our house on warm

Summer evenings after the cows had been milked [no television in those days]

We also had an old gramophone in our lounge that played the records of Hank Snow, Rosemary Clooney,Jim Reeves

Pat Boone Doris Day and I guess those singers influenced my love of  Country Music today.

My first solo performance was at a School concert when I was eleven years old and from then on I knew that I wanted to make

singing a big part of my life.

At Teachers College I had plans to become an Opera singer but marriage and children came along.

After a few years away from my hometown I returned to New Plymouth in 1983, and joined a local

Country Music  Club, bought an Ovation Guitar off a good friend , learnt how to strum a few basic chords

so as to accompany myself  then proceeded to learn some country songs , mainly from Emmy Lou Harris, Dolly Parton

and Billie Joe Spiers.

I sang at the Country Clubs and after gaining confidence had the opportunity to join a band with two excellent musicians

from Iceland [Gutti and Rosi] who had come to to New Zealand to live.

  A lot of weekends were  spent entertaining at Country Dances, RSA'S , Weddings and at the

Workingman's Club in New Plymouth and Hawera.

1991 saw me move to Wellington where I sang with other bands, Lystica and Innovation  at the same sort of venues and also at this

time I started to compete in Country Music Awards with success.

In 2003 I wanted to do something special for my aging Mother so wrote her a song called

'My Mother's Love is More Precious than Gold' This song led me on to write more original songs

and with in a year  I had won a songwriting award in Blenheim with a song called

'This is Our  Special Wedding Day' a song that I wrote for my nieces wedding when she got married .

This song gave me the incentive to write and record more of my original songs hence my album

"I'm just  a Country Girl at heart being released in May 2006

This album has had many great comments whcih has made it all worthwhile and fullfilled

a dream having done it on  my own.

I am  presently living in Titahi Bay, Wellington and work part time as an Occupational Therapist

Assistant. in a hospital for the mentally ill.

I have three grown up children and one grand daughter called Teidyn

In my spare time I love to write songs, go to the movies, read, walk , cook , sing for the elderly in rest homes, do guest spots on shows,

compete in Country Music Awards and when time allows I love to go back to the farm to visit

my 95 year old  mother and my family