Growing up in a musical family in San Diego, California, Gayle was fascinated with music from the start, recording little songs with her sisters from the age of 3. The early loss of her uncle and several childhood friends sparked an intuitive turn to songwriting as a way to process and cope with these events. Gayle started performing these songs in local San Diego venues at the age of 14, and finally recorded her first E.P. at the age of 18.

As she began to pursue music more seriously, something that she had always done instinctively became more focused and intentional. Music became a way for Gayle to bring healing into her own life and the lives of others, growing in importance as she waded through an ever-growing mountain of loss and several traumatic events. During her first two years at university, twenty friends and acquaintances passed away. When a friend fell to his death on her backpacking trip in the Sierra Nevadas, she wrestled with PTSD. Throughout the healing process she was able to turn to her music as a way to transform her pain into something beautiful. She continued to record her music and soon started her own record label, Raincoat Records.

In the spring of 2017, Gayle Skidmore released her first full-length vinyl album and colouring book, her 20th independently released project. In 2016 she was the recipient of the Kassan Foundation Grant for her self-illustrated colouring book, which she presents as a way to experience the healing power of art and music . The Golden West was recorded with her then beer sponsor, Ninkasi Brewing, at Ninkasi Studios in Eugene, OR, Amusement Park Studios in Lubbock, TX, Singing Serpent Studios in San Diego, CA, and legendary studio Rancho de la Luna in Joshua Tree, CA. It features a range of styles and the singular theme of moving on from heartache and loss. Music Friday Live’s Patrick O’Heffernan said it well:

“Gayle Skidmore sings in the line between artistry and accessibility, between whimsy and earworms, between what is and what fantastically can be.”

Gayle’s dedication to her craft has paved the way to opening for the likes of Jason Mraz, Lisa Loeb, Grant Lee Phillips, The Jamestown Revival, Sean and Sara Watkins, Sam Phillips, and Coeur d’Pirate. She has recorded with such artists as The Softlightes, Bushwalla, Jason Mraz and Tyrone Wells, and continues to explore new styles. Her song “Only Ever You” features Dave Catching of Eagles of Death Metal on guitar, and her single “All My Life” includes a myriad San Diego talent, including Brian “Nucci” Cantrell of The English Beat, Jeff Berkley, Billy Galewood and Veronica May. In January 2022, she released an electro swing track, “Viva La Vita,” which includes a few Italian phrases. “Viva La Vita” was a finalist in the pop cateory of The Great American Song Contest. She is currently working on several collaborations in this genre, with plans to release three more singles in 2022. Recently transplanted to The Netherlands, she continues to enchant with her singular, transportive style and her heartfelt performances.

Gayle Skidmore finds endless inspiration in the whirlwind of life, has never experienced writer’s block, and is always experimenting with new formats. She released 104 songs on Patreon from 2019 to 2020. Her love of whimsy is evidenced by the visual elements she adds to music, which includes three self-illustrated colouring books. Germany’s prominent newspaper, the Seuddeutsche Zeitung, named her “Die Schutzpatronin der Gartenzwerge,” the Patron Saint of Garden Dwarves, which she proudly vaunts. When she isn’t busy learning a new instrument, singing, painting, or writing lyrics and melodies, she composes parts for her cellist and violinist. Gayle enjoys baking cookies and making origami for her fans.