About Us
Steve Ryan- Gledhill Biography
Steve Ryan-Gledhill will probably be one of the more interesting people you’ve come across in a while. Diagnosed later in life with both Asperger’s Syndrome and Parkinson’s, this former high-flying international finance executive with a not too shabby IQ of 142, hasn’t allowed either of these issues to affect his enduring love of music, creativity and desire to live a fulfilling life.
Determination was on show early in Ryan-Gledhill’s early professional life. Having achieved a B.A. Degree majoring in Psychology, with minors in Economics and Statistics, he was offered a position as Director at a Funds Management Company in Hong Kong, before rising to become head of the Asia Pacific for both Chase Manhattan and Bank of America.
These positions saw Ryan-Gledhill rubbing shoulders with the likes of Dr Henry Kissinger, Walter Mondale (VP to President Jimmy Carter), David Rockefeller, American novelist Tom Wolfe, and British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author Sir John Mortimer, while racking up thousands of hours flying between all parts of Asia, LA and NY.
But by 2002, the long hours, constant pressure and desire for a substantial lifestyle change won out, and Ryan-Gledhill moved back to Australia – St Kilda to be exact – where he focused on a new, more creative life for himself centred on music – a lifelong love since first picking up the guitar at the age of 11, and performing live from 13.
After having been unsuccessful (a first for this over-achiever) in auditioning for the Bachelor of Music program at the Victorian College of the Arts, Ryan-Gledhill instead went on to NMIT – now Melbourne Polytechnic – to complete a two year Advanced Diploma in Music Performance (Jazz and Contemporary).
By this time, he was playing in and managing his own band (Dead Cats Bounce) and teaching Guitar and Bass, and had also ended up managing two Jazz Guitarists – Jack Pantazis and Peter Petrucci.
The next step was Ryan-Gledhill’s decision to start a short-lived record label (Jazz Play Records) where he released four full length Jazz albums. Ultimately, the dramatic rise of Spotify and other streaming services, combined with the small market for Jazz in Australia, saw the business wind up.
Undeterred, Ryan-Gledhill formed The Broken Sweethearts, a band which ran for about a dozen years with a number of lineups, focusing on original material. The Broken Sweethearts released three EP’s over that time, Live Inside (recorded live at the Esplanade St Kilda), Unusual Bird Calls and Picture in my Pocket. They also released 5 singles: Unfinished Song, Sail To You, Only One, Thinkin’ ’bout You and Still Don’t Know.
In 2016 a challenging set of personal circumstances led to Ryan-Gledhill being diagnosed with Asperger’s. The diagnosis was difficult to absorb, but he continued to play, write songs, work full time take vocal coaching lessons for a number of years which led to recording and releasing The Charlemagne Project (a 7 track Country/Americana album of originals) in December 2019/January 2020. Just in time for COVID restrictions.
When what now passes for normality returned, Ryan-Gledhill resumed the odd gig and regular coaching sessions. It was around then that he noticed tremors in mainly his left hand when playing – which was not great for a guitar player. After ruling out stress/nerves, he visited his GP, referred to a neurologist, and eventually diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2021. It was a bitter blow.
As Ryan-Gledhill says “All that said, and accepting the issues Parkinson gives you, I continued to write and play, culminating in the completion of my 13 track album. This had to be scheduled with consideration of the Parkinson’s symptoms with breaks between days of recording and keeping the sessions to a reasonable length.”
“There really was only one studio day where my symptoms made it impossible for me to play the guitar parts required (even though I had composed them). Fortunately, Cam McKenzie (multi-talented musician, engineer and producer) stepped up and played the two parts so recording could continue.”
The end result, at the age of 69, is his eponymous debut full-length album – which will be released Friday 27th June. A Melbourne album launch, with full band, is booked for the same night at George Lane, St Kilda.
