Born in the Bronx, New York City, the soulful singer-songwriter was born Laura Nigro (pronounced NIGH-gro). She was named after the popular title theme to the 1944 Otto Preminger film Laura. Her stage surname, Nyro, rhymes with hero.
A self-taught pianist, she grew up playing classical music on the piano and listening to a range of genres, from jazz to doo-wop, that informed her unique style. "My jazz background put certain inflections into my songwriting and singing," she told Bruce Pollock. "Throw in all the poetry I'd read since I was a kid and just being a woman, and that's what made my songs complex and emotionally rich."
From the time she released her debut album, More Than A New Discovery, in 1966, 18-year-old Nyro established herself as a writer of hit songs: The 5th Dimension took "Wedding Bell Blues" to #1, Blood, Sweat & Tears hit #2 with "And When I Die," and Barbra Streisand notched a #6 entry with "Stoney End." Nyro's own versions, with wildly varying tempos and complex melodies and harmonies, were too eclectic for the Hot 100, keeping her off the charts but always on the critics' radar.
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