Biography
Scant details survive regarding Chicago blues singer and pianist Nolan Welsh beyond the evidence of a small group of recordings stamped with his unmistakable personal style. More than a mere footnote in the formative career of cornetist Louis Armstrong is merited by Welsh, who joined the trumpeter for the June 16, 1926 Okeh coupling of "The Bridwell Blues" and "St. Peter Blues," performances that also stand as striking showcases of the youthful Armstrong functioning as an inspired, relaxed accompanist. Welsh's vocal approach conveyed the pitch, punch, and potency associated with Blind Lemon Jefferson. Piano duties on Welsh's second, less familiar Okeh session of November 18, 1926 again fell to composer, bandleader, and talent scout Richard M. Jones, while violinist Clarence Black—a native of Cynthiana, KY whose career centered on Chicago theater and ballroom orchestras in both leadership and first-chair roles—filled the slot left by Armstrong. Three further Paramount sides issued under the pseudonym Barrelhouse Welsh also repay attention: an unissued test pressing from November 1928 plus two commercial titles cut in January 1929, all of which Document reissued during the 1990s on Piano Blues, Vol. 3 (Document 5314). While Welsh invested deep emotion in lyrics treating women, larceny, and fatal disease, his keyboard work displayed facility on par with that of Turner Parrish, Blind Leroy Garnett, or Charlie Spand. The nine selections Document has made available appear to represent the whole of Welsh's recorded legacy.