Stream Leo "Bud" Welch's Final Album, With Thoughts From Producer Dan Auerbach
Mar. 5, 2019
Before he passed away in late 2017, blues guitarist Leo "Bud" Welch cut one final session in Nashville under the watchful eye of Dan Auerbach. Welch's story was a unique one; a lifelong musician and performer, he didn't make a record until his 80s. Released in 2014, Sabougla Voices took listeners back to the Mississippi Delta, blending blues and gospel with a raw urgency that was less traditional than it was sincere and striking. I Don't Prefer No Blues quickly followed, a more secular, raucous set that evoked the spirit of the juke joints of yore.
Auerbach didn't compile his session with Welch into a record immediately, and in the intervening years, Welch passed away, as did Richard Swift, a prolific musician who had played drums on the record and had been part of the Black Keys' touring lineup. With a heavy heart but also with fond memories of the recording, Auerbach put the finishing touches on The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name, 10 tracks of first-take, no nonsense blues delivered by Welch as quickly as the band could handle.
In addition to sharing an exclusive first listen to The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name (due out March 8), we spoke with Auerbach about his time with Welch, the feedback loop of energy that was created in the room, and his chance to step into the shoes of Alan Lomax.
AllMusic: When Bud first showed up, did you have to build a rapport with him before you started recording?
Dan Auerbach: Man, we never even thought about that for a second. We just got right to it and started playing music. I think it was pretty self-evident that everybody in the room was there for Bud, and we were just psyched he was in the building. So as soon as he got here, we started playing, started messing around and trying to record songs.
AllMusic: Was there a sense that his energy was limited so you'd better not waste it?
Auerbach: That’s what I thought, but then I realized that he doesn’t stop, he was like the Energizer bunny. He was so full of life and so full of energy and excitement. This was his whole life, and he saw these young kids excited about the gospel music, and I think it gave him extra energy.
AllMusic: On the record you can hear him calling audibles in the room, was it the kind of session where you just leave the "record" button pressed the whole time?
Auerbach: We’re pretty much like that most of the time, but yeah, it was no exception with Bud. He called the shots, we followed him and just tried to get in where we fit in.
AllMusic: The chatter he delivers in between “Right on Time” and “I Want to Be At the Meeting” makes me feel like I'm in the room.
Auerbach: Absolutely, I always love that kind of stuff on records, that’s what makes you feel like you’re there, I just love that. I grew up obsessing about blues records and field recordings and listening to Alan Lomax talk to Son House or Fred McDowell as they’d introduce a song, I love that kind of stuff. It really is more than just music, it’s humanity, it’s this guy’s life, and it’s him. Just to record the songs without leaving in some of that not the full story.
AllMusic: Was all of the instrumentation recorded together?
Auerbach: Bud was in the room with us, Richard Swift was on drums, and I’d play bass or guitar. We did some overdubs, but every song is a live performance with at least three people playing together at the same time.
AllMusic: Was Bud a second-take kind of guy?
Auerbach: This was a first-take only situation.
AllMusic: And you knew that going in?
Auerbach: Yeah, but that’s half the fun. The idea is you’re not trying to get anything perfect. If it starts to sound perfect, you’ve fucked it up. With somebody like Bud who’s just so real, you want to grab it as quickly as you can onto the tape, because that’s where the magic is.
AllMusic: Did you feel compelled to use an older recording setup for the session?
Auerbach: My studio is a mix of old and new. We use all old amps, for the most part, Bud was playing a 1953 Les Paul, Rich was playing an old drum kit, we used old microphones, old mic stands [laughs], but the computer we record on is brand new.
AllMusic: By the time you compiled and sequenced the record, had he already passed away?
Auerbach: We made the track selection afterwards. When I cut this record, I didn’t have the label set up, I was just starting going through the motions of starting up the label and getting my distribution together. So I didn’t come back to the hard drive until a couple of years after the recording, and unfortunately it was after Bud had passed, and after Rich had passed. It was kind of heavy at first, it was bittersweet, listening to Richard and Bud and me play and having so much fun. I had never really experienced anything like that, and to have it be a religious album on top of it only added to that.
AllMusic: And lyrically, there’s some really heavy themes on here.
Auerbach: What’s really crazy, and I don’t know that many people are going to pick up on it, but the very last words you hear Leo say on the very last song are “Before this time another year, I may be dead and gone. I'll let you know before I go." It made the hairs on my neck stand up, I was like, “Oh my god.” I didn’t even notice it until we were mixing it this year, it was pretty wild.
AllMusic: When picking tracks, were you trying to work within a theme?
Auerbach: I didn’t have much excess, maybe a couple of songs, but these worked the best together. I wanted it to be concise, I wanted it to feel good and start and end in a lonesome way, with just Leo and his guitar. I had so much fun making that record.
AllMusic: Is it something you listen to on your own?
Auerbach: Honestly, it is one of those records that I like to listen to in my free time. “Don’t Let the Devil Ride,” I love listening to Rich on the drums, he’s playing so awesome, so off the cuff but so in the pocket, and Leo’s right hand is rock solid. Leo was in his mid-80s, and he was too old to do much other than sit there between takes, he didn’t have much energy to do anything else, but his right hand was like a metronome, it was crazy.
AllMusic: Was he all business, or was he cracking jokes between tracks?
Auerbach: Yeah, he was cracking jokes. His manager, Vencie, is a really interesting cat from Mississippi who drove him around and helped him out, so he was there and sang a little with us, and they were cutting it up and making fun of each other. It was fun, it was lighthearted, and everyone was having a good time. We were recording for the pure joy of recording. Richard and me were so excited to be there.
'The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name' is available for preorder
Auerbach didn't compile his session with Welch into a record immediately, and in the intervening years, Welch passed away, as did Richard Swift, a prolific musician who had played drums on the record and had been part of the Black Keys' touring lineup. With a heavy heart but also with fond memories of the recording, Auerbach put the finishing touches on The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name, 10 tracks of first-take, no nonsense blues delivered by Welch as quickly as the band could handle.
In addition to sharing an exclusive first listen to The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name (due out March 8), we spoke with Auerbach about his time with Welch, the feedback loop of energy that was created in the room, and his chance to step into the shoes of Alan Lomax.
AllMusic: When Bud first showed up, did you have to build a rapport with him before you started recording?
Dan Auerbach: Man, we never even thought about that for a second. We just got right to it and started playing music. I think it was pretty self-evident that everybody in the room was there for Bud, and we were just psyched he was in the building. So as soon as he got here, we started playing, started messing around and trying to record songs.
AllMusic: Was there a sense that his energy was limited so you'd better not waste it?
Auerbach: That’s what I thought, but then I realized that he doesn’t stop, he was like the Energizer bunny. He was so full of life and so full of energy and excitement. This was his whole life, and he saw these young kids excited about the gospel music, and I think it gave him extra energy.
AllMusic: On the record you can hear him calling audibles in the room, was it the kind of session where you just leave the "record" button pressed the whole time?
Auerbach: We’re pretty much like that most of the time, but yeah, it was no exception with Bud. He called the shots, we followed him and just tried to get in where we fit in.
AllMusic: The chatter he delivers in between “Right on Time” and “I Want to Be At the Meeting” makes me feel like I'm in the room.
Auerbach: Absolutely, I always love that kind of stuff on records, that’s what makes you feel like you’re there, I just love that. I grew up obsessing about blues records and field recordings and listening to Alan Lomax talk to Son House or Fred McDowell as they’d introduce a song, I love that kind of stuff. It really is more than just music, it’s humanity, it’s this guy’s life, and it’s him. Just to record the songs without leaving in some of that not the full story.
AllMusic: Was all of the instrumentation recorded together?
Auerbach: Bud was in the room with us, Richard Swift was on drums, and I’d play bass or guitar. We did some overdubs, but every song is a live performance with at least three people playing together at the same time.
AllMusic: Was Bud a second-take kind of guy?
Auerbach: This was a first-take only situation.
AllMusic: And you knew that going in?
Auerbach: Yeah, but that’s half the fun. The idea is you’re not trying to get anything perfect. If it starts to sound perfect, you’ve fucked it up. With somebody like Bud who’s just so real, you want to grab it as quickly as you can onto the tape, because that’s where the magic is.
AllMusic: Did you feel compelled to use an older recording setup for the session?
Auerbach: My studio is a mix of old and new. We use all old amps, for the most part, Bud was playing a 1953 Les Paul, Rich was playing an old drum kit, we used old microphones, old mic stands [laughs], but the computer we record on is brand new.
AllMusic: By the time you compiled and sequenced the record, had he already passed away?
Auerbach: We made the track selection afterwards. When I cut this record, I didn’t have the label set up, I was just starting going through the motions of starting up the label and getting my distribution together. So I didn’t come back to the hard drive until a couple of years after the recording, and unfortunately it was after Bud had passed, and after Rich had passed. It was kind of heavy at first, it was bittersweet, listening to Richard and Bud and me play and having so much fun. I had never really experienced anything like that, and to have it be a religious album on top of it only added to that.
AllMusic: And lyrically, there’s some really heavy themes on here.
Auerbach: What’s really crazy, and I don’t know that many people are going to pick up on it, but the very last words you hear Leo say on the very last song are “Before this time another year, I may be dead and gone. I'll let you know before I go." It made the hairs on my neck stand up, I was like, “Oh my god.” I didn’t even notice it until we were mixing it this year, it was pretty wild.
AllMusic: When picking tracks, were you trying to work within a theme?
Auerbach: I didn’t have much excess, maybe a couple of songs, but these worked the best together. I wanted it to be concise, I wanted it to feel good and start and end in a lonesome way, with just Leo and his guitar. I had so much fun making that record.
AllMusic: Is it something you listen to on your own?
Auerbach: Honestly, it is one of those records that I like to listen to in my free time. “Don’t Let the Devil Ride,” I love listening to Rich on the drums, he’s playing so awesome, so off the cuff but so in the pocket, and Leo’s right hand is rock solid. Leo was in his mid-80s, and he was too old to do much other than sit there between takes, he didn’t have much energy to do anything else, but his right hand was like a metronome, it was crazy.
AllMusic: Was he all business, or was he cracking jokes between tracks?
Auerbach: Yeah, he was cracking jokes. His manager, Vencie, is a really interesting cat from Mississippi who drove him around and helped him out, so he was there and sang a little with us, and they were cutting it up and making fun of each other. It was fun, it was lighthearted, and everyone was having a good time. We were recording for the pure joy of recording. Richard and me were so excited to be there.
'The Angels in Heaven Done Signed My Name' is available for preorder