Kevin Stephen Welch (August 17, 1955) is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist. He has charted five singles on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

charts and released eight studio albums. He is also one of the cofounders of the Dead Reckoning Records label, which he founded with fellow musicians

Kieran Kane Kieran Kane (born October 7, 1949) is an American country music artist, as well as the owner of Dead Reckoning Records, an independent record label. Between 1986 and 1990, he and Jamie O'Hara comprised The O'Kanes, a duo which charted seven ...

Tammy Rogers Tammy Rogers (born 1966) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. In addition to releasing three albums on the Dead Reckoning Records label (which she founded with Kieran Kane), she is also a founding member of the Grammy ...

Mike Henderson Michael James Henderson (July 14, 1953 – September 22, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter. In addition to his solo career, which included five studio albums, Henderson was a member of the country band The SteelDrivers from 2005 to 2011 an ...

, and Harry Stinson.

Biography

At the age of 7, Welch and his family moved to

Midwest City, Oklahoma Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,409, making it the eighth largest city in the state. The city was developed in r ...

. After graduating high school, he began touring with bands like New Rodeo and Blue Rose Cafe. Welch moved to

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

in 1978 to work as a songwriter. Singers like

Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, ma ...

Moe Bandy Marion Franklin "Moe" Bandy Jr. (born February 12, 1944) is an American country music singer. He was most popular during the 1970s, when he had several hit songs, both alone and as part of a duo with Joe Stampley. Early life and recordings Ma ...

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

Patty Loveless Patty Loveless (born Patricia Lee Ramey, January 4, 1957) is an American country music singer. She began performing in her teenaged years before signing her first recording contract with MCA Records' Nashville division in 1985. While her first ...

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...

Trisha Yearwood Patricia Lynn Yearwood (born September 19, 1964) is an American country singer. She rose to fame with her 1991 debut single "She's in Love with the Boy", which became a number one hit on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Hot Country Songs ...

and

Don Williams Donald Ray Williams (May 27, 1939 – September 8, 2017) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and 2010 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame. He began his solo career in 1971, singing p ...

were using his material. At the same time he was very active in local clubs, performing with

John Scott Sherrill John Scott Sherrill is an American songwriter whose work is primarily in the field of country music. His brother, Donn Sherrill, was a student at Vanderbilt, where he introduced John Scott to his fraternity brother, Scott Siman, who recorded demos ...

and the Wolves in Cheap Clothing, The Roosters, and finally his own band – The Overtones. His popularity grew and in 1988 he signed a record contract with

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Green Day, En ...

. In 1990 the album ''Kevin Welch'' was recorded and 2 years later ''Western Beat''. The former produced four charting singles on

, including "Til I See You Again," which reached No. 39. In 1994 he co-founded Dead Reckoning Records along with

and Harry Stinson. The following year ''Life Down Here on Earth'' was published and in 1999 ''Beneath My Wheels''. The majority of songs are Welch's originals. In 2002 the album ''Millionaire'' was recorded partially in Nashville and mostly in Denmark with a line-up of Scandinavian players. In 2004 Welch teamed up with fellow Dead Reckoning artists Kieran Kane and

Fats Kaplin Fats Kaplin is an American musician, born in New York City. He is best known as a fiddler. He also plays guitar, button accordion, banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, an Arab oud, and a Turkish cümbüş, among others. He has worked with artists such ...

to produce ''You Can't Save Everybody''. The trio followed this up with ''Lost John Dean'' in 2006, to general acclaim. ''Lost John Dean'' reached number one on the Americana charts, and resulted in nominations for several awards including Duo/Group of the year at the 2006 Americana Honors and Awards. The following eponymous Kane Welch Kaplin, with the addition of Lucas Kane, was also nominated for Duo/Group. The group traveled to Australia 10 times, as well as Europe and the UK, Canada, and all over the United States. Throughout the 2000s, Welch has teamed up with Australian band The Flood. They have recorded albums and DVDs together, and toured the country twice. Welch moved to

Wimberley, Texas Wimberley is a city in Hays County, Texas, United States. It is still predominantly a ranching area. The population was 2,839 at the 2020 census. History Wimberley started as a trading post settlement near Cypress Creek in 1848, the year Ha ...

, on April 1, 2008. In 2009, he recorded '' A Patch Of Blue Sky'', his first solo project in 8 years. He now lives in Australia with his wife, Sarah, and their family.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Guest singles

Music videos

References

External links

Official siteDead Reckoning Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Welch, Kevin 1955 births Living people American country singer-songwriters Reprise Records artists Musicians from Long Beach, California Singer-songwriters from Oklahoma People from Midwest City, Oklahoma Singer-songwriters from California Country musicians from California Country musicians from Oklahoma