Dick Nolan "I Walk The Line... And Other Country Hits" (Arc Records, 1960-?) (LP)
Nolan kicked things off with a Johnny Cash tribute album, a theme he picked up a few years later after The Man In Black racked up a few more iconic hits to cover... This includes versions of "I Walk The Line" and "Seasons Of My Heart," though many of the other songs are from so early on, they'll probably seem pretty obscure to most modern-day Cash fans. Alas, there were no producer or musician credits, so the pickers involved are as yet unknown to us...
Dick Nolan "Home Of The Blues" (Olympic Records, 1962-?) (LP)
(Produced by John A. Porteous)
Dick Nolan "Atlantic Lullaby" (Arc Records, 1963-?) (LP)
Dick Nolan "Echoes Of The Atlantic" (Continental Maple Leaf Records, 1963-?) (LP)
(Produced by John A. Porteous)
Dick Nolan "Truck Driving Man" (Arc Records, 1964-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Dick Nolan "I'se The B'y That Catches The Fish" (Arc Records, 1966) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Another boatload of regionally-identified Newfie tunes, most of them with maritime themes. Includes a version of the popular "Squid Jiggin' Ground," along with songs such as "Badger Drive," "Let Me Fish Off Cape Ste. Mary," "Island Of Newfoundland" and "Harbour Le Cov," as well as non-geographical numbers such as sea shanty chestnut, "Jack Was Every Inch A Sailor."
Dick Nolan "Movin' Out" (Arc Records, 1967-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Dick Nolan & Bonnie Lou Nolan "Atlantic Christmas" (Arc Records, 1967-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
This was the first album to showcase Nolan's daughter, Bonnie Lou Nolan, a child singer who was about six or seven years old when the album was made. It was also a Christmas record, the fallback position for many a country music career. [Note: Bonnie Lou Nolan's other records are listed below.]
Dick Nolan "I Want To Live" (Arc Records, 1968-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Dick Nolan "Folsom Prison Blues And Other Johnny Cash Songs" (Arc Records, 1968-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
The Man In Black had covered a lot of territory since Dick Nolan's 1960 Johnny Cash tribute album (above) and this disc is peppered with more contemporary, early- to mid-'Sixties Cash hits. The set includes tunes like "Ring Of Fire," "Jackson," "Daddy Sang Bass" and "A Boy Named Sue," as well as lesser Cash offerings such as "The One On The Right." There are also oldies -- "I Walk The Line," "I Still Miss Someone," etc. Nothing to complain about here! (Well, except for the lack of musician credits...)
Dick Nolan "Be True Newfoundlanders" (Arc Records, 1968-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Dick Nolan "Lukey's Boat" (Arc Records, 1968-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
Dick Nolan & Marlene Beaudry "Country Hits" (Arc Records, 1969-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby & Gary Starr)
Marlene Beaudry was country gal from Alliston, Ontario, a slightly mysterious figure who cut a couple of solo albums for the Arc label before teaming up with Dick Nolan on her last couple of records. This set spotlights each of them separately, with either Beaudry or Nolan alternating as lead singer from track to track; their second album together, below, was more explicitly a duo effort.
Dick Nolan & Marlene Beaudry "Marlene Beaudry And Dick Nolan Duet" (Arc Records, 1969-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby & Gary Starr)
This appears to have been Ms. Beaudry's last album, with her actually getting top billing over Dick Nolan, though his was the longer career. As was typical for Arc Records, there are no musician credits and as was typical for Beaudry's albums (but not Nolan's) no Canadian content... Not sure what happened to her: I tried searching online for a day or two, but nothing definitive popped up. Any info is welcome!
Dick Nolan "Fisherman's Boy" (RCA-Camden, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Ben Weatherby)
This widely-distributed, best-selling album was Dick Nolan's debut on the RCA label, and includes one of his biggest national nits, the novelty number, "Aunt Martha's Sheep." The whole album's good: Nolan indulges in a number of regionally-themed numbers, particularly several with "Newfie" humor, playing on the rural culture of Newfoundland, though other songs are straight-up country, with Nolan singing in a smooth, rumbling baritone similar to Dave Dudley or perhaps Dick Curless... He's not a terribly versatile singer, but the songs sound nice, with a pleasant mix of steel and guitars -- basic stuff, but easy on the ears. Coinciding with one of the most intense periods of his career, with Nolan moving back to Toronto and appearing on a blitz of regional and national TV shows, this was Nolan's first record to sell over 50,000 copies, which for the Canadian country music industry, would count as a gold record. The same was true of two more of his RCA albums, Home Again This Year and Happy Newfoundlanders (below).
Dick Nolan "Home Again This Year" (RCA Camden, 1972-?) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Feeney)
Dick Nolan "Happy Newfoundlanders" (RCA-Camden, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Mark Smith)
Lots of Canadian content on this one, for sure! About half the songs are credited to Dick Nolan, notably the title track, "Happy Newfoundlanders," with a few collaborations such as "Newfie Screech," which was co-written with a fella named Willis Hancock, and another ("Courtroom In The Sky") penned with Ellis Coles. Mr. Coles was a prolific songwriter from Newfoundland who contributes four more of his songs to this album; in later years, Ellis Coles self-released a long string of cassette-only solo albums, beginning in the early 1990s. There's also a song by Stompin' Tom Connors, "Coal Boat Song," to round things out.
Dick Nolan "Happy Anniversary Newfoundland" (RCA-Camden, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Feeney & Mark Smith)
This was one of Nolan's best-selling albums, and not surprisingly features a wealth of regional Canadian content. The title track was penned by fellow Newfoundlander Roy Payne, an up-and-coming country star whose career took off in the early 1970s, about a decade behind Nolan; the two would continue to collaborate in years to come.
Dick Nolan "Dick Nolan" (RCA Victor, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Jack Feeney)
Dick Nolan "A Country Song" (Boot Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Jury Kytiuk & Peter Mann)
Dick Nolan & Roy Payne "Side By Each: Down At The Ol' Fishin' Hole" (Starpak Records, 1980) (LP)
This is more or less a split album, with solo tracks by each singer as well as couple of duets, "Old Fishin' Hole" and "Side By Each." The songs are mostly their own originals, though Dick Nolan also tosses in another version of his staple, "I'se D'a Bye," which was written by Jury Krytiuk.
Dick Nolan "Greatest Hits Of Newfoundland" (Starpak Records, 1980) (LP)
Dick Nolan "Welcome Aboard" (Boot Records, 1984) (LP)
Dick Nolan "My Beautiful Island" (Condor Records, 1991) (cassette)
Dick Nolan/Eddie Coffey "Christmas Morn In Newfoundland" (Condor Records, 1994)
Dick Nolan "Christmas At Home" (Oak Records, 1994)
(Produced by Dennis Brunet)
Dick Nolan "Down By The Sea" (Heritage/Condor Reords, 1998)
Dick Nolan "Newfoundland Good Times" (Condor Records, 1999)
Dick Nolan "More Dick Nolan" (Condor Records, 1999)
Dick Nolan "The Family Album" (Condor Records, 2000)
Dick Nolan "Pretty Girls Of Newfoundland" (Condor Records, 2000)
Richard F. (Dick) Nolan (1939-2005) was a Canadian country music plugger who specialized in regionally-themed material reflecting his coastal "Newfie" background. Born in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Nolan started performing professionally while still in his teens and in the late 1950s headed for the bright lights of Toronto, where he led the house band at the city's fabled Horseshoe Tavern, back in the days when it was still a country bar. Nolan landed a contract with Arc Records which led a long string of albums over his long career. Here's a quick look at his work...
