His elder brother, Walter "Papoose" Nelson,[2] played in the 1950s and early 1960s with Fats Domino and Professor Longhair, and was a session guitarist for New Orleans bandlander and producer Dave Bartholomew; he died in 1962.

[2] In 1961, Jessie Hill brought his latest discovery, 19-year-old Barbara George, in for a debut recording session with Harold Battiste's newly founded AFO (All For One) label.

[2] Other musicians on the record included saxophonist Red Tyler and drummer John Boudreaux.

[2] Nelson followed up with a second single at the tail-end of 1962, the Charley Julien song "Gettin' Married Soon", b/w "Come Back To Me".

However, in October 1963 he died at the age of 27 in somewhat mysterious circumstances, most sources stating that it was the result of an accidental overdose of heroin, though there have been intimations of foul play.