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Doc Watson

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Arthel Lane Watson, known as Doc Watson, was born in 1923 in Deep Gap, North Carolina. Before his second birthday he lost his sight through an eye infection. As a boy he bought his first guitar with money earned by chopping down dead chestnut trees, and learned songs by the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers and the Delmore Brothers. He got his nickname during a live radio broadcast: someone in the audience called out that the presenter should simply call him Doc.

Music and breakthrough

In the 1950s Watson played electric guitar in a country band and translated fiddle tunes to the guitar. In 1960 the folk expert Ralph Rinzler advised him to play only acoustic from then on. His first recording was Old Time Music at Clarence Ashley's, and his 1961 appearance in Greenwich Village brought him to the clubs and universities of the folk revival. His albums from that time included Doc Watson and Southbound. In 1972 he sang Tennessee Stud on the album Will the Circle Be Unbroken. After that he played for years with his son Merle, until Merle was killed in a farm accident in 1985.

Influence

Watson played both with a plectrum and with his fingers, but is best known for his flatpicking: fast lead guitar with fiddle tunes and crosspicking. He was also a good banjo player and sang with a warm baritone. Guitarists such as Clarence White and Tony Rice took over his style and built on it. He won seven Grammys and a Lifetime Achievement Award. MerleFest in North Carolina is named after his son. In a history of pop music, Watson shows how old American mountain music came back to life in the folk revival.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Tennessee Stud by Doc Watson and notice the fast, clear guitar line that sounds like a fiddle tune. Can you hear how his baritone voice rests calmly on top of it?

Discography

Studio albums

See also

Categories: Artists