Audio CD review:
Doc & Merle Watson - Ballads From Deep Gap

Doc & Merle Watson - Ballads From Deep Gap

Band: Doc & Merle Watson Title: Ballads From Deep Gap Rating: Release Date: 1991-11-26 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms - Doc Watson, Flatt, Lester 2: My Rough and Rowdy Ways - Doc Watson, McWilliams, Elsie 3: The Wreck of the Old Number Nine - Doc Watson, Robison, Carson 4: Gambler's Yodel - Doc Watson, Delmore, Alton 5: The Cuckoo - Doc Watson, Traditional 6: Stack-O-Lee - Doc Watson, 7: Willie Moore - Doc Watson, Traditional 8: Travelin' Man - Doc Watson, 9: The Tragic Romance - Doc Watson, Jones, Grandpa 10: Texas Gales - Doc Watson, ODay, Molly 11: The Lawson Family Murder - Doc Watson, Smith, Walter "Kid" 12: Alabama Bound - Doc Watson, Traditional

a near-masterpiece from two American masters Like that great, much-documented Texas bluesman, though, he's so good that you suspect that he could do it in his sleep (actually, in the occasional less than fully inspired concert, that's exactly how he sounds). By now Doc Watson has been recorded so often that he's begun to seem like the Lightnin' Hopkins of Appalachian music. Even by Watson's elevated standards, however, Ballads from Deep Gap (recorded in 1967, released four years later) stands out. It's long been one of my favorite of his recordings, and it's stood up to a quarter century's listening. Longtime enthusiasts of old-time, bluegrass, early country, and folk balladry will recognize the chestnuts here -- "Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms," "The Cuckoo," "Stack O'Lee," "Willie Moore," "Alabama Bound" -- and not complain in the least at Doc and his late son Merle's warm, assured approach; not a stale note sounds here. Doc takes a turn at yodeling in a couple of tunes, Jimmie Rodgers's classic "My Rough and Rowdy Ways" and Alton Delmore's obscure delight "Gambler's Yodel," and pulls off a fine comic performance of the venerable medicine-show song "Travellin' Man. " With two great American musicians at the top of their game, everything works. Doc and Merle take joy in what they are doing and they take the listener along. Ballads from Deep Gap is not just lovely; it's just plain lovable. You can see a complete list of all Doc & Merle Watson discography, or go back to the Doc & Merle Watson tabs