Audio CD review:
Doc Watson - The Best Of Doc Watson 1964-1968

Doc Watson - The Best Of Doc Watson 1964-1968

Band: Doc Watson Title: The Best Of Doc Watson 1964-1968 Rating: Release Date: 1999-04-20 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Muskrat 2: Country Blues - Doc Watson, Boggs, Dock 3: Rising Sun Blues 4: Tennessee Stud - Doc Watson, Driftwood, Jimmie 5: Down in the Valley to Pray 6: Dill Pickle Rag 7: Otto Wood the Bandit 8: Windy and Warm - Doc Watson, Loudermilk, John D. 9: Little Sadie 10: Blue Railroad Train - Doc Watson, Delmore, Alton 11: Omie Wise 12: Intoxicated Rat - Doc Watson, Dixon, Dorsey 13: Tom Dooley - Doc Watson, 14: Alberta - Doc Watson, Leadbelly 15: Beaumont Rag 16: Shady Grove 17: My Rough and Rowdy Ways - Doc Watson, Rodgers, Jimmie [1] 18: The Train That Carried My Girl from Town - Doc Watson, Watson, Doc 19: Black Mountain Rag 20: Grandfather's Clock 21: The Cyclone of Ryecov - Doc Watson, Maybelle, AP 22: Doc's Guitar - Doc Watson, Watson, Doc 23: Crawdad Hole

Awesome Collection of early Doc Songs This a great collection of songs including my favorite arrangement of 'Shady Grove' that's out there. Classic Songs Performed By One Of The Greats Of American Music But it wasn't until 1960, at age 37, that Doc was "discovered" by folk music archivist, Ralph Rinzler and brought to play in New York City. After being born blind in a small mountain town in North Carolina, Doc grew up playing guitar with local musicians. Doc became a popular figure in the folk music scene of the early 60's and his legend has grown ever since. I used to go see him play at a small club in Black Mountain, North Carolina when I was attending a nearby school, Warren Wilson College, in the late 1980's. This album is a treasure trove of American folk classics with Doc's distinctive voice and hot picking making for a beautiful and inimitable sound. A close listening to the words of these songs will show just how rich, profound and meaningful they truly are. There is none of the "corniness" often associated with some of the more commercialized folk music. But instead Doc belts out powerful tales of murder and mayhem, wild women and rebellious "rounders" off to get drunk and raise hell. Some of these songs almost remind me of Old Testament stories in their ability to use dark and sometimes lurid subject matter to convey the true meaning of the human condition. Of course, you also have straightforward gospel songs like "Down In The Valley To Pray" which offer redemption to all of us wayward sinners. All in all this is a beautiful record of extraordinary songs by one of the masters of American music - the great Doc Watson. The Best of Doc Watson I`ve been a fan of his for more than forty years. Doc Watson is one amazing guitar picker, human being, and musician. Doc Watson Is a National Treasure All tracks are taken from the six studio albums he recorded for Vanguard from 1964 through 1968. Arthel "Doc" Watson is perhaps the finest flatpick guitar player to ever pick up a guitar and this generous 23-track anthology goes a long way to support that claim. I first heard Doc Watson on the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN where he performed his signature song "Tennessee Stud," included here from his classic SOUTHBOUND album. While not as good a singer as he is a guitar player, there is an earthy quality to his vocals, which is especially effective on the a capella gospel number "Down in the Valley To Pray. " On many of these tracks, Watson is accompanied by his son Merle on second guitar. Listen to their delicate interplay on the instrumental "Dill Pickle Rag. " As an added bonus, the final four tracks are previously unreleased. First, is a solo performance of "Grandfather's Clock" with Watson accompanying himself on guitar and harmonica. Next is the Carter Family's tragic tale of "The Cyclone of Ryecov. " Then there is the brief (1:23) guitar workout "Doc's Guitar. " The final is the traditional "Crawdad Hole" performed live. Doc Watson is one of our national treasures, and if you're looking for a solid introduction to his music, this is an excellent place to start. [Running Time - 65:55] VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED . Doc Watson is a fast guitar picker and bluegrass innovator! In those early days, they would rent small halls and bring in old black blues musicians like Rev. As an impressionable teenager in the mid 1960s, I was one of the youngest members of the Seattle Folklore Society (the folks who later started the Northwest Folklife Festival). Gary Davis, Mance Lipscomb and Jesse Fuller, and relatively unknown folk musicians like Buffy Sainte Marie and Doc Watson. Watson is an incredibly talented blind guitar and banjo picker from the Blue Ridge Mountains with a resonant voice. The night I saw Doc Watson, he was ushered to a lone chair at the center of a small stage, and within one or two songs, I felt like I was sitting at his kitchen table, as he sang songs from the mountains of North Carolina with a decidedly bluegrass flavor. At the time, I just knew he was one of the fastest flat-picking and fingerpicking guitarists around, who held the respect of anyone who had taken up the instrument in the Sixties. What I didn't know then was that Watson is largely responsible for shifting bluegrass guitar from a supportive rhythm guitar role (so that fiddlers and banjo pickers could shine) to playing leads, which is standard practice these days. Vanguard Records, the company that released these original 1960s era recordings, came out with this "Best of" album in the late 1990s, with over 65 minutes of tunes, many of which have become standards by other artists, like "Rising Sun Blues" (known to most of us as "The House of the Rising Sun," although with a different tune), "Tennessee Stud" (a great horse song), "Down in the Valley To Pray" (an inspiring white spiritual), "Tom Dooley" (quite different from the Kingston Trio version), "Alberta" (about a girl, not a province in Canada), "Black Mountain Rag" (still one of my favorite bluegrass guitar instrumentals, "Grandfather's Clock" (". . . it stopped short, never to go again when the old man died"), "Doc's Guitar" (if only I could play half that fast), and "Crawdad Hole. " While a few cuts on this album are done with a bluegrass band, on most he is alone, or with one other guitarist (including his late son, Merle). On these more intimate cuts it still feels like he's sitting at his kitchen table playing just for me (or you, if you get this CD). If you like bluegrass, or simply some of the best acoustic guitar ever recorded, this is highly recommended!. You can see a complete list of all Doc Watson discography, or go back to the Doc Watson tabs