Doc Watson Albums Ranked
Arthel Lane “Doc” Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson’s fingerstyle and flat-picking skills, as well as his knowledge of traditional American music, were highly regarded. Blind from a young age, he performed with his son, guitarist Merle Watson, for over 15 years until Merle’s death in 1985 in an accident on the family farm. Here are all of Doc Watson’s albums ranked.
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6. The Vanguard Years (1995)
“His simple singing style, alternating between ballads, rags and blues, often only involving himself and his masterful flat-picking guitar playing, is the embodiment of that stripped-down off-shoot of Country known loosely as Country-Folk. Like its “high-lonesome” cousin Bluegrass, Country-Folk rarely employs drums when more than one instrument is involved, relying instead on fiddles, guitars, banjos and harmonicas”
5. The Best Of Doc Watson (1964–1968) (1999)
“A great compilation from a great artist. Doc was one of a kind, and so is his music. Not for everyone, but for those who treasure music in its true form, not embellished in any manner. This a great collection of songs including my favorite arrangement of ‘Shady Grove’ that’s out there.”
4. Good Deal! Doc Watson In Nashville (1968)
“Doc Watson’s Southbound is a forgotten classic. There is something so intimate about this record. Simple, yet sophisticated, instrumentation, mixed with Watson’s unique and personable voice make this album a true gem. You get the feeling that he is both a re-imaginer of and an authentic artists of folk music.”
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3. Memories (1975)
“Many of these songs are performed with a full band–including drums–but the best performances are when the accompaniment is sparse, like on “Shady Grove,” “Keep on the Sunny Side” and “Double File and Salt Creek,” where it’s just Doc, his son Merle and a bass player. Especially enjoyable is when Merle plays slide guitar on tunes like “Curly Headed Baby,” “In the Jailhouse Now,” “Steel Guitar Rag” and “Wabash Cannonball,” the latter includes Sam Bush on fiddle. [In fact, Bush plays fiddle on six tracks in addition to playing mandolin on “Mama Don’t Allow No Music.”
2. Doc Watson (1964)
“The magic of Doc is that, within the simple structure of folk and bluegrass music, he weaves in so many fills and runs on his guitar. Its really quite amazing. If you’ve learned to play guitar (I took lessons for a few years), you can’t help but be in awe over how complex, light and clean his playing is.”
1. Southbound (1966)
“Southbound is an album anyone who likes the late Doc Watson’s music will love. His smooth delivery and his stellar guitar playing make this disk worth at least seven stars and maybe more. My daughter heard me playing this disk and when I was done listening, she swiped it. Yes, I did get it back, but now I know there’s another Doc Watson fan in the family. His music was even covered by the Kingston Trio with John Stewart.”